.: New DOE Employment Opportunity Available in Hydrogen Production
August 28, 2006 -- DOE seeks a dynamic, motivated, and highly-qualified lead chemical engineer to serve as the hydrogen production team leader within the Hydrogen, Fuel Cells, and Infrastructure Technologies Program in Washington, D.C. This position supports the President's Hydrogen Fuel Initiative, a national priority and a critical program within DOE.
The team leader will function as the program's technical expert in hydrogen production; interface with DOE's offices of Science, Nuclear Energy, and Fossil Energy; monitor and leverage national and international partnerships; and provide input in developing DOE's directions in national policy and programs. Specific technologies managed will include hydrogen production from distributed natural gas and renewable liquid reforming, biomass gasification, solar high-temperature thermochemical, photoelectrochemical and biological, and hydrogen delivery (e.g., pipelines, compression, liquefaction, and tube trailers). U.S. citizenship is required. Applications must be received via www.usajobs.opm.gov by September 28, 2006. Refer to http://jobsearch.usajobs.opm.gov/a9doe.asp and search for vacancy number 06HQPN-EE6-0397.
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Zapped crude oil flows faster through pipes -
Zapping thick crude oil with a magnetic or electric field could make it flow more smoothly through pipes. The technique, which reduces the viscosity of the liquid, could make transporting crude through cold underwater pipes easier and cheaper, researchers claim.
The cost of transporting oil is a major factor in the energy economy, although the type of oil being moved is changing. "More heavy oil is being pumped. Lighter crude is being found less and less," says Rongjia Tao, a physicist at Temple University in Philadelphia, US.
Since heavy crude is more viscous, it flows more slowly through the pipes, reducing the volume of oil that can be pumped. If it flows too slowly, oil companies try diluting it with gasoline or other solvents, or sometimes heating the oil. But those techniques can be expensive and hard to implement on ocean-based oil rigs.
Tao says the viscosity of a suspension is partly the result of the size of the suspended particles. Smaller particles create a fluid that is more viscous than large particles.
The two researchers reasoned that if they could get the small particles to clump together, or aggregate, viscosity would go down. First they tested the theory with a suspension of iron nanoparticles in silicon oil. They applied a magnetic field to the suspension, and did indeed observe a reduction in viscosity.
Ongoing effect
Tao says that the magnetic field apparently caused the iron particles to stick together into larger clumps. Once the field was turned off they continued to stick together for several hours, only gradually breaking apart.
Tao and his colleague Xiaojun Xu then decided to see what affect magnetic and electric fields would have on the viscosity of crude oil.
Crude oil can contain either paraffin, asphalt, or both. The researchers found that a magnetic field reduced the viscosity of paraffin-based crude oil by about 15% when applied at 1.33 Tesla for 50 seconds. The reduction in viscosity lasted for several hours, gradually returning to normal. Tao says the magnetic field seems to have polarised the paraffin particles, causing them to clump together in the same way as the iron particles.
The magnetic field did not work on asphalt-based crude oil, however. So Tao and Xu decided to try applying an electric field to this mixture. They applied a powerful electric field to the oil and again saw a reduction in viscosity. Tao believes the particles were similarly polarised. Whatever the process, the particles clumped together before gradually breaking apart over several hours.
Cost sensitive
Tao says that the technique could eventually be useful in oil pipelines. Powerful magnets could be positioned at regular intervals along the pipeline, or electrified grids could run on the inside.
But Ross Chow of the Alberta Research Council in Edmonton, Canada, says that the researchers had to apply large amounts of electrical energy for fairly small decreases in viscosity. He also says it is not clear whether Tao and Xu's theoretical explanation of what is happening is correct.
On the other hand, Chow says the effect seems to be real, and agrees that further research might lead to an economic way of using magnetic and electric fields in pipelines.
Journal reference: Energy Fuels (DOI: 10.1021/ef060072x)
Energy and Fuels - Learn more about the looming energy crisis in our comprehensive special report.
Zapping thick crude oil with a magnetic or electric field could make it flow more smoothly through pipes. The technique, which reduces the viscosity of the liquid, could make transporting crude through cold underwater pipes easier and cheaper, researchers claim.
The cost of transporting oil is a major factor in the energy economy, although the type of oil being moved is changing. "More heavy oil is being pumped. Lighter crude is being found less and less," says Rongjia Tao, a physicist at Temple University in Philadelphia, US.
Since heavy crude is more viscous, it flows more slowly through the pipes, reducing the volume of oil that can be pumped. If it flows too slowly, oil companies try diluting it with gasoline or other solvents, or sometimes heating the oil. But those techniques can be expensive and hard to implement on ocean-based oil rigs.
Tao says the viscosity of a suspension is partly the result of the size of the suspended particles. Smaller particles create a fluid that is more viscous than large particles.
The two researchers reasoned that if they could get the small particles to clump together, or aggregate, viscosity would go down. First they tested the theory with a suspension of iron nanoparticles in silicon oil. They applied a magnetic field to the suspension, and did indeed observe a reduction in viscosity.
Ongoing effect
Tao says that the magnetic field apparently caused the iron particles to stick together into larger clumps. Once the field was turned off they continued to stick together for several hours, only gradually breaking apart.
Tao and his colleague Xiaojun Xu then decided to see what affect magnetic and electric fields would have on the viscosity of crude oil.
Crude oil can contain either paraffin, asphalt, or both. The researchers found that a magnetic field reduced the viscosity of paraffin-based crude oil by about 15% when applied at 1.33 Tesla for 50 seconds. The reduction in viscosity lasted for several hours, gradually returning to normal. Tao says the magnetic field seems to have polarised the paraffin particles, causing them to clump together in the same way as the iron particles.
The magnetic field did not work on asphalt-based crude oil, however. So Tao and Xu decided to try applying an electric field to this mixture. They applied a powerful electric field to the oil and again saw a reduction in viscosity. Tao believes the particles were similarly polarised. Whatever the process, the particles clumped together before gradually breaking apart over several hours.
Cost sensitive
Tao says that the technique could eventually be useful in oil pipelines. Powerful magnets could be positioned at regular intervals along the pipeline, or electrified grids could run on the inside.
But Ross Chow of the Alberta Research Council in Edmonton, Canada, says that the researchers had to apply large amounts of electrical energy for fairly small decreases in viscosity. He also says it is not clear whether Tao and Xu's theoretical explanation of what is happening is correct.
On the other hand, Chow says the effect seems to be real, and agrees that further research might lead to an economic way of using magnetic and electric fields in pipelines.
Journal reference: Energy Fuels (DOI: 10.1021/ef060072x)
Energy and Fuels - Learn more about the looming energy crisis in our comprehensive special report.
Brussels warns carmakers: meet targets to slash CO2 emissions or face tougher laws
Manufacturers on course to miss pledge of 25% drop· Treble annual reductions, says commissioner Nicholas Watt in BrusselsWednesday August 30, 2006The Guardian
Car manufacturers were given a blunt warning yesterday from Brussels, which said companies would face stringent laws if they failed to abide by their commitment to cut carbon dioxide emissions.
European, Japanese and Korean carmakers were threatened with the "stick" of mandatory cuts in the polluting emissions after figures showed that they were on course to miss a 25% reduction in CO2 levels by 2009.
Gregor Kreuzhuber, the European commission's industry spokesman, said: "The [commission] will not hesitate to replace the carrot with the stick. This would be regulation. The car industry should be aware that we are watching the situation very closely."
Brussels warns carmakers: meet targets to slash CO2 emissions or face tougher laws · Manufacturers on course to miss pledge of 25% drop· Treble annual reductions, says commissioner Nicholas Watt in BrusselsWednesday August 30, 2006The Guardian
Car manufacturers were given a blunt warning yesterday from Brussels, which said companies would face stringent laws if they failed to abide by their commitment to cut carbon dioxide emissions.
European, Japanese and Korean carmakers were threatened with the "stick" of mandatory cuts in the polluting emissions after figures showed that they were on course to miss a 25% reduction in CO2 levels by 2009.
Gregor Kreuzhuber, the European commission's industry spokesman, said: "The [commission] will not hesitate to replace the carrot with the stick. This would be regulation. The car industry should be aware that we are watching the situation very closely."
Article continues
The warning came after new figures showed that CO2 emissions from new cars dropped by 12.4% between 1995 and 2004. But the industry had agreed to cut average CO2 emissions to 140g per km by 2008-09 - a fall of 25% on 1995 levels.
