If you do an online search for the Great Horse Manure Crisis of 1894, you will find some exquisitely written, but ultimately nauseating, passages about the grim and potentially deadly pollution of the period.
They describe how the sheer volume of horses required to run city transportation in Europe and North America at that time had led to the streets being “literally carpeted with a warm, brown matting … smelling to heaven”.
That gem of a line is from The New Yorker magazine, by the way.
It is claimed that The Times newspaper of the day made the following prediction in print: “In 50 years, every street in London will be buried under nine feet of manure.”
Of course, we never discovered if they would prove to be correct as the motor car usurped the horse in the 20th century.
There is also some debate among historians about the actual extent of the crisis. The manure problem may have been exaggerated, and there is also the suggestion that the deeper cost of the reliance on horse-drawn transportation was the need to maintain a large-scale agricultural industry geared towards keeping the animals fed, which was an inefficient use of land and resources.
In any case, early motor cars were marketed as a “cleaner” alternative to literal horsepower. Yet cars have played a part in fuelling our current environmental crisis and, as the world tries to work together to limit global warming caused by greenhouse gases, we are searching for a solution to the pollution caused by cars.
How quickly will the electric car put the internal combustion engine out to pasture? The trend indicates it may be sooner than expected
In Europe and the US, consumption of petrol and diesel fuel in the transportation sector is a significant source of carbon dioxide emissions.
Transport was responsible for about a quarter of the EU’s total CO2 emissions in 2019, of which 71.7 per cent came from road transportation. In the US, cars accounted for about 30 per cent of total CO2 emissions last year. Globally, the emissions produced by passenger cars have been steadily rising over the past 20 years in particular.
Obviously, no one predicted the above outcome way back in the 19th century or even the early 20th century.
In our current climate emergency, the electrification of transport and the phasing out of the internal combustion engine that saved us more than a century ago are now being put forward as the solutions to our petrol and diesel driven woes.
How quickly will the electric car put the internal combustion engine out to pasture? The trend indicates it may be sooner than expected. Already, global sales of petrol and diesel cars have peaked and growth is now led entirely by electric vehicles.
According to a Bloomberg Green analysis of adoption rates around the world, 24 countries have passed 5 per cent of new car sales powered only by electricity.
The 5 per cent threshold signals the start of mass adoption. Canada, Australia, Spain, Thailand and Hungary as well as the US, China and most of Western Europe help make up the 24 who have crossed it.
IDC, a market intelligence provider, is forecasting 14 million units to be sold worldwide in 2023 – about 18 per cent of the overall market. Autonomous driving technology will also accelerate this going forward, IDC said.
While car makers might be pleased with themselves, I cannot but help think of the people of 1894 and what they could not know – and I wonder what it is we, in 2023, also do not understand about the choices we are making.
Global warming, greenhouse gas emissions and the melting polar ice caps were not part of 19th-century thinking. So, the motor car being presented as the answer to their horse-driven problem would have seemed like an elegant solution. It only served to kick the can down the very long road to the 21st century and we now know the impact of embracing the internal combustion engine.
It is, of course, not as simple as that. Motorisation has brought many benefits too. Yet we are now being advised that EVs can help alleviate our modern pollution crisis. Of course there will be benefits from this.
However, we should also ask how EVs might bring us more problems in the future that could put our lives at risk.
The first thought is about resources and that despite not being a gas guzzler, an electric car needs to consume other things. For example, each EV needs graphite, cobalt and lithium for its batteries.
Reuters reported in June that manufacturers, including Tesla and Mercedes, were seeking graphite supply from outside China, which is the dominant producer. New graphite producers, such as Madagascar and Mozambique, are set to emerge as powers in this sector.
The consequences of such developments could be myriad and both negative and positive. Could a race for such resources cause more conflict while creating wealth for generations? Definitely.
Could the widespread use of electric cars help usher in a new and bigger crisis than global warming? You don’t need to hear it from the horse’s mouth to know the answer to that question. Yes, it very well could.
Top 10 most polluted cities
- Bhiwadi, India
- Ghaziabad, India
- Hotan, China
- Delhi, India
- Jaunpur, India
- Faisalabad, Pakistan
- Noida, India
- Bahawalpur, Pakistan
- Peshawar, Pakistan
- Bagpat, India
About Okadoc
Date started: Okadoc, 2018
Founder/CEO: Fodhil Benturquia
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Healthcare
Size: (employees/revenue) 40 staff; undisclosed revenues recording “double-digit” monthly growth
Funding stage: Series B fundraising round to conclude in February
Investors: Undisclosed
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
What is blockchain?
Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.
The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.
Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.
However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.
Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Power: 650hp at 6,750rpm
Torque: 800Nm from 2,500-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel consumption: 11.12L/100km
Price: From Dh796,600
On sale: now
The%20specs
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh359,000
On sale: now
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo
Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic
Power: 242bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Price: Dh136,814
The specs: Fenyr SuperSport
Price, base: Dh5.1 million
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 800hp @ 7,100pm
Torque: 980Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 13.5L / 100km
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Racecard
6.35pm: American Business Council – Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
7.10pm: British Business Group – Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,200m
7.45pm: CCI France UAE – Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (D) 1,400m
8.20pm: Czech Business Council – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh105,000 (D) 1,400m
8.55pm: Netherlands Business Council – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh95,000 (D) 1,600m
9.30pm: Indian Business and Professional Council – Handicap (TB) Dh95,000 (D) 1,200m
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
if you go
The flights
Air Astana flies direct from Dubai to Almaty from Dh2,440 per person return, and to Astana (via Almaty) from Dh2,930 return, both including taxes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Ritz-Carlton Almaty cost from Dh1,944 per night including taxes; and in Astana the new Ritz-Carlton Astana (www.marriott) costs from Dh1,325; alternatively, the new St Regis Astana costs from Dh1,458 per night including taxes.
When to visit
March-May and September-November
Visas
Citizens of many countries, including the UAE do not need a visa to enter Kazakhstan for up to 30 days. Contact the nearest Kazakhstan embassy or consulate.
