Lifecycle CO2e: Understanding Emissions Across Vehicle Segments and Policies

Background

The environmental impacts of road transport extend well beyond the emissions of road vehicles at the tailpipe. With the increased electrification of road transport and the introduction of new renewable fuels, it’s vital to understand the lifecycle impacts involved in the production of energy/fuels for transport and in their manufacturing and disposal processes.

Zemo Partnership has been at the forefront of exploring vehicle lifecycle CO2e emissions and has commissioned three past studies to strengthen understanding. Zemo Partnership will be partnering with the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC) in this work. The project will also explore the wider lifecycle environmental impacts of a variety of low/zero emission vehicles and low carbon fuels, examining how these can be measured, mitigated and developed into future policy. 

Objectives

  • To understand the impacts of adjusting various assumptions in each stage of the vehicle lifecycle in terms of total CO2e emissions for different vehicle segments, powertrains and fuels
  • To examine how lifecycle thinking can be integrated in low carbon vehicle policy and into automotive manufacturing
  • To understand wider sustainability impacts associated with moving to a zero-emission transport system and how these can be managed

Actions & Outputs

  • This work will be informed through a desk-based analysis by Zemo Partnership and sharing findings with members - Ongoing. 
  • Zemo Partnership and APC will a hold a series of webinars to raise awareness of lifecycle environmental impacts beyond climate change related to zero emission vehicles and low carbon fuels - Completed. 

Engagement is intended to take place across Zemo Partnership working groups including Fuels, Passenger Car, Commercial Vehicle and Bus, as well as the APC’s National Networks.

Timeline

July 2020 - March 2021

Deliverables    
Building an environmentally conscious industry Download Watch
Closing the end-of-life loop Download Watch
Energising a sustainable future Download Watch
Securing a sustainable supply chain Download Watch
Vehicle emissions - widening the lens Download Watch

Resources

2019 LowCVP Seminar

Below are the presentations from the morning session of the LCA seminar held on 28th November 2019

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If you want to get involved in the work of one or more of Zemo Partnership's Working Groups, why not join us, or contact the Secretariat for more information.

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