Günter Verheugen, the European industry and enterprise commissioner, praised the sector for having made "continuous and substantial" progress since 1995. But he added: "The situation is not satisfactory. I urge the industry to step up their efforts."
The commission warned carmakers that they had to act now after CO2 emissions were cut on average by just 1.2% between 2003-04. Japanese carmakers, such as Daihatsu, Honda and Lexus, will have to achieve annual cuts of 3.5% to meet the agreed target.
European firms, such as BMW, Volkswagen and Volvo, and Korean makers, such as Daewoo and Hyundai, will have to achieve annual cuts of 3.3%.
"We expect the industry to step up its efforts and stick by its commitments," Mr Kreuzhuber said. "We have a voluntary agreement with the car manufacturers. It is ambitious but it is achievable."
Under the Kyoto protocol, the commission has made cuts in vehicle emissions a key part of its campaign to reduce greenhouse gases to 8% below 1990 levels by 2012. Road transport generates more than a fifth of all CO2 emissions, with cars responsible for half of these. Emissions from cars and lorries have increased by 22% since 1990.
The commission wants to cut cars' CO2 emissions from 120g/km by 2012. European manufacturers agreed to achieve the first target of 140g/km by 2008, while Japanese and Korean makers agreed to achieve this target the following year.
Stavros Dimas, Europe's environment commissioner, said: "To combat climate change and respect our Kyoto commitments, we have to reduce CO2 emissions from transport - a sector [contributing] significantly to overall emissions."
Brussels also has four-wheel drive vehicles in its sights. "The heavier the car, the greater the CO2 emissions," Mr Kreuzhuber said. The European Automobile Manufacturers' Association, which represents 13 carmakers, emphasised the progress it had made. Ivan Hodac, the secretary general, said: "The commitment is successful in ensuring CO2 emissions are reduced steadily in a relatively short period." The association said CO2 emissions from new cars had been cut from 185g/km in 1995 to 161g in 2004. About a million new cars a year now emit 120g or less.
Mr Hodac said: "There is now a need to link the taxation of cars and of alternative fuels more vigorously to CO2 emissions."Special reportWaste and pollutionNet notes11.07.2002: Rubbish01.08.2002: RatsUseful linksWaste and recycling - Defra'Are you doing your bit?' recycling campaignCommunity Recycling NetworkWaste and Resources Action ProgrammeUK Recycled Products Guide
Manufacturers on course to miss pledge of 25% drop· Treble annual reductions, says commissioner Nicholas Watt in BrusselsWednesday August 30, 2006The Guardian
Car manufacturers were given a blunt warning yesterday from Brussels, which said companies would face stringent laws if they failed to abide by their commitment to cut carbon dioxide emissions.
European, Japanese and Korean carmakers were threatened with the "stick" of mandatory cuts in the polluting emissions after figures showed that they were on course to miss a 25% reduction in CO2 levels by 2009.
Gregor Kreuzhuber, the European commission's industry spokesman, said: "The [commission] will not hesitate to replace the carrot with the stick. This would be regulation. The car industry should be aware that we are watching the situation very closely."
Brussels warns carmakers: meet targets to slash CO2 emissions or face tougher laws · Manufacturers on course to miss pledge of 25% drop· Treble annual reductions, says commissioner Nicholas Watt in BrusselsWednesday August 30, 2006The Guardian
Car manufacturers were given a blunt warning yesterday from Brussels, which said companies would face stringent laws if they failed to abide by their commitment to cut carbon dioxide emissions.
European, Japanese and Korean carmakers were threatened with the "stick" of mandatory cuts in the polluting emissions after figures showed that they were on course to miss a 25% reduction in CO2 levels by 2009.
Gregor Kreuzhuber, the European commission's industry spokesman, said: "The [commission] will not hesitate to replace the carrot with the stick. This would be regulation. The car industry should be aware that we are watching the situation very closely."
Article continues
The warning came after new figures showed that CO2 emissions from new cars dropped by 12.4% between 1995 and 2004. But the industry had agreed to cut average CO2 emissions to 140g per km by 2008-09 - a fall of 25% on 1995 levels.
Günter Verheugen, the European industry and enterprise commissioner, praised the sector for having made "continuous and substantial" progress since 1995. But he added: "The situation is not satisfactory. I urge the industry to step up their efforts."
The commission warned carmakers that they had to act now after CO2 emissions were cut on average by just 1.2% between 2003-04. Japanese carmakers, such as Daihatsu, Honda and Lexus, will have to achieve annual cuts of 3.5% to meet the agreed target.
European firms, such as BMW, Volkswagen and Volvo, and Korean makers, such as Daewoo and Hyundai, will have to achieve annual cuts of 3.3%.
"We expect the industry to step up its efforts and stick by its commitments," Mr Kreuzhuber said. "We have a voluntary agreement with the car manufacturers. It is ambitious but it is achievable."
Under the Kyoto protocol, the commission has made cuts in vehicle emissions a key part of its campaign to reduce greenhouse gases to 8% below 1990 levels by 2012. Road transport generates more than a fifth of all CO2 emissions, with cars responsible for half of these. Emissions from cars and lorries have increased by 22% since 1990.
The commission wants to cut cars' CO2 emissions from 120g/km by 2012. European manufacturers agreed to achieve the first target of 140g/km by 2008, while Japanese and Korean makers agreed to achieve this target the following year.
Stavros Dimas, Europe's environment commissioner, said: "To combat climate change and respect our Kyoto commitments, we have to reduce CO2 emissions from transport - a sector [contributing] significantly to overall emissions."
Brussels also has four-wheel drive vehicles in its sights. "The heavier the car, the greater the CO2 emissions," Mr Kreuzhuber said. The European Automobile Manufacturers' Association, which represents 13 carmakers, emphasised the progress it had made. Ivan Hodac, the secretary general, said: "The commitment is successful in ensuring CO2 emissions are reduced steadily in a relatively short period." The association said CO2 emissions from new cars had been cut from 185g/km in 1995 to 161g in 2004. About a million new cars a year now emit 120g or less.
Mr Hodac said: "There is now a need to link the taxation of cars and of alternative fuels more vigorously to CO2 emissions."Special reportWaste and pollutionNet notes11.07.2002: Rubbish01.08.2002: RatsUseful linksWaste and recycling - Defra'Are you doing your bit?' recycling campaignCommunity Recycling NetworkWaste and Resources Action ProgrammeUK Recycled Products Guide
Chad demands stake in oil output
Chad's President Idriss Deby Itno has said in a public speech the country must have a stake in oil production.
Speaking outside his presidential palace in N'Djamena, Mr Deby told crowds a revolution had started.
This comes three days after he ordered two foreign oil companies, Petronas and Chevron-Texaco, out of Chad.
The two oil firms control 60% of the consortium which runs Chad's pipeline, the same as the share Mr Deby says the government wants.
They were ordered to leave the country as Mr Deby accused them of not paying taxes.
If Petronas and Chevron-Texaco had been hoping President Deby might have mellowed since the weekend, they were wrong.
He declared Chad must enter into oil production at what he called a reasonable rate of 60%. Crucially, 60% would give the government of Chad a majority share and therefore control over the consortium which runs the country's pipeline.
Mr Deby did not repeat his earlier demand for the two oil companies to leave Chad, but he did insist they must pay the Public Treasury $1bn.
This is double the amount he asked for from the firms at the weekend, and an official later said the president had made a mistake and the amount of tax to be paid is actually $500m.
But it was clear from Mr Deby's emphatic language that he believed Chad had a sovereign right to take more control of its own oil.
Chad's President Idriss Deby Itno has said in a public speech the country must have a stake in oil production.
Speaking outside his presidential palace in N'Djamena, Mr Deby told crowds a revolution had started.
This comes three days after he ordered two foreign oil companies, Petronas and Chevron-Texaco, out of Chad.
The two oil firms control 60% of the consortium which runs Chad's pipeline, the same as the share Mr Deby says the government wants.
They were ordered to leave the country as Mr Deby accused them of not paying taxes.
If Petronas and Chevron-Texaco had been hoping President Deby might have mellowed since the weekend, they were wrong.
He declared Chad must enter into oil production at what he called a reasonable rate of 60%. Crucially, 60% would give the government of Chad a majority share and therefore control over the consortium which runs the country's pipeline.
Mr Deby did not repeat his earlier demand for the two oil companies to leave Chad, but he did insist they must pay the Public Treasury $1bn.
