Ford and Mercedes-Benz lead the automotive world in working to clean up their supply chains, according to a new report with rankings endorsed by a labor and environmental civil society coalition. But the car industry is far from achieving a “truly clean car” and progress is “lackluster,” the scorecard notes. Car companies are increasingly embracing electric vehicles as a new market opportunity exposed by worsening climate and biodiversity crises. But, while electric vehicles have no tailpipe emissions, there are a lot more factors involved in producing a car: steel, tires, batteries and people affected along the supply chain. The mining and manufacturing of these metal-dense machines puts heavy burdens on landscapes, Indigenous peoples and workers. It’s not enough for a car to be EV to be considered truly “clean,” the report says. The Lead the Charge coalition assembled 80 measures of what a clean car supply chain would look like, ranking the top 18 automakers against it. The indicators include policies and actions to promote using recycled materials, sustainable mining practices, unions and efforts to reduce emissions. The intention, the coalition says, is to encourage competition among firms pushing their suppliers to achieve responsible practices. The ranking is in its second year, but car companies still have large blind spots, the authors say, especially related to the rights of Indigenous peoples to free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) on mining projects. “What the scorecard shows me is that the automotive industry is really not ready to participate in the supply…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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