Bengt Halvorson at The Car Connection has posted a critical look at the controversy over the total and complete environmental cost of hybrid vehicles. Yes, they do offer better fuel economy and lower overall emissions, but some critics and analysts say recycling and production costs--including the mining of materials needed for batteries--create an overall larger environmental footprint than a gas-guzzling Hummer.

Much of this debate falls back on a study from CNW Marketing Research that states hybrids use more energy in their lifetime than a large SUV. This dust-to-dust analysis has been blasted by an official at the Union of Concerned Scientists, saying the study was contradicted by MIT and other scientific communities. Toyota has also rejected the study, saying it doesn't reflect the data the automaker has compiled in its lifecycle analysis.

I won't go into all the points raised in Halvorson's lengthy story, which offers the argument that environmental damage and energy are not synonymous. But the biggest problem with engaging in a serious debate is that CNWMR won't release its data or methodology from its report for critical peer review. Meanwhile, the report's conclusions are often stated as fact throughout conservative and anti-environmental commentary.

Related:

• Hummer vs Prius Redux: This time to Hummer? I don't think so!

[Source: Bengt Halvorson /The Car Connection]

First, you have to read the clever article by a newbie Prius owner that is linked in the first sentence of biodiversivist's latest Grist blog. Then you must take a good 15 or 20 minutes to digest another view of a premise suggesting hybrids consume the same "dust to dust" energy as a Hummer H3. That means the total energy needed to assemble, operate, service and recycle a vehicle. Based on exhaustive data compiled by CNW Marketing Research, a Scion xB is the greenest at just .49 cents per mile while a Mercedes-Benz Maybach is the worst at just under $16 per mile.

Biodiversivist read the entire 400-page report, admittedly through green-colored glasses. He accepts that a hybrid such as a Prius (shown being assembled in Toyota City, Japan) would use more energy during its lifecycle, given that CNW has placed its lifecycle at 109,000 miles while giving SUV 197,000 miles. But he also acknowledges that the cost and energy required to build and maintain these specialty vehicles will come down as production numbers increase.

Bio's report is long and involved, and I'm not going to condense it any more. I found nothing out of order with his position, and I also found nothing I could personally challenge from the report. CNW will not release all the raw data, so an independent review is out of the question.

Snob or not, bio certainly isn't ready to give up his Prius.

[Source: biodiverersivist / Grist]