This is double the amount he asked for from the firms at the weekend, and an official later said the president had made a mistake and the amount of tax to be paid is actually $500m.
But it was clear from Mr Deby's emphatic language that he believed Chad had a sovereign right to take more control of its own oil.
Honeymoon gets green light
AUSTRALIA is set to get its fourth uranium mine with sxr Uranium One giving the green light to the development of the Honeymoon project in South Australia, 34 years after the discovery of the deposit.
Honeymoon field leach trial from the air, looking south-west.
The development of the Honeymoon project is expected to cost $US41.5 million ($A54 million) including $5.6 million for working capital costs, and produce 400 tonnes of uranium oxide annually over a life of six to seven years. Cash operating costs are pegged at $14.13 per pound of uranium oxide.Capital expenditure and cash operating costs have increased on a 2004 feasibility estimate of $24.6 million and $12.40 per pound, respectively.The project has a net present value of $37.7 million at an 8% discount and an internal rate of return of 40%, applying a flat uranium price of $46.50/lb over the life of the project. The uranium spot price is currently $48.50/lb.The development decision comes after a review of a 2004 Ausenco feasibility study by Mayfield Engineering and Aker Kvaerner Australia and a revised mineral resource estimate compiled by Adelaide-based Ore Reserve Evaluation Services.Extraction of the yellowcake will be via in situ leaching and the project is fully permitted with a mining licence in effect for 20 years. sxr Uranium One said it plans to finance the project with a mix of finance from debt and internal sources.In addition, sxr Uranium One has revised the indicated resource to 1.2 million tonnes at 0.24% uranium oxide for 2900t. The company said while the grade of the deposit has increased from 0.11%, the resource has reduced by 12%, with the company excluding a number of thin, low-grade intercepts believed not amenable to ISL mining.Honeymoon is expected to come online in 2008.Elsewhere, sxr Uranium One is looking to bring its Dominion uranium project in South Africa, which has 47.49 million pounds in the indicated category and 199.19Mlb in the inferred category, online next February.
Click here to read the rest of today's news stories.
AUSTRALIA is set to get its fourth uranium mine with sxr Uranium One giving the green light to the development of the Honeymoon project in South Australia, 34 years after the discovery of the deposit.
Honeymoon field leach trial from the air, looking south-west.
The development of the Honeymoon project is expected to cost $US41.5 million ($A54 million) including $5.6 million for working capital costs, and produce 400 tonnes of uranium oxide annually over a life of six to seven years. Cash operating costs are pegged at $14.13 per pound of uranium oxide.Capital expenditure and cash operating costs have increased on a 2004 feasibility estimate of $24.6 million and $12.40 per pound, respectively.The project has a net present value of $37.7 million at an 8% discount and an internal rate of return of 40%, applying a flat uranium price of $46.50/lb over the life of the project. The uranium spot price is currently $48.50/lb.The development decision comes after a review of a 2004 Ausenco feasibility study by Mayfield Engineering and Aker Kvaerner Australia and a revised mineral resource estimate compiled by Adelaide-based Ore Reserve Evaluation Services.Extraction of the yellowcake will be via in situ leaching and the project is fully permitted with a mining licence in effect for 20 years. sxr Uranium One said it plans to finance the project with a mix of finance from debt and internal sources.In addition, sxr Uranium One has revised the indicated resource to 1.2 million tonnes at 0.24% uranium oxide for 2900t. The company said while the grade of the deposit has increased from 0.11%, the resource has reduced by 12%, with the company excluding a number of thin, low-grade intercepts believed not amenable to ISL mining.Honeymoon is expected to come online in 2008.Elsewhere, sxr Uranium One is looking to bring its Dominion uranium project in South Africa, which has 47.49 million pounds in the indicated category and 199.19Mlb in the inferred category, online next February.
Click here to read the rest of today's news stories.
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Global warming Katrina ignites scientific storm over hurricane trends
The raw fuel for tropical storms is a warm sea, so experts have long speculated that global warming, by driving up ocean surface temperatures, is bound to boost hurricanes and their Asian cousins, typhoons. That debate was largely framed on what might happen 30 or 40 years from now or even longer. Today, thanks to the shock of Katrina and a slew of new studies, the focus has shifted abruptly from the middle distance to the here and now. Has the feared link between warming and storms already kicked in? Many scientists urge caution. They say hurricane hyperactivity, as was the case in 2004 and again in 2005, occurs in what appears to be decadal cycles and argue the meteorological data is just too recent or too sketchy to venture a firm conclusion. Others, though, offer long-term evidence for saying Atlantic storms have become progressively worse in the last few decades. And, they note, this increase also tracks a rise in emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) gas from fossil fuels, which traps solar heat and thus warms the seas. "We have known since 1987 that the intensity of hurricanes is related to surface sea temperature and we know that, over the last 15 to 20 years, surface sea temperatures in these regions have increased by half a degree Centigrade (0.9 F)," the British government's chief scientist, David King, says. "So it is easy to conclude that the increased intensity of hurricanes is associated with global warming." One of the most respected voices in the debate is a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) professor, Kerry Emanuel, who began to warn of a link between hurricane intensity and global warming way back in 1987. According to Emanuel's calculations, the power of tropical cyclones has roughly doubled since the 1950s. His measurement, called a power dissipation index, is based on storm intensity and duration. He notes a significant rise over the last 30 decades -- when Earth's surface temperatures began to rise significantly -- but especially since 1995, when global mean temperatures began to scale ever-higher annual peaks. "The large upswing in the last decade is unprecedented and probably reflects the effects of global warming," says Emanuel. Peter Webster of the Georgia Institute of Technology and the US National Center for Atmospheric Research calculates that category 4 and 5 hurricanes -- the two most powerful storm ratings -- have nearly doubled in number over the past three decades.
Critics point their guns at what they say is the weakness of historical data. US meteorologist Philip Klotzbach of Colorado State University argues that satellite records prior to 1984 are unreliable. He sees an increase in post-1984 hurricane frequency but says it is largely an illusion, prompted by the simple fact that better measuring tools have become available. That opinion is shared by Chris Landsea of the US National Hurricane Center, who notes that, for instance, in 1975, only two geostationary satellites were available for monitoring hurricanes. Today, the figure is 10, providing a much better view of storms as they gather at sea and a far better imaging capability. With this more accurate view, forecasters today may well assign top-scale wind speeds to a storm that, a few decades ago, they would have been reluctant to categorise as a 4 or 5, he argues. Landsea, whose co-authored paper appeared in July in the journal Science, acknowledges that global warming could be boosting hurricane winds, but only by one or two percent, which is far lower than Emanuel's estimate. For other experts, the question as to whether hurricanes are already worse today compared with yesterday is less urgent than the fate of coastal megacities that are already badly exposed to storms -- and will become terrifyingly vulnerable if the global-warming doomsters prove right. Robert Nicholls, an environmental researcher at Britain's University of Southampton, says New Orleans was a case study in failure -- of building a city below sea level while simultaneously destroying coastal marshlands that would have helped to protect it from Katrina's storm surge. But, notes Nicholl, very few of the more than 1.5 billion people around the world who live in coastal areas are prepared for violent weather events and rising seas. "The impacts (of global warming) take time to occur, but then become significant," Nicholls said at a UNESCO conference in Paris in June. "More tropical storms would clearly be very worrisome." © 2006 AFP
The raw fuel for tropical storms is a warm sea, so experts have long speculated that global warming, by driving up ocean surface temperatures, is bound to boost hurricanes and their Asian cousins, typhoons. That debate was largely framed on what might happen 30 or 40 years from now or even longer. Today, thanks to the shock of Katrina and a slew of new studies, the focus has shifted abruptly from the middle distance to the here and now. Has the feared link between warming and storms already kicked in? Many scientists urge caution. They say hurricane hyperactivity, as was the case in 2004 and again in 2005, occurs in what appears to be decadal cycles and argue the meteorological data is just too recent or too sketchy to venture a firm conclusion. Others, though, offer long-term evidence for saying Atlantic storms have become progressively worse in the last few decades. And, they note, this increase also tracks a rise in emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) gas from fossil fuels, which traps solar heat and thus warms the seas. "We have known since 1987 that the intensity of hurricanes is related to surface sea temperature and we know that, over the last 15 to 20 years, surface sea temperatures in these regions have increased by half a degree Centigrade (0.9 F)," the British government's chief scientist, David King, says. "So it is easy to conclude that the increased intensity of hurricanes is associated with global warming." One of the most respected voices in the debate is a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) professor, Kerry Emanuel, who began to warn of a link between hurricane intensity and global warming way back in 1987. According to Emanuel's calculations, the power of tropical cyclones has roughly doubled since the 1950s. His measurement, called a power dissipation index, is based on storm intensity and duration. He notes a significant rise over the last 30 decades -- when Earth's surface temperatures began to rise significantly -- but especially since 1995, when global mean temperatures began to scale ever-higher annual peaks. "The large upswing in the last decade is unprecedented and probably reflects the effects of global warming," says Emanuel. Peter Webster of the Georgia Institute of Technology and the US National Center for Atmospheric Research calculates that category 4 and 5 hurricanes -- the two most powerful storm ratings -- have nearly doubled in number over the past three decades.
