The automotive industry’s approach to climate change and its focus on low carbon vehicles
By Paul Everitt, chief executive, Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders
The UK motor industry is a diverse and dynamic industry committed to helping the UK demonstrate its low carbon credentials as it moves towards an era of sustainable motoring. Over the past decade, the pace of improvements picked up considerably as vehicle manufacturers focused on increasing the fuel efficiency of their vehicles and cutting CO2 emissions. The future will see further technological progress, producing increasingly efficient vehicles and utilising alternative power technologies. This continued effort and the steps taken to improve the whole vehicle lifecycle further, from production to disposal, aims to bring about an even lower carbon future.
Research and Development The automotive sector is Europe’s largest investor in research and development, investing €20 billion a year. Some of the most notable developments, in terms of fuel efficiency and cutting emissions, go beyond the improvements made to conventional petrol and diesel power trains. Development of electric, hybrid and fuel cell vehicles has never been higher with almost every manufacturer exploring the alternative fuel options. These technologies all have the potential to become viable alternatives to traditional power trains, but significant research and development is required, along with investment in consumer awareness and infrastructure needs.
While technology remains in the development phase, government should adopt a neutral position rewarding emission reductions rather than identifying a single future technology.
Automotive Council and NAIGT The work of the New Automotive Innovation and Growth Team (NAIGT), and the subsequent creation of an Automotive Council aims to ensure the UK motor industry remains a global force, playing a significant role in the development of exciting, low carbon transport solutions.
Working to achieve this, the Automotive Council will promote collaboration between industry, research communities and government. It will encourage the development of an integrated strategy underpinned by a supportive, long-term regulatory, fiscal and planning framework, to make the UK the location of choice for development, demonstration and marketing of low carbon vehicles and fuels.
The Automotive Council has established a strategic partnership between industry and government which will help sustain industrial capability, and place the UK as a leader in the development and exploitation of low carbon vehicle technologies.
The Council will provide active support for Test Bed UK, a large-scale pilot scheme to demonstrate and build the new low-carbon personal transportation system of the future, including its infrastructure. It will also provide strategic support for automotive research and development, through the NAIGT’s technology roadmap. The roadmap aims to cut emissions from vehicles over the next 30 years, integrating all existing technology.
Future technologies In the near future the traditional combustion engine can still be further improved. Manufacturers are continually employing numerous approaches to aid the reduction in emissions from petrol and diesel engines, such as fitting low rolling resistance tyres, improving aerodynamics and introducing engine stop-start technology.
Recently government announced part-funding for one of the largest trials of ultra-low carbon vehicles in the world and committed to up to £230 million for consumer incentives. In the short to medium-term, the development of the electric engine will continue to make it a viable choice not just for city motoring but, when working in tandem with the next generation internal combustion engines, an option for longer journeys as well.
Finally, looking further to the future, it is expected that mass-market electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids and fuel cell vehicles will play an increasingly large part in the automotive mix. These developments, subject to infrastructure and technology keeping pace with requirements, present significant opportunities for the UK, both in terms of overseas investment and further environmental advances.
One factor that we can be sure of is the consistently high levels of environmental demands made by government and motorists and the equally high levels of development, improvement and ambition that the UK automotive industry consistently demonstrates.
ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |127|
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