Electric cars produce less pollution – while running. Producing sufficient electricity to charge the batteries, however, produces pollution. If your power company generates that power from solar or wind, great. If, as is true for much of the world, the power is generated by burning fossil fuels an electric car can be more polluting. Pour gas into a car and create pollution. Pour oil into a power plant and produce energy more efficiently, but then lose some of that power in transmission, lose some of that power in battery efficiency, and the total power that must be produced at the plant exceeds the total that must be produced in the engine. Electric cars can still be a benefit though because the pollution is centralized and easier to manage, the pollution is remote which leaves cities cleaner, and more efficient electrical power sources can be substituted without changing the vehicles people drive.
“Your Electric Vehicle Might Not Be As Green As You Think It Is” – Grist
Pretending Not To Panic 