Critics point their guns at what they say is the weakness of historical data. US meteorologist Philip Klotzbach of Colorado State University argues that satellite records prior to 1984 are unreliable. He sees an increase in post-1984 hurricane frequency but says it is largely an illusion, prompted by the simple fact that better measuring tools have become available. That opinion is shared by Chris Landsea of the US National Hurricane Center, who notes that, for instance, in 1975, only two geostationary satellites were available for monitoring hurricanes. Today, the figure is 10, providing a much better view of storms as they gather at sea and a far better imaging capability. With this more accurate view, forecasters today may well assign top-scale wind speeds to a storm that, a few decades ago, they would have been reluctant to categorise as a 4 or 5, he argues. Landsea, whose co-authored paper appeared in July in the journal Science, acknowledges that global warming could be boosting hurricane winds, but only by one or two percent, which is far lower than Emanuel's estimate. For other experts, the question as to whether hurricanes are already worse today compared with yesterday is less urgent than the fate of coastal megacities that are already badly exposed to storms -- and will become terrifyingly vulnerable if the global-warming doomsters prove right. Robert Nicholls, an environmental researcher at Britain's University of Southampton, says New Orleans was a case study in failure -- of building a city below sea level while simultaneously destroying coastal marshlands that would have helped to protect it from Katrina's storm surge. But, notes Nicholl, very few of the more than 1.5 billion people around the world who live in coastal areas are prepared for violent weather events and rising seas. "The impacts (of global warming) take time to occur, but then become significant," Nicholls said at a UNESCO conference in Paris in June. "More tropical storms would clearly be very worrisome." © 2006 AFP
Bolivia's Morales replaces head of state oil firm
LA PAZ, Bolivia (Reuters) - President Evo Morales on Monday replaced the head of Bolivia's state oil company YPFB, who had faced accusations of corruption months after he was appointed to the post.
The Bolivian leader named Juan Carlos Ortiz, a top YPFB official, to take over from Jorge Alvarado. Ortiz previously worked for foreign energy companies including Brazil's Petrobras, the biggest investor in Bolivia's gas and oil industry, analysts said.
The corruption scandal has tarnished the nationalization drive by Morales, who took office pledging to spread the country's natural gas riches among the impoverished majority and stamp out graft.
Last week, Energy Minister Andres Soliz accused Alvarado of fraud over a barter deal to exchange crude oil for diesel with Brazilian company Iberoamerica at a price well under the market value.
Along with Soliz, Alvarado was one of the most public faces of the nationalization of the energy sector announced by Morales on May 1.
Alvarado, a geologist and former deputy for Morales' MAS party, was appointed to the helm of YPFB soon after the government took office in Januay and charged with putting the dilapidated energy company at the heart of the sector.
Bolivia has the second-largest natural gas reserves in South America after Venezuela.
LA PAZ, Bolivia (Reuters) - President Evo Morales on Monday replaced the head of Bolivia's state oil company YPFB, who had faced accusations of corruption months after he was appointed to the post.
The Bolivian leader named Juan Carlos Ortiz, a top YPFB official, to take over from Jorge Alvarado. Ortiz previously worked for foreign energy companies including Brazil's Petrobras, the biggest investor in Bolivia's gas and oil industry, analysts said.
The corruption scandal has tarnished the nationalization drive by Morales, who took office pledging to spread the country's natural gas riches among the impoverished majority and stamp out graft.
Last week, Energy Minister Andres Soliz accused Alvarado of fraud over a barter deal to exchange crude oil for diesel with Brazilian company Iberoamerica at a price well under the market value.
Along with Soliz, Alvarado was one of the most public faces of the nationalization of the energy sector announced by Morales on May 1.
Alvarado, a geologist and former deputy for Morales' MAS party, was appointed to the helm of YPFB soon after the government took office in Januay and charged with putting the dilapidated energy company at the heart of the sector.
Bolivia has the second-largest natural gas reserves in South America after Venezuela.
Neighborhood fuel cells promise clean, quiet, reliable energy -- and security
What image does the term ``power plant'' conjure up in your mind? If you are like most Americans, probably a large, ugly building with dark smoke billowing out of a tall smokestack. It's definitely the last facility you want built in your neighborhood. However, when your home or business experiences a blackout or brownout, you are incensed.
There is a solution to increase reliability and energy efficiency, as well as do away with the pollution of power-plant electricity generation: fuel cells.
Surprising to most people, there is a power plant that can be located in your neighborhood that creates no pollutants, is quiet and relatively small. Because it is local, it is less likely to be affected by errant cars or weather knocking down power poles causing dangerous and expensive blackouts. The fuel cell is a new type of power plant that accepts fuel and air and converts them into electricity and water vapor without any combustion or combustion waste.
Today, several companies are developing fuel cells for stationary and transportation applications. Transportation fuel cells must respond extremely fast to driver demands for acceleration. In contrast, commercial and residential loads are fairly uniform and can utilize more robust technologies. The commercial and residential fuel cells provide high energy efficiency -- efficiencies often higher than that of large central power plants.
Most large cities depend on electricity produced at large power plants far from the city gates, which is then transmitted to the city via high-voltage transmission lines. In recent years this system has become overloaded. The approval process to build more transmission lines is painstakingly slow (often taking upward of 10 years to plan and build), costly, and to date has a poor track record (many of the proposed lines are never built). But, without more transmission lines, our cities will be power constrained as our need for power grows. Fuel cells, installed locally, present an alternative.
A neighborhood fuel cell could fit into a garage-sized building and, because of the extremely low emissions and low noise, nobody outside the garage would know that a power plant was operating inside. By deploying relatively small, dependable, clean power plants throughout the cities and neighborhoods, we can achieve higher reliability and greater energy security. When used in this distributed manner they will provide greatly enhanced reliability and versatility to the operators of the electricity grid. In addition, grid operators will have less need to build new transmission lines and substations when robust, distributed fuel cells are in place.
Stationary fuel cells can operate 24/7 at a high efficiency and respond quickly to fluctuations in electricity demand. They have the capability of easily switching between a wide variety of fuels including natural gas, hydrogen, ethanol and biodiesel fuel (automotive fuel cells require pure hydrogen as fuel). Regardless of the fuel, the stationary fuel cells provide safe, clean, dependable, quiet and affordable electricity.
Almost all new large power plants are natural-gas-fueled and burn only natural gas. If the natural gas supply is interrupted, the operators of these plants must shut them off, leaving entire cities blacked out. When natural gas prices soar, as they have done in recent years, your electricity bills inflate because these large power plants cannot switch to more economical fuels. On the other hand, a fuel cell could continue to operate during either a supply outage or an economic crisis by consuming other available and less expensive fuels.
Fully qualified fuel cells are commercially available and ready for deployment. The science has been proven and costs are on a steep downward trajectory as companies employ modern manufacturing techniques to evaluate and lower production cost.
Because of the current need to increase fuel efficiency and to reduce air emissions simultaneously, the power industry and its regulators need to expand the adoption of fuel cells as a key part of the solution. Programs such as the Self Generation Improvement Program administered by California's Public Utilities Commission play a vital role in ensuring a cleaner, more reliable and diverse electricity infrastructure in California. is a former state senator who wrote California's renewable-energy portfolio standards law, and he serves on the advisory committee or board of several energy technology companies and advocacy groups. They wrote this article for the Mercury News.
DAVID A. ROHY is a former vice chair of the California Energy Commission, and serves as a consultant to energy technology companies. BYRON D. SHER
What image does the term ``power plant'' conjure up in your mind? If you are like most Americans, probably a large, ugly building with dark smoke billowing out of a tall smokestack. It's definitely the last facility you want built in your neighborhood. However, when your home or business experiences a blackout or brownout, you are incensed.
