TreeHugger

Heatwave Recalls Thousands of Green Volvos

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 05:30:53 -0500

As long as your Volvo's going to the frozen north, no problem. Photo via miljobil.se. This week, a massive Baltic storm dumped rain all over Sweden and returned us to the damp and chilly summers we've come to expect. But last week? Last week Sweden seemed more like Mexico - warm, truly hot actually, with tons of sunshine. Swedes, who traditional flee their jobs for the month of July, were hoping against hope that the weather would hold as they got in their cars and sped off to their summer stugor. Well, the weather held (for awhile) but if they ]]>...

The Dutch Master Bike (Super Duper Limited Edition) by Core77

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:36:31 -0500

Photo: Core77 The Secret Ingredient is Love Our friends at Core77 know beautiful design, but they're really surpassed themselves with the Dutch Master super-duper-limited edition bike. The goal is to celebrate New York bike culture, and an heritage of local manufacturing. Only 25 Dutch Master bikes have been made, all hand built by in Brooklyn by KT Higgins. More details and photos below.]]>...

An Idea That Won't Go Away: Standing-Room Only on Airplanes

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 09:11:00 -0500

New York Times, from an earlier proposal for standup flying Three years ago we wrote about the Airbus proposal (quickly denied) for standing-room seating (Now We Know Why They are Called Airbuses) noting that there might be TreeHugger benefits:

We suppose there could be a TreeHugger case that more people crammed in means less fuel burned per person, and we also suspect that it will end deep vein thrombosis, but generally we think it gives new meaning to Flying is Dying.

Now the id]]>...

Tesla, Hybrids, Fuel Cells: Positive TV Visits Eco Rally (Video)

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 08:33:50 -0500

Image credit: Positive TV Positive TV Highlights Solutions Not Problems Back when I lived in the UK, I used to occasionally pick up issues of Positive News at festivals or activist gatherings. While the concept of a newspaper dedicated to covering upbeat, optimistic stories was appealing - ultimately the print format meant that stories were not covered in great enough depth to give the details of what was going on (a critique that could equally be applied to blogs I suppose...). That]]>...

Is Pet Airways Un-TreeHugger?

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 07:41:47 -0500

wrote about Pet Airways, which ships Fido and Fluffy around America by turboprop, she put it in the Un-TreeHugger category and called it frivolous and a waste of energy. To our surprise, commenters disagreed vehemently, calling us UnFun TreeHugger and worse.

Pet Air: Who Do You Agree With?

EPA Wants to Clean Up Large Ocean-Going Ships

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 16:25:02 -0500

Canada Could Also Adopt an Harmonized Regulation In a similar vein to what California is doing with ocean-going ships, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed a new set of rules under the Clean Air Act that would require all U.S. flagged ocean-going vessels to meet stricter diesel engine and fuel standards, leading to cleaner air along the coasts of the US (and Canada, who's also working on a similar regulation).]]>...

Evolt Bull1 MX: An Electric Motocross from Italy

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 13:12:07 -0500

Photo: Evolt A Dirt Bike Without the Noise and Fumes The Zero X is probably the electric dirt bike that has been getting the most attention lately (there's also the Zero S street-legal version), but others are tossing their hats in the ring. Evolt from Italy showcased its Bull1 electric dirt bike at the Milan International Cycle and motorcycle E]]>...

UnTreeHugger: Pet Airways.

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 12:30:00 -0500

Image via: Pet Airways Thanks to the gang over at Daily Candy for this little tip. For just USD$149 each way (starting price), you can ship Fido, Fluffy and all of your four-legged family members around the US on the newly minted Pet Airways. ]]>...

Japan Passes US and Becomes Biggest Market for Hybrid Cars

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 11:22:01 -0500

Photo: Toyota 8% of New Car Sales in Japan Were Hybrids in June Until June 2009, the USA was the biggest market for hybrid cars. But now Japan has taken the lead, in good part thanks to factors such as higher fuel taxes (gasoline costs about $4.50/gallon) and tax exemption for hybrids. 30,000 hybrids have been sold, a number that represents about 8% of new car sales in the country, and that's despite a 7-month waiting list for the they took down their expressways. In New York, they built the High Line on top of an abandoned elevated rail line. In Toronto, they don't have the guts to tear down the Gardiner expressway, so architect Les Klein has come up with the typical compromise solution: Put a High Line on top of the expressway.]]>...

Burger King Installing Speed Bumps That Generate Electricity

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 09:35:30 -0500

26 second video of MotionPower concept For years we have complained that all these schemes to harvest energy from moving cars, like the recent installation at a Curitiba's great Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, but that's not all the Brazilian city has to teach us. Our friends at StreetFilms write: "In 1972 under the direction of then Mayor Jaime Lerner, it became the first major pedestrian street in Brazil. The first phase of closing the street took place in only 72 hours. At first the project was unpopular, but today is seen as a success and spans 15 blocks." Check out ]]>...

