Overview
Could you write a substantive response to that?
Providing evidence: Supporting your response with credible evidence, such as GPS readings, landmarks, or photos
Asking questions: Asking open-ended questions that encourage further discussion
Offering illustrations: Providing examples or illustrations to support a key point
Pointing out inconsistencies: Identifying inconsistencies in an argument
Suggesting alternatives: Proposing alternatives to a proposed project and explaining why they should be considered
use APA style and sources to back up evidence to the response
No AI or plagiarism
at least of 100 words each response
Citations should be included at the end of any sentence where you mention information you read from a source. Even if you paraphrase, you must cite the source.
1. Regarding our conversation last week, I know youre pretty dead set on purchasing an electric vehicle this weekend. I support any decision you make, but Im taking an environmental science class right now at CTC and I want to make sure you at least know what you're getting in to. EV's look "cool", and i get it, Tesla is incredibly prestigious, but EVs aren't as perfect as they look, and there are some reasons that even I didn't know about that may change your perception. According to Mckinsey and Company, "An EV has roughly double the production footprint of a typical internal-combustion-engine (ICE) vehicle" (Linder, Naucler,Nekovar, Pfeiffer, Vekic, 2025). If this quote alone doesn't grab your attention, I don't know what will!
For starters, as an environmental science student, consider this. While EVs don’t produce tailpipe emissions like a 64' corvette, their batteries are made using precious metals like lithium and cobalt, which are typically mined in ways that aren't the best for the environment. What you may think you're "saving" by not having an exhaust, is actually paid forward by mining for the materials to build the battery. These mining operations destroy ecosystems and use an exhaust emissions system currently. Most people don't consider the fact that the vehicles used to mine for EV's use an exhaust system. "In mining, the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) has committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 or earlier."(Owen, 2022). This quote demonstrates that mining companies are moving in the "right direction", but won't be complete for another 25 years. Don't buy that vehicle this weekend!
Second, battery production itself can be terrible for the environment, after the metals have been mined. "While electric vehicles are clean, their batteries are highly carbon intensive to produce. Leading manufacturers are moving fast to try to fix that." (Linder, Naucler,Nekovar, Pfeiffer, Vekic, 2025) Studies have shown that manufacturing an EV—especially the battery—can generate more emissions than building a traditional gas-powered car. It will take you years of driving and miles just to break even on that carbon footprint, especially if the electricity used to charge it isn’t from a clean source. I'm sure youll be excited to drive your Tesla around and get your money worth, but consider how long youd have to own that car in order for it to be considered an "environmentally conscious decision".
Now that Ive told you my opinions from an environmental science students perspective, i will tell you just my perspective alone, no college involved. Consider the charging issue. As Marines, we are asked to drive a lot. You could receive orders and be tasked with moving across the country in 30 days. With an EV, you can't just "fill up" in the nearest small town. Let's just assume that you are willing to spend the money to have a charger at home, what about when you are not at home? You are literally at the mercy of whatever county or city you are in. Will they have frequent charging stations? Will there be one open? Will it always work? These are all questions to consider before you go to that dealership brother. Im not sure what roadside assistance plan you have, but most of them can bring you a can of gas, can they bring you some volts of electricity?
Additionally, consider the time it takes to charge an EV . As Marines, you are no stranger to maybe working until midnight (unexpectedly) and then needing to be present for duty early the next morning. Or needing to be somewhere in the blink of an eye."Furthermore, the exact amount of time required to charge an EV can vary dramatically based on different factors. Completing the task can take as little as 15 minutes or as long as 40 hours or more." (Clarke, 2025). Do you really see yourself having 40 hours to charge your singular mode of transportation? I can't answer that for you, maybe on a weekend you do, but is that better than the 10 minutes takes to refuel a gas powered vehicle?
Third, nothing good last forever. Think about when you will eventually have to replace the battery. Over time, your EV’s range will shrink, and replacing a battery out-of-pocket can cost thousands. "EV batteries can range from approximately $8,000 to $25,000." (Venditti, 2023). That is essentially the price of buying one, or maybe two, gas powered vehicles. Keep in mind that is just for the battery, not including tires and other general maintenance issues. Id hate to see you purchase and EV, with an environmentally irresponsible battery, and pay $25,000 for it every few years..