There is a solution to increase reliability and energy efficiency, as well as do away with the pollution of power-plant electricity generation: fuel cells.
Surprising to most people, there is a power plant that can be located in your neighborhood that creates no pollutants, is quiet and relatively small. Because it is local, it is less likely to be affected by errant cars or weather knocking down power poles causing dangerous and expensive blackouts. The fuel cell is a new type of power plant that accepts fuel and air and converts them into electricity and water vapor without any combustion or combustion waste.
Today, several companies are developing fuel cells for stationary and transportation applications. Transportation fuel cells must respond extremely fast to driver demands for acceleration. In contrast, commercial and residential loads are fairly uniform and can utilize more robust technologies. The commercial and residential fuel cells provide high energy efficiency -- efficiencies often higher than that of large central power plants.
Most large cities depend on electricity produced at large power plants far from the city gates, which is then transmitted to the city via high-voltage transmission lines. In recent years this system has become overloaded. The approval process to build more transmission lines is painstakingly slow (often taking upward of 10 years to plan and build), costly, and to date has a poor track record (many of the proposed lines are never built). But, without more transmission lines, our cities will be power constrained as our need for power grows. Fuel cells, installed locally, present an alternative.
A neighborhood fuel cell could fit into a garage-sized building and, because of the extremely low emissions and low noise, nobody outside the garage would know that a power plant was operating inside. By deploying relatively small, dependable, clean power plants throughout the cities and neighborhoods, we can achieve higher reliability and greater energy security. When used in this distributed manner they will provide greatly enhanced reliability and versatility to the operators of the electricity grid. In addition, grid operators will have less need to build new transmission lines and substations when robust, distributed fuel cells are in place.
Stationary fuel cells can operate 24/7 at a high efficiency and respond quickly to fluctuations in electricity demand. They have the capability of easily switching between a wide variety of fuels including natural gas, hydrogen, ethanol and biodiesel fuel (automotive fuel cells require pure hydrogen as fuel). Regardless of the fuel, the stationary fuel cells provide safe, clean, dependable, quiet and affordable electricity.
Almost all new large power plants are natural-gas-fueled and burn only natural gas. If the natural gas supply is interrupted, the operators of these plants must shut them off, leaving entire cities blacked out. When natural gas prices soar, as they have done in recent years, your electricity bills inflate because these large power plants cannot switch to more economical fuels. On the other hand, a fuel cell could continue to operate during either a supply outage or an economic crisis by consuming other available and less expensive fuels.
Fully qualified fuel cells are commercially available and ready for deployment. The science has been proven and costs are on a steep downward trajectory as companies employ modern manufacturing techniques to evaluate and lower production cost.
Because of the current need to increase fuel efficiency and to reduce air emissions simultaneously, the power industry and its regulators need to expand the adoption of fuel cells as a key part of the solution. Programs such as the Self Generation Improvement Program administered by California's Public Utilities Commission play a vital role in ensuring a cleaner, more reliable and diverse electricity infrastructure in California. is a former state senator who wrote California's renewable-energy portfolio standards law, and he serves on the advisory committee or board of several energy technology companies and advocacy groups. They wrote this article for the Mercury News.
DAVID A. ROHY is a former vice chair of the California Energy Commission, and serves as a consultant to energy technology companies. BYRON D. SHER
Caribbean 'faces stormier future'
Latin America and the Caribbean face a greater risk of more natural disasters because of environmental degradation and climate change, campaigners warn.
A report by a coalition of environment and aid groups said the region's weather was becoming less predictable and often more extreme.
Evidence showed many areas were more vulnerable because depleted ecosystems were struggling to adapt, they argued.
The groups said efforts to end poverty were being undermined as a result.
The report, Up in Smoke? Latin America and the Caribbean, presented evidence it said showed that the livelihoods of millions of people in the region were at risk, including:
Increased storm intensity - the 2005 hurricane season was "one of the most active and destructive in history"
Water shortages - changes to glacier melt in the Andes were affecting river flows and threatening water supplies, leading to a greater risk of disputes
Illegal logging and deforestation - linked to increased carbon emissions, and leaves area prone to a greater risk of flooding
The report's author, Andrew Simms, from the New Economics Foundation (Nef), said the findings highlighted how climate change was having an impact on global efforts to eradicate poverty.
"The region has had to deal with highly variable climates for many centuries. It has developed very resilient forms of agriculture based upon high levels of diversity of crops, which are adapted to grow in a wide range of microclimates.
"The danger that now seems to be facing people in the region is that those conditions could become more permanent and more extreme," he said.
Storm brewing
The 2005 Atlantic hurricane season saw an unprecedented 27 tropical storms, 15 of which went on to become hurricanes. The most devastating was Hurricane Katrina, which claimed more than 1,000 lives when it struck the US Gulf coast.
A hurricane is a spinning vortex of winds swirling round a eye of very low pressure
Warm, moist air is drawn upwards around the eye
Cooler dry air is sucked downwards by the low pressure centre
Banks of thunderstorms surround the edgesThe US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) had predicted that there would be up to nine hurricanes.
For the 2006 season, Noaa's initial forecast predicted 13-16 named storms, four of which would go on to become "major storms".
In August, however, officials revised their forecast, saying that there would be 12-15 named storms. But this was still above the long-term average of 11.
Uncertainty still remains within the scientific community as to whether there is a direct link between human-induced climate change and increased intensity and frequency of tropical storms.
Overlooked research
Commenting on the coalition's report, US climate change researcher Timmons Roberts, from the College of William and Mary, Virginia, warned that overstating the risks could prove to be counterproductive.
Up in smoke - full report (1.76MB) "Some points may be exaggerated or so uncertain as to make scientists uneasy about making such claims, especially about future disasters."
But Professor Roberts, who is currently working in the UK, did agree that the risks facing the region were extremely serious.
Diane Liverman, director of the Environmental Change Institute at Oxford University, UK, welcomed the coalition's decision to focus on the region.
"I am sometimes concerned that the understandable focus on African climate and development issues has meant that we haven't paid attention to the millions at risk in other regions of the developing world."
But Professor Liverman, who has studied climate vulnerability in Mexico for the past 20 years, was critical of the report for overlooking research by climate scientists in the region.
"Organisations such as the Inter American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) and researchers in many universities have done a lot of research on climate and environmental change in the region; little or none of which is referenced or used in the report."
Call for action
The coalition, whose 20 members include Tearfund, Greenpeace and WWF, said there were three main challenges that needed to be addressed:
stopping and reversing further global warming
how to live with global warming that cannot be stopped
the need for a "climate friendly" development framework that delivers an equitable share of natural resources
"Currently, we do not have a meaningful emissions reduction target that will prevent runaway climate change, " Mr Simms said.
"We also do not have an idea of the scale of the resources needed to help developing countries deal with it."
He added: "We must apply a climate test to how the world does business. If we don't then we will probably inadvertently make things much worse."
Latin America and the Caribbean face a greater risk of more natural disasters because of environmental degradation and climate change, campaigners warn.
A report by a coalition of environment and aid groups said the region's weather was becoming less predictable and often more extreme.
Evidence showed many areas were more vulnerable because depleted ecosystems were struggling to adapt, they argued.
The groups said efforts to end poverty were being undermined as a result.
The report, Up in Smoke? Latin America and the Caribbean, presented evidence it said showed that the livelihoods of millions of people in the region were at risk, including:
Increased storm intensity - the 2005 hurricane season was "one of the most active and destructive in history"
Water shortages - changes to glacier melt in the Andes were affecting river flows and threatening water supplies, leading to a greater risk of disputes
Illegal logging and deforestation - linked to increased carbon emissions, and leaves area prone to a greater risk of flooding
The report's author, Andrew Simms, from the New Economics Foundation (Nef), said the findings highlighted how climate change was having an impact on global efforts to eradicate poverty.
"The region has had to deal with highly variable climates for many centuries. It has developed very resilient forms of agriculture based upon high levels of diversity of crops, which are adapted to grow in a wide range of microclimates.
"The danger that now seems to be facing people in the region is that those conditions could become more permanent and more extreme," he said.
Storm brewing
The 2005 Atlantic hurricane season saw an unprecedented 27 tropical storms, 15 of which went on to become hurricanes. The most devastating was Hurricane Katrina, which claimed more than 1,000 lives when it struck the US Gulf coast.