London Gets 6 Hybrid Double Deck Buses From Volvo

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 15:30:26 -0500

Photo: Volvo Saving Fuel, Cleaning Up the Air, Reducing Traffic Six new hybrid double deck buses will provide service on Route 141 in London. The B5L Hybrid Double Deck is made by Volvo and uses the company's I-SAM (Integrated Starter, Alternator, Motor) technology, which was developed for use across the whole group's heavy vehicles. No specific figure yet on fuel economy, CO2, or NOx emissions, but a Volvo 7700 Hybrid Single Deck in Gothenburg has been showing better than expected fuel economy (around 30% improvement). London might show even better results since the stops are closer to each other.]]>...

The 2010 Toyota Prius Hybrid Got a Bladderectomy

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:30:56 -0500

2010 Toyota Prius. Photo: Toyota Adieu Low-Emission Bladder Anyone with a working sense of smell who has been to a gas station knows that gasoline is volatile ("Over 147 million gallons of gas evaporate from tanks each year."). To keep evaporation to a minimum, the previous generations of the Toyota Prius hybrid were equipped with a special "bladder" gas tank that kept the fumes to a minimum by expanding and contracting with the fuel volume, minimizing the air gap over the fuel, thus reducing the fumes that can find their way]]>...

Brazil to Build Solar-Powered Charging Stations for Electric Vehicles

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 13:45:38 -0500

Photo: Flickr, CC "Electric Vehicles" Mostly Means Electric Bikes, So Far... Petrobras, the semi-public Brazilian oil giant (the government of Brazil owns 55.7% of Petrobras' common shares with voting rights), has just built the first of what it hopes will be many electric charging stations. It is located in the Barra de Tijuca neighbourhood of Rio de Janeiro because that area has the most electric motorcycles and bikes in circulation in the country.]]>...

Play Lone Ranger With Plant-Fueled Horse (Tonto Not Included)

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 12:25:24 -0500

Photo courtesy of Coroflot Project Nomad is a mechanical vehicle concept by designer Jason Battersby. The vehicle--designed like a horse--can climb steep grades and even navigate rocks and boulders. Best part, it finds its own fuel. Using a built-in GPS system, the horse seeks out

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 07:23:01 -0500

Scrap tire stockpile. Image credit:En-Tek It might be efficient to unlock the energy in old tires, which are, after all, derived from petroleum. It might be relatively non-polluting to recover heat from burning tire bits if adequate emission controls are deployed. But, who would propose a law defining something made from petroleum as "renewable?" Some Ohio State legislators did, apparently. ]]>...

Montreal has Bixi and a Great Bike Lane System

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 05:06:05 -0500

As noted before, Montreal has its own public bike-sharing programme, Bixi, which is proving to be a great success with 3,000 bicycles in 300 different locations. But Montreal was already a cycling-friendly city, with the Bixis complementing an already energetic scene. Not that many people seem to wear helmets but the city's highly sophisticated system of 4 different kinds of bike lanes make cycling seem almost to be a safe and friendlier thing to do. ]]>...

Green Ways to Light Up Your Bike: Good, Bad, Out There (Slideshow)

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 03:01:14 -0500

36widgets @ flickr. Seeing and being seen is really important when bike riding - TreeHugger Lloyd quotes a stat from the NY Times that says 45% of fatal bike accidents are in "low-light" situations. But can you be well-lit and green? A trip to the TreeHugger archives reveals myriad bike light solutions that haven't made it past the pilot stage. But the answer is yes - if you are an urban rider, click forward to see the greenest ways to l]]>...

Toyota to Mass-Produce Plug-In Hybrid in 2012... For $48,000!

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 16:04:19 -0500

Photo: Michael Graham Richard Too Bad the Electric Range is Pathetic Certainly, it's a good thing that Toyota will start mass-producing a plug-in hybrid. But once you look at the numbers and specs, the news doesn't sound quite as good anymore. The company plans to produce about 20,000-30,000 plug-in hybrids (almost certainly based on the 3rd generation Toyota Prius), but sadly, the PHEVs will only have a range of 20-30 km (12.4-18.6 miles). What the hell is that, Toyota? A smaller electric rang]]>...

VW Announces Electric Car for 2013, Warns Against "Electro-Hype"

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 11:50:27 -0500

Photo: VW What's Worse: Electro-Hype or Electro-Apathy? During a speech in Münich, Dr. Martin Winterkorn, the Chairman of the Board of Volkswagen AG, said that VW would introduce its first electric car in 2013 and that it will be based on the same as the Up! New Small Family concept that was unveiled in 2007 (see the pics below). He didn't talk too much about the technical specifications of that VW electric car, but rather warned people against the evils of "electroc-hype", estimating that electric vehicles would have a "global market share of 1 to 1.5% in 2020." Let's take a closer look at his arguments...]]>...

Chinese Government Raises Fuel Prices by 10% (That's Good!)

