Study: autos cause $56 billion in hidden health costs

Air pollution is main cause

Steve Hawley, Oct 20, 09.

A new report from the National Research Council says that cars and trucks caused $56 billion in public health costs during 2005, primarily from air pollution, according to Streetsblog San Francisco. The report also found that US energy production caused an additional $64 billion in hidden costs. The National Research Council states, “The figure does not include damages from climate change, harm to ecosystems, effects of some air pollutants such as mercury, and risks to national security, which the report examines but does not monetize.” 2005 was the last year that data was available.

The report notes that transportation accounts for almost 30 percent of all US energy consumption. It also included some interesting findings:

Nonclimate-related damages for corn grain ethanol were similar to or slightly worse than gasoline, because of the energy needed to produce the corn and convert it to fuel. In contrast, ethanol made from herbaceous plants or corn stover—which are not yet commercially available—had lower damages than most other options.

Electric vehicles and grid-dependent (plug-in) hybrid vehicles showed somewhat higher nonclimate damages than many other technologies for both 2005 and 2030. Operating these vehicles produces few or no emissions, but producing the electricity to power them currently relies heavily on fossil fuels; also, energy used in creating the battery and electric motor adds up to 20 percent to the manufacturing part of life-cycle damages.

“In other words,” Streetsblog says, “hybrids and electric vehicles are still likely to consume serious amounts of coal—at least until the nation adopts an effective renewable electricity standard.”

It does not appear that the report factored in obesity, which may be partially linked to auto-dependency. A 2008 study estimated that every $1 increase in the price of gasoline could save $11 billion annually in health costs by encouraging people to get out of their cars and be more physically active.

The National Research Council report states that hidden costs represent market failures, because they are not factored in by consumers. It states that in the case of market failures, the government should intervene, perhaps through regulations, taxes, or tradeable permits such as those being debated in Congress.

Executive summary (pdf, 594 kb)
Full report: Hidden costs of energy: Unpriced consequences of energy production and use (must be purchased)