The morning air is fresh, the birds are out, and the sound of an engine revs as a puff of smoke rises from a car on the way to work. New Zealand’s abundant natural resources contrast drastically with the high level of pollution and emissions created solely from cars. New Zealand’s rivers and lakes, lush greenery, and unique wildlife serve as the assets that define New its outdoorsy reputation and beautiful landscape. With that in mind, it seems imperative that New Zealanders be mindful of preserving their home environment, yet great changes must be made in the general attitude towards transportation in order to do so. Heather Staley, Chief Executive of the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority, describes this problem saying, “The transport sector is New Zealand’s hungriest energy user, consuming around 43% of energy and responsible for 46% of carbon dioxide emissions”.1 Additionally, New Zealand has the sixth highest number of cars per capita in the world, at around 481 cars for every 1000 people. This means that for every square km, there are 25.26 vehicles. These vehicles then produce about 34,917,991,991 metric tons of Carbon Dioxide emissions per year.2 Permitting this exorbitant level of carbon emissions jeopardizes the future of the environment New Zealanders value so much.

These statistics make clear a need for a sustainable alternative to transportation. The solution lies in hybrid cars, hydrogen-powered vehicles, and electric cars. Hybrid cars use both a fuel-powered engine and an electric motor for power, reducing the car’s emissions to 50% of the entirely fuel-powered car. Hydrogen-powered cars are a work in progress, the idea being that the car uses hydrogen as fuel, mixing this hydrogen with oxygen in a fuel cell and yielding energy from this reaction to power the car. Electric cars are powered by electric motors instead of petrol. These motors receive energy from a controller that monitors the driver’s use of the acceleration pedal, and then distributes power as needed. In addition, the electric car has a rechargeable battery (that uses common household electricity) providing stored power to power the car. The hydrogen-powered car and electric car both produce zero emissions.

These improvements in car technology have reached the attention of New Zealand government officials, and they make clear their support. In 2007, Prime Minister Helen Clark exposed her plan to deplete transport greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by the year 2040, and hopefully use renewable energy sources for 90% of New Zealand’s electricity by 2025. Deemed the “Energy Strategy to 2050”, this plan intends to integrate more and more hybrid and electric vehicles into New Zealand, predicting that electric vehicles will have 5 % of market share by 2020 and 60% by 2040, while hydrogen-powered vehicles would make up another 25% of the market by 2040.3 The government plans to see that 80% of vehicles are equipped for fuel comprised of at least 10% biofuel by 2015. “Upgrading the fuel economy of new vehicles by 25% by 2025 will allow cumulative fuel savings of 1.2 billion gallons and cut carbon emissions by 13 million short tons”.4 This significant reduction in carbon emissions, and the economical benefits make the logic behind the “Energy Strategy to 2050” clear. It is time for New Zealand to take advantage of its plentiful renewable energy sources, and transition to become a significant factor in the rise of environmentally friendly vehicles.

Meridian Energy Company is leading the transition in New Zealand, importing over a dozen electric cars in attempt to spread information on the car and generate interest in this environmentally friendly option. The car being imported is Mitsubishi’s iMiev, an electric version of the small, spunky, gas-fueled car already on the market.5 Most car companies are looking in the direction of a commercial electric car, and many are already on the roads in the United States, Europe, and Japan. New Zealand has the potential to be the next leader in this environmental movement. Isn’t that fresh breath of air worth it?

1. “Fuel Economy and Environment in the Driver’s Seat”. New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development. 3 July 2009. http://www.nzbcsd.org.nz/story

2. “World Statistics”. 2009. Nationmaster.com. 3 July 2009. http://www.nationmaster.com/index.php

3. “Electric Cars: A Definitive Guide”. 2009. HybridCars.com. 3 July 2009.

http://www.hybridcars.com/electric-car

4. “New Zealand to Battle CO2 With Electric Cars”. MSNBC. 2007. The Associated Press. 3 July 2009, http://www.msnbc.msn.com

5. “Electric Cars- Is the Future Here?”. AA. 2009. NZAA Inc. 3 July 2009. http://www.aa.co.nz

ENDS

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