A hurricane is a spinning vortex of winds swirling round a eye of very low pressure
Warm, moist air is drawn upwards around the eye
Cooler dry air is sucked downwards by the low pressure centre
Banks of thunderstorms surround the edgesThe US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) had predicted that there would be up to nine hurricanes.
For the 2006 season, Noaa's initial forecast predicted 13-16 named storms, four of which would go on to become "major storms".
In August, however, officials revised their forecast, saying that there would be 12-15 named storms. But this was still above the long-term average of 11.
Uncertainty still remains within the scientific community as to whether there is a direct link between human-induced climate change and increased intensity and frequency of tropical storms.
Overlooked research
Commenting on the coalition's report, US climate change researcher Timmons Roberts, from the College of William and Mary, Virginia, warned that overstating the risks could prove to be counterproductive.
Up in smoke - full report (1.76MB) "Some points may be exaggerated or so uncertain as to make scientists uneasy about making such claims, especially about future disasters."
But Professor Roberts, who is currently working in the UK, did agree that the risks facing the region were extremely serious.
Diane Liverman, director of the Environmental Change Institute at Oxford University, UK, welcomed the coalition's decision to focus on the region.
"I am sometimes concerned that the understandable focus on African climate and development issues has meant that we haven't paid attention to the millions at risk in other regions of the developing world."
But Professor Liverman, who has studied climate vulnerability in Mexico for the past 20 years, was critical of the report for overlooking research by climate scientists in the region.
"Organisations such as the Inter American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI) and researchers in many universities have done a lot of research on climate and environmental change in the region; little or none of which is referenced or used in the report."
Call for action
The coalition, whose 20 members include Tearfund, Greenpeace and WWF, said there were three main challenges that needed to be addressed:
stopping and reversing further global warming
how to live with global warming that cannot be stopped
the need for a "climate friendly" development framework that delivers an equitable share of natural resources
"Currently, we do not have a meaningful emissions reduction target that will prevent runaway climate change, " Mr Simms said.
"We also do not have an idea of the scale of the resources needed to help developing countries deal with it."
He added: "We must apply a climate test to how the world does business. If we don't then we will probably inadvertently make things much worse."
Minister announces $3m to protect parrot.
Federal Environment Minister Ian Campbell has announced more than $3 million in funding to protect the endangered orange-bellied parrot.
It is the largest amount of federal funding going towards the survival of a threatened species.
The money will be spent over two years on protecting the migratory birds' habitats in South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania and King Island in the Bass Strait.
In April, Senator Campbell overturned Victorian Government approval for a wind farm in Gippsland because a report found there was a small chance it could threaten the parrot.
He says that report influenced the decision to significantly boost funding to ensure the birds' survival.
The Victorian Premier, Steve Bracks, says if the Minister really wants to save the parrot, he should have made the announcement earlier.
"Do it properly, do it properly by putting resources of money in, not after the event as he's doing now," he said.
"He should have done that in the start and not using it as a trick to try and knock out a wind farm."
Federal Environment Minister Ian Campbell has announced more than $3 million in funding to protect the endangered orange-bellied parrot.
It is the largest amount of federal funding going towards the survival of a threatened species.
The money will be spent over two years on protecting the migratory birds' habitats in South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania and King Island in the Bass Strait.
In April, Senator Campbell overturned Victorian Government approval for a wind farm in Gippsland because a report found there was a small chance it could threaten the parrot.
He says that report influenced the decision to significantly boost funding to ensure the birds' survival.
The Victorian Premier, Steve Bracks, says if the Minister really wants to save the parrot, he should have made the announcement earlier.
"Do it properly, do it properly by putting resources of money in, not after the event as he's doing now," he said.
"He should have done that in the start and not using it as a trick to try and knock out a wind farm."
PM sceptical on global warming
PRIME Minister John Howard says he is sceptical of the more gloomy predictions about human-induced climate change, sparking claims he is not taking the issue seriously enough.
Mr Howard told ABC TV's Four Corners program, to be screened tonight, that he accepts that climate change is a challenge.
"I accept the broad theory about global warming. I am sceptical about a lot of the more gloomy predictions," he said.
"I also accept that a country like Australia has got to balance a concern for greenhouse gas emissions with a concern for the enormous burden to be carried by consumers through much higher electricity prices, higher petrol prices, falls in GDP of too dramatic an imposition of what you might call greenhouse policy.
"It's a question of balance."
Opposition Leader Kim Beazley said Mr Howard was in possession of a report from Allen's Consulting which said that in 20 years' time, Kakadu wetlands and beachside suburbs would disappear and there would be no sustaining rainfall in south-west and south-east Australia.
"(If) I was prime minister of this nation fronted with a report like that, I wouldn't be sweeping it under the carpet and telling everybody out there it was a gloom merchant who said that this was serious.
"You'd be working out how to deal with it because it's a wonderful opportunity.
"We can put ourselves at the forefront of technologies to deal with the problems."
Opposition environment spokesman Anthony Albanese said Mr Howard's decision to rule out significant cuts in Australia's soaring greenhouse pollution showed how out of touch he was with the Australian community and Australian businesses.
"Australian businesses understand the need for urgent action to cut Australia's soaring greenhouse pollution," he said.
"Business needs the investment certainty that comes from a long-term target to reduce emissions."
Greenpeace campaigns manager Danny Kennedy said Mr Howard's predilection for coal would mean catastrophic climate change.
"Mr Howard's inaction on climate change is nothing less than criminal," he said.
"He is ignoring science in the face of easy profits by failing to take the steps necessary to prevent the profound impacts that climate change will have on all Australians.
"We challenge Mr Howard to put aside the interests of the coal and aluminium sectors and instead join the exciting and rapidly growing clean energy revolution, which China, Germany and California are leading."
PRIME Minister John Howard says he is sceptical of the more gloomy predictions about human-induced climate change, sparking claims he is not taking the issue seriously enough.
Mr Howard told ABC TV's Four Corners program, to be screened tonight, that he accepts that climate change is a challenge.
"I accept the broad theory about global warming. I am sceptical about a lot of the more gloomy predictions," he said.
"I also accept that a country like Australia has got to balance a concern for greenhouse gas emissions with a concern for the enormous burden to be carried by consumers through much higher electricity prices, higher petrol prices, falls in GDP of too dramatic an imposition of what you might call greenhouse policy.
"It's a question of balance."
Opposition Leader Kim Beazley said Mr Howard was in possession of a report from Allen's Consulting which said that in 20 years' time, Kakadu wetlands and beachside suburbs would disappear and there would be no sustaining rainfall in south-west and south-east Australia.
"(If) I was prime minister of this nation fronted with a report like that, I wouldn't be sweeping it under the carpet and telling everybody out there it was a gloom merchant who said that this was serious.
"You'd be working out how to deal with it because it's a wonderful opportunity.
"We can put ourselves at the forefront of technologies to deal with the problems."
Opposition environment spokesman Anthony Albanese said Mr Howard's decision to rule out significant cuts in Australia's soaring greenhouse pollution showed how out of touch he was with the Australian community and Australian businesses.
"Australian businesses understand the need for urgent action to cut Australia's soaring greenhouse pollution," he said.
"Business needs the investment certainty that comes from a long-term target to reduce emissions."
Greenpeace campaigns manager Danny Kennedy said Mr Howard's predilection for coal would mean catastrophic climate change.
"Mr Howard's inaction on climate change is nothing less than criminal," he said.
"He is ignoring science in the face of easy profits by failing to take the steps necessary to prevent the profound impacts that climate change will have on all Australians.
"We challenge Mr Howard to put aside the interests of the coal and aluminium sectors and instead join the exciting and rapidly growing clean energy revolution, which China, Germany and California are leading."
Monday, August 28, 2006
WorldChanging: Tools, Models and Ideas for Building a Bright Green Future: The Week in Sustainable Mobility (8/27/06)
Mike Millikin covers the ongoing evolution of sustainable mobility at Green Car Congress.
LIGHT-DUTY HYBRIDS and PLUG-IN HYBRIDS
The London (UK) Metropolitan Police have ordered 117 Honda Civic Hybrids—the largest yet fleet deal for hybrid cars in the UK. (More...)
Following the successful trial of the Lexus RX 400h by Hampshire Police in August last year (earlier post), Wiltshire Constabulary will be the first police force in the UK to incorporate Lexus GS 450h to its fleet. (More...)
Hymotion has delivered one of its L5 Prius Plug-in Hybrid systems to HOURCAR, a car-sharing program that serves Minnesota’s Twin Cities. The Hymotion L5 plug-in system serves to more than double the fuel efficiency of Toyota’s Prius hybrid, delivering 100+ mpg depending upon speed and range. (More...)
PML Flightlink and its partner Synergy Innovations recently unveiled an in-wheel, plug-in series hybrid conversion of a MINI at the British Motor Show, the MINI QED. The QED supports an all-electric range of 200-250 miles and has a total range of about 932 miles (1,500 km). The car accelerates from 0-62 mph in less than 5 seconds. (More...)
HEAVY-DUTY HYBRIDS and PLUG-IN HYBRIDS
Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty announced that Metro Transit will purchase an additional 150 diesel-electric hybrid buses and 164 new clean diesel buses to replace 314 older buses. Metro Transit will also double the biodiesel content of its fuel supply from a B5 blend (5% biodiesel) to B10 by mid-2007. (More...)
North American Bus Industries, Inc. (NABI)—itself acquired by Cerberus Capital in February—has acquired Optima Bus Corporation located in Wichita, Kansas. NABI produces and sells a complete line of buses available with diesel, CNG, LNG, or diesel hybrid-electric propulsion. Optima manufactures the 30-ft. and 35-ft. Opus Low-floor buses, including the series hybrid Opus based on the ISE powertrain. (More...)
BATTERIES and ELECTRIC VEHICLES
Currie Technologies, a bicycle and scooter company founded by the former chairman and CEO of Hughes Aircraft and Delco Electronics, will introduce 10 new models of hybrid-electric bicycles (human pedal power + battery power) and 3 new models of electric scooters at the Eurobike International Bicycle Trade Fair held in Friedrichshafen, Germany on August 31, 2006. (More...)
ZAP is expanding the US sales of its three-wheeled, low-speed, all-electric microcar, the XEBRA. The XEBRA can seat four (maximum load 500 pounds) and has a range of up to 40 miles (65 kilometers) and a top speed of 40 mph (65 km/h). It uses a DC motor powered by a lead-acid battery pack. (More...)
BIOFUELS
Use of biodiesel can lower the balance point temperature in diesel particulate filters (DPF) compared to Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel, and can cause a measurable increase in the regeneration rate of the DPF, according to data from the first phase of a study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Cummins presented at DEER 2006. (More...)
Statoil—the Norwegian integrated oil and gas company and one of the world’s largest sellers of crude—recently began adding 5% biodiesel to all diesel sold at the group’s service stations in Sweden. (More...)
SeQuential Biofuels has opened a solar-powered retail biofuels station offering a full range of ethanol and biodiesel blends: E10, E85, B5, B20 and B100. (More...)
Colusa Biomass Energy Corporation has selected a 15-acre site within the Colusa Industrial Park (Colusa, California) for a 10-million-gallon per year cellulosic ethanol plant. Colusa will use approximately 120,000 tons per year of waste rice straw as the feedstock for the plant, which is located in a prime rice-producing area of the Sacramento Valley. (More...)
Novozymes won a 1.5-year-long case against Danisco concerning infringement of a Novozymes patent on enzymes for bioethanol. (More...)
Lotus Engineering, the engineering consultancy division of Group Lotus Plc, has developed an E85 version of the Lotus Exige—the Lotus Exige 265E—as a research car. Powered by a modified version of the 1.8-liter engine in the standard Lotus Exige S, the Exige 265E is more powerful than its gasoline counterpart, producing 264 hp (197 kW) at 8,000 rpm, and 184 lb-ft (249 Nm) of torque (at 5,500 rpm)—increases of 21% and 16% respectively over the gasoline model. (More...)
HYDROGEN
Statoil opened Norway’s first hydrogen filling station for motor vehicles as a step in creating the HyNor hydrogen highway between the capital, Oslo, and western Norway’s port of Stavanger. The station supplies hydrogen, natural gas and NaturalHy—a 8-20% hydrogen, 92-80% compressed natural gas blend. The Norwegian-produced sports car Fyk, unveiled on 21 August, runs on NaturalHy. (More...)
Shell is awarding $1 million to the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering department of Ohio State University to support a research project into the use of membranes for CO2-Hydrogen separation. (More...)
Hi-Z Technology and Dynamic Fuel Systems are exploring the use of thermoelectric generation using waste heat to power an on-board electrolysis unit to produce hydrogen for supplementary injection into the intake port of an engine to increase combustion efficiency. (More...)
The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) is soliciting applications for R&D funding for viable hydrogen storage technologies for on-board vehicular applications. (More...)
A team of researchers in Korea announced that they have identified a new material—titanium attached to a polymer—with a structure that can store hydrogen with gravimetric and volumetric density of 7.6 wt% and 63 kg/m3 at normal temperature without pressurization. (More...)
DIESEL
Speaking in the opening plenary session today of the Department of Energy’s Diesel Engine-Efficiency and Emissions Research (DEER) 2006 conference in Detroit, heads of engine research from Ford and Caterpillar each called for a research push to increase the basic efficiency of the diesel engine platform in addition to the ongoing efforts applied to emissions control. (More...)
A panel at DEER 2006 comprising GM, DaimlerChrysler, BMW, Honda, Volkswagen, the EPA and the Martec Group noted some major hurdles to a rapid proliferation of light-duty diesel models in the US. (More...)
General Motors will introduce a new V-8 turbodiesel that improves engine fuel efficiency by 25% for North American light duty trucks after 2009. This will be GM’s first engine to use a NOx aftertreatment system along with a diesel particulate filter to help achieve the Tier 2 Bin 5 (T2B5) and LEV 2 emissions standards. (More...)
In developing its promised Tier 2 Bin 5 diesel solution for the US, Honda is concentrating on advanced combustion management with Premixed Charge Compression Ignition (PCCI) and a trap-type lean NOx catalyst (LNC). (More...)
Ford Motor will offer a new 6.4-liter Power Stroke diesel in its 2008 F-Series Super Duty pickup, to go on sale early in 2007. (More...)
Eaton Corporation is developing an aftertreatment system that combines a fuel reformer catalyst with doser, Selective Catalytic Reduction system (SCR) and Lean NOx Trap (LNT) technology to create an exhaust aftertreatment system capable of meeting 2010 EPA diesel emissions requirements without the need for a urea storage and injection system. (More...)
California’s South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) is providing the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) with a $2.224-million grant to reduce emissions from 264 heavy-duty trucks by at least 95% through retrofits with diesel particulate filters. (More...)
SYNTHETICS
Arch Coal, the US’s second-largest coal producer, has acquired a 25% equity interest in DKRW Advanced Fuels, LLC. In exchange, Arch has agreed to extend its existing option agreement with DKRW Advanced Fuels, to work with DKRW Advanced Fuels to secure coal reserves for two additional coal-to-liquids (CTL) projects outside of the Carbon Basin, and to invest $25 million in the company. (More...)
Baard Energy, which is currently building several ethanol plants, reportedly is planning a $4-billion coal-to-liquids (CTL) plant in Wellsville, Ohio. (More...)
A Texas A&M University history professor and Syntroleum Corporation, owner of a compact Fischer-Tropsch fuels technology, are posting nearly a quarter of a million pages of coal gasification research conducted from the 1920s through 1980s on the Internet. (More...)
OTHER
Gates Corporation, a provider of belts, hoses hydraulics and related products for the auto industry, has introduced the first systems in its new Energy Saving product line targeted at both heavy-duty and light-duty vehicles. The new line includes a stop/start system, a two-speed drive system for passenger subsystems, and an idle-reduction system for heavy-duty trucks. (More...)
Nissan Motor has developed two new-generation six-cylinder V-type gasoline engines for front-engine, rear-wheel-drive vehicles. The engines offer a 10% improvement in fuel efficiency compared to vehicles equipped with the existing VQ engine as well as Super Ultra-Low Emission Vehicle (Japan) emissions. (More...)
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has introduced a new fuel-efficient commercial tire technology—Fuel Max—and three new tires for long-haul trucks that could deliver up to a 4% improvement in fuel economy, according to the company.
Mike Millikin covers the ongoing evolution of sustainable mobility at Green Car Congress.
LIGHT-DUTY HYBRIDS and PLUG-IN HYBRIDS
The London (UK) Metropolitan Police have ordered 117 Honda Civic Hybrids—the largest yet fleet deal for hybrid cars in the UK. (More...)
Following the successful trial of the Lexus RX 400h by Hampshire Police in August last year (earlier post), Wiltshire Constabulary will be the first police force in the UK to incorporate Lexus GS 450h to its fleet. (More...)
Hymotion has delivered one of its L5 Prius Plug-in Hybrid systems to HOURCAR, a car-sharing program that serves Minnesota’s Twin Cities. The Hymotion L5 plug-in system serves to more than double the fuel efficiency of Toyota’s Prius hybrid, delivering 100+ mpg depending upon speed and range. (More...)
PML Flightlink and its partner Synergy Innovations recently unveiled an in-wheel, plug-in series hybrid conversion of a MINI at the British Motor Show, the MINI QED. The QED supports an all-electric range of 200-250 miles and has a total range of about 932 miles (1,500 km). The car accelerates from 0-62 mph in less than 5 seconds. (More...)
HEAVY-DUTY HYBRIDS and PLUG-IN HYBRIDS
Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty announced that Metro Transit will purchase an additional 150 diesel-electric hybrid buses and 164 new clean diesel buses to replace 314 older buses. Metro Transit will also double the biodiesel content of its fuel supply from a B5 blend (5% biodiesel) to B10 by mid-2007. (More...)
North American Bus Industries, Inc. (NABI)—itself acquired by Cerberus Capital in February—has acquired Optima Bus Corporation located in Wichita, Kansas. NABI produces and sells a complete line of buses available with diesel, CNG, LNG, or diesel hybrid-electric propulsion. Optima manufactures the 30-ft. and 35-ft. Opus Low-floor buses, including the series hybrid Opus based on the ISE powertrain. (More...)
BATTERIES and ELECTRIC VEHICLES
Currie Technologies, a bicycle and scooter company founded by the former chairman and CEO of Hughes Aircraft and Delco Electronics, will introduce 10 new models of hybrid-electric bicycles (human pedal power + battery power) and 3 new models of electric scooters at the Eurobike International Bicycle Trade Fair held in Friedrichshafen, Germany on August 31, 2006. (More...)
ZAP is expanding the US sales of its three-wheeled, low-speed, all-electric microcar, the XEBRA. The XEBRA can seat four (maximum load 500 pounds) and has a range of up to 40 miles (65 kilometers) and a top speed of 40 mph (65 km/h). It uses a DC motor powered by a lead-acid battery pack. (More...)
BIOFUELS
Use of biodiesel can lower the balance point temperature in diesel particulate filters (DPF) compared to Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel, and can cause a measurable increase in the regeneration rate of the DPF, according to data from the first phase of a study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Cummins presented at DEER 2006. (More...)
Statoil—the Norwegian integrated oil and gas company and one of the world’s largest sellers of crude—recently began adding 5% biodiesel to all diesel sold at the group’s service stations in Sweden. (More...)
SeQuential Biofuels has opened a solar-powered retail biofuels station offering a full range of ethanol and biodiesel blends: E10, E85, B5, B20 and B100. (More...)
Colusa Biomass Energy Corporation has selected a 15-acre site within the Colusa Industrial Park (Colusa, California) for a 10-million-gallon per year cellulosic ethanol plant. Colusa will use approximately 120,000 tons per year of waste rice straw as the feedstock for the plant, which is located in a prime rice-producing area of the Sacramento Valley. (More...)
Novozymes won a 1.5-year-long case against Danisco concerning infringement of a Novozymes patent on enzymes for bioethanol. (More...)
Lotus Engineering, the engineering consultancy division of Group Lotus Plc, has developed an E85 version of the Lotus Exige—the Lotus Exige 265E—as a research car. Powered by a modified version of the 1.8-liter engine in the standard Lotus Exige S, the Exige 265E is more powerful than its gasoline counterpart, producing 264 hp (197 kW) at 8,000 rpm, and 184 lb-ft (249 Nm) of torque (at 5,500 rpm)—increases of 21% and 16% respectively over the gasoline model. (More...)
HYDROGEN
Statoil opened Norway’s first hydrogen filling station for motor vehicles as a step in creating the HyNor hydrogen highway between the capital, Oslo, and western Norway’s port of Stavanger. The station supplies hydrogen, natural gas and NaturalHy—a 8-20% hydrogen, 92-80% compressed natural gas blend. The Norwegian-produced sports car Fyk, unveiled on 21 August, runs on NaturalHy. (More...)
Shell is awarding $1 million to the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering department of Ohio State University to support a research project into the use of membranes for CO2-Hydrogen separation. (More...)
Hi-Z Technology and Dynamic Fuel Systems are exploring the use of thermoelectric generation using waste heat to power an on-board electrolysis unit to produce hydrogen for supplementary injection into the intake port of an engine to increase combustion efficiency. (More...)
The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) is soliciting applications for R&D funding for viable hydrogen storage technologies for on-board vehicular applications. (More...)
A team of researchers in Korea announced that they have identified a new material—titanium attached to a polymer—with a structure that can store hydrogen with gravimetric and volumetric density of 7.6 wt% and 63 kg/m3 at normal temperature without pressurization. (More...)
DIESEL
Speaking in the opening plenary session today of the Department of Energy’s Diesel Engine-Efficiency and Emissions Research (DEER) 2006 conference in Detroit, heads of engine research from Ford and Caterpillar each called for a research push to increase the basic efficiency of the diesel engine platform in addition to the ongoing efforts applied to emissions control. (More...)
A panel at DEER 2006 comprising GM, DaimlerChrysler, BMW, Honda, Volkswagen, the EPA and the Martec Group noted some major hurdles to a rapid proliferation of light-duty diesel models in the US. (More...)
General Motors will introduce a new V-8 turbodiesel that improves engine fuel efficiency by 25% for North American light duty trucks after 2009. This will be GM’s first engine to use a NOx aftertreatment system along with a diesel particulate filter to help achieve the Tier 2 Bin 5 (T2B5) and LEV 2 emissions standards. (More...)
In developing its promised Tier 2 Bin 5 diesel solution for the US, Honda is concentrating on advanced combustion management with Premixed Charge Compression Ignition (PCCI) and a trap-type lean NOx catalyst (LNC). (More...)
Ford Motor will offer a new 6.4-liter Power Stroke diesel in its 2008 F-Series Super Duty pickup, to go on sale early in 2007. (More...)
Eaton Corporation is developing an aftertreatment system that combines a fuel reformer catalyst with doser, Selective Catalytic Reduction system (SCR) and Lean NOx Trap (LNT) technology to create an exhaust aftertreatment system capable of meeting 2010 EPA diesel emissions requirements without the need for a urea storage and injection system. (More...)
California’s South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) is providing the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) with a $2.224-million grant to reduce emissions from 264 heavy-duty trucks by at least 95% through retrofits with diesel particulate filters. (More...)
SYNTHETICS
Arch Coal, the US’s second-largest coal producer, has acquired a 25% equity interest in DKRW Advanced Fuels, LLC. In exchange, Arch has agreed to extend its existing option agreement with DKRW Advanced Fuels, to work with DKRW Advanced Fuels to secure coal reserves for two additional coal-to-liquids (CTL) projects outside of the Carbon Basin, and to invest $25 million in the company. (More...)
Baard Energy, which is currently building several ethanol plants, reportedly is planning a $4-billion coal-to-liquids (CTL) plant in Wellsville, Ohio. (More...)
A Texas A&M University history professor and Syntroleum Corporation, owner of a compact Fischer-Tropsch fuels technology, are posting nearly a quarter of a million pages of coal gasification research conducted from the 1920s through 1980s on the Internet. (More...)
OTHER
Gates Corporation, a provider of belts, hoses hydraulics and related products for the auto industry, has introduced the first systems in its new Energy Saving product line targeted at both heavy-duty and light-duty vehicles. The new line includes a stop/start system, a two-speed drive system for passenger subsystems, and an idle-reduction system for heavy-duty trucks. (More...)
Nissan Motor has developed two new-generation six-cylinder V-type gasoline engines for front-engine, rear-wheel-drive vehicles. The engines offer a 10% improvement in fuel efficiency compared to vehicles equipped with the existing VQ engine as well as Super Ultra-Low Emission Vehicle (Japan) emissions. (More...)
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has introduced a new fuel-efficient commercial tire technology—Fuel Max—and three new tires for long-haul trucks that could deliver up to a 4% improvement in fuel economy, according to the company.
WorldChanging: Tools, Models and Ideas for Building a Bright Green Future: The Week in Sustainable Mobility (8/27/06)
Mike Millikin covers the ongoing evolution of sustainable mobility at Green Car Congress.
LIGHT-DUTY HYBRIDS and PLUG-IN HYBRIDS