Switching to EVs and clean power would save infant lives, help millions of kids breathe easier: Report

The transition to electric vehicles (EVs) and clean power could save infants’ lives and help millions of children breathe easier, according to new research from the American Lung Association.

The organization said in a report released Wednesday that a transition to clean electricity and EVs would “dramatically improve” the health of children across the U.S.

The report predicts children's health would improve if all new passenger vehicles sold by 2035 were zero-emission, all new trucks sold by 2040 were zero-emission and the country’s electric grid became powered by all clean energy by 2035.

From 2020 to 2050, the report found, clean energy investments could prevent up to 2.79 million pediatric asthma attacks, 147,000 pediatric acute bronchitis cases, more than 4 million respiratory symptoms and more than 500 infant mortality cases.

“Air pollution harms children’s health and wellbeing today, and the transportation sector is a leading source of air pollution,” Harold Wimmer, president and CEO of the American Lung Association, said in a statement. “Vehicle emissions are also nation’s biggest source of carbon pollution that drives climate change and associated public health harms.”

California two years ago became the first state to ban the sale of gas-powered cars starting in 2035. Officials in other states, like Washington, Oregon, Virginia, Massachusetts and New York, have announced similar plans in an effort to increase the number of zero-emissions vehicles on the road. The measures are intended to limit contributions to climate change and also protect public health by lowering pollution levels.

Researchers have also found that climate-fueled extreme weather has disproportionately affected children’s health. More than 27 million children live in counties that received a failing grade for unhealthy levels of an air pollutant and children with asthma or lung diseases are at greater risk, the American Lung Association's 2023 State of the Air report found.

“Low-income communities and many communities of color too often bear disproportionate burdens from air pollution broadly, and transportation pollution, specifically,” the report said. “Kids in these communities are at greater risk.”

The American Lung Association urged the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to finalize pollution limits for new cars so the country can transition to zero-emission vehicles.

The organization's report follows the news that the Biden administration is expected to loosen its rules for the country’s switch to EVs, effectively allowing a smaller percentage of a manufacturer's fleet to be electric by 2030 than under President Biden’s initial proposal.

While EVs have become more popular and environmental groups have urged the public to make the transition, current electric sales are not meeting the Biden administration’s projections, which estimate zero-emissions vehicles making up two-thirds of sales by 2032.

Political opposition, including among auto workers, has forced Biden to walk a tightrope ahead of the November election.