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 10:24:48 -0500

Those prices are in Yuans per liter, I think. Fuel Subsidies Punish Virtue The Chinese government has recently decided to raise fuel prices by about 10%, the third increase in the past few months, following a 6-7% increase on June 1st, and a 3-5% increase in March. The stated goal is to bring the price of fuel in China closer to what the market price is. From a green point of view, this is good because subsidized fossil fuels only encourages waste, over-consumption, and the buying of vehicles that aren't fuel efficient. It also artificially reduces the competitiveness of technologies that aren't based on fossil fuels, slowing down their adop]]>...

Brompton World Championships: Open for Entries (Video)

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 08:56:09 -0500

Annual Folding Bike Race Ready for Entrants OK - I apologize for reusing the video from the 2007 event in Spain, but the 2008 Brompton World Championships seem to have been so much fun that nobody had the time to take a decent video. Nevertheless, the annual celebration of all th]]>...

DOYOUVelo: Chic Reversable Clothing for Cyclists

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 08:00:30 -0500

folding bike helmet earlier; it was developed for DOYOUVelo, a company that makes chic, reversable clothing that looks good on the street and looks loud on the bike. ]]>...

UK Electronics Retailer Offers Free Electric Car Charging (Video)

Sun, 05 Jul 2009 08:48:35 -0500

Image credit: Autoblog Green Comet trialling free EV charging Every time we talk about electric vehicles (EVs), nay sayers always bring up the question of range - after all, how can a car with a range of 100 or 150 miles hope to compete with the internal combustion engine? Of course, advocates for EVs argue that the vast majority of journeys are short trips to work or to the store that can be achieved on one charge, and with a little investment in charging infrastructure that range can be extended further. T]]>...

Sex, Trams n Rock n Roll: Super Furry Animals Celebrate Mass Transit

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 09:36:07 -0500

Image credit: Super Furry Animals Rock n roll meets integrated transport hubs Who'd have thought that one of the best songs I've heard all year would be about sustainable urban transportation systems? I've said it before, but I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Rob Hopkins of the Transition Towns Movement - not just for inspiring one of the most important community-led responses to environmental crisis there is - but also for giving me stuff to write about. His Coulomb Technologies Sonoma County, CA is preparing to install 200 new ChargePoint electric vehicle charging stations throughout the county. The infrastructure is being installed in preparation of electric vehicles being sold like hot cakes starting over the next few years, but the plan hinges on a little thing calle]]>...

San Francisco Turns Intersection into Park in 72 Hours (Video)

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:13:13 -0500

Image credit: StreetFilms Dangerous intersection reclaimed as public space One of my favorite things about the folks at StreetFilms is that they don't just report on innovative projects for livable streets - they deconstruct what has been done so we can all learn from it. It's like they are building a sense of collective literacy around planning and public space. Whether it's physically separated bike lanes or SAİTEM. Gas prices in Turkey are among the highest -- if not the highest -- in the world, a fact I was rudely awakened to last summer when some friends and I rented a car to drive from Istanbul to Edirne, a round-trip of around 500 kilometers, to watch the oil-wrestling championships. (A story in and of itself.) We paid about $100 for the gas alone, some 38 liters of it. If we'd been driving the SAHİMO,]]>...

Transport TW: Zero Emission Car Powered By Magnetic Fields

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 16:30:06 -0500

Photo courtesy of EcoFriend Car designer Harsha Vardhan suggests that this two-wheeler concept is the car of the future. His Transporter TW (Twin Wheel) is a single-seater electric vehicle that uses magnetic fields for driving the car. The two gianormous wheels, suspended over a superconducting fluid, are propelled by those shifting]]>...

All Ocean-Going Ships Near California's Coast Must Now Use Cleaner Fuel

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 16:01:39 -0500

Photo: Flickr, CC This is a Big Deal A Californian regulation mandating that all ocean-going vessels within 24 miles of the state's coast must use cleaner burning low-sulfur diesel fuel is now in effect. This will have a big impact on air quality (big cargo ships have terrible emissions, and we too often overlook them and focus on cars & trucks), reducing smog and saving an estimated 3,600 people from premature deaths between 2009 and 2015. "The req]]>...

Folding Bike Helmet Fits in Your Pocket or Purse

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 09:15:09 -0500

Snell test but I like the idea.]]>...

What's The Electric Vehicle Charging Market Worth In 5 Years?

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 07:33:20 -0500

Charge points, Coulomb Technologies. Image credit:City of San Francisco, CalCars Research & Markets is projecting $200 million dollars in annual US electric vehicle charging sales by 2015. Let's assume that's a reasonable estimate. Compared to existing gasoline sales in the US, which approaches $2 billion/year, it's obvious that we have a long way to go before plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles, together, make a serious dent in gasoline markets. Any signific]]>...

ZEBRA Recycled Bicycle Path Divider, Safe for Cyclists and the Environment

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 04:46:23 -0500

bike lanes should be separated from traffic. To make sure traffic also respects those bike lanes, Spanish designer Curro Claret (whose Hat]]>...