Lastly, its not even like EV's are cheap upfront. If the vehicles were cheap, then maybe you could offset the battery replacement costs eventually. However that is not the case. "According to the latest data from Kelley Blue Book, the average transaction price for electric cars was $55,273 in February, 3.7% higher than the same time last year."(Valdez, 2025)
Through our discussion, I hope you see why from an environmental stance, time, as well as money, purchasing an EV is not the best option. I will still go with you this weekend if you aren’t convinced, but I urge you to read my words, and the sources cited, and make the most educated decision!
Sources:
McKinsey & Company. "The Race to Decarbonize Electric-Vehicle Batteries." McKinsey & Company, 23 Feb. 2023, .
Owen, Will. "Electrifying Mining Operations." Global Mining Review, 1 Oct. 2022, https://www.globalminingreview.com/special-reports/01102022/electrifying-mining-operations/.
Clarke, Warren. "How Long Does It Take to Charge an Electric Car?" U.S. News & World Report, 16 Feb. 2024, https://cars.usnews.com/cars-trucks/advice/ev-charging-time.
Valdez, Renee. "How Much Does an Electric Car Cost?" Kelley Blue Book, 19 Mar. 2024, https://www.kbb.com/car-advice/how-much-electric-car-cost/.
2. Why shouldn't you buy an Electric Vehicle (EV)? To begin, a couple environmental issues related to EV's are the side effects of mining the ore and materials needed for the batteries, and the negative effects they have on the environment. The different minerals in the batteries requires mining, "Mining these minerals is energy-intensive and can lead to environmental degradation, including soil erosion and water contamination (Marybeth. 2025). As for the minerals, there's a lot of energy consumed in extracting and processing them, relying on fossil fuels, contributing to greenhouse gas emissions. (Marybeth. 2025). Electric Car batteries, more specifically lithium-ion types, require lithium ore mining. Some of the side effects of this type of mining include "Biodiversity loss, CO2 emissions, air contamination, and water loss" (Rees. 2023). The other metals in the EV batteries, such as cobalt and nickel, also have some dangerous side effects, such as "High CO2 emissions, water pollution, and decreased crop yields" (Rees. 2023).
Generally, a reason why you shouldn't buy an EV is due to its limited range. Many electric cars have a range of around 100 to 300 miles on a single charge (Marybeth. 2025). This makes longer rides more inconvenient since you have to plan by finding charging stations already on your route, whereas, with gas-fueled vehicles, it's a lot easier to find a gas station. Another reason is that fully charging a car takes much longer than a gas fill-up. A public fast charger typically takes about 30 minutes to charge an EV, from 10 to 80 percent (Marybeth. 2025). The 30 minutes it takes to charge an EV wastes time on the road. That's 30 minutes for public charging specifically; chargers at home or work tend to take hours or even overnight (Marybeth. 2025). Another negative is the cost of an EV. For starters, "The government will give you up to $7,500" for owning an EV (Horn. 2023). Regular batteries cost anywhere from $200 to $500 for a new battery; batteries for EVs will cost around $10,000 to $15,000, for Teslas specifically. Lastly, I found that there's a burning issue with EVs, as they're not as easy to put out because they can't be taken care of by water and require a special kind of foam; the cause of the fire is due to the thermal runaway (Horn. 2023). These battery fires start due to faults or defects in the battery design (Hurst. 2023). Although it's rare for the battery to catch fire, putting it out is another thing to worry about. As mentioned earlier, water won't really work, so a recommendation is to completely submerge the vehicle in water (Hurst. 2023).
Work Cited
Katie Rees. 2023. 5 Ways Electric Cars Are Bad for the Environment. Published Jan. 20, 2025. Accessed Apr. 4, 25.
https://www.makeuseof.com/why-are-electric-cars-ba...
Gerhard Hom. 2023. 10 Reasons Why Electric Cars Still Suck. Published Sep. 1, 2023. Accessed Apr. 4, 2025.
https://carbuzz.com/features/10-reasons-why-electr...
Marybeth. 2025. 11 Reasons Not to Buy an Electric Car. Published Jan. 17, 2025. Accessed Apr. 4, 2025.
https://electriccartalks.com/reasons-not-to-buy-an...
Zack Hurst. 2023. Burning Issues: The TRUTH About EV Battery Fires... Part One. Published May 6, 2023. Accessed Apr. 4, 2025. https://www.ev-resource.com/articles/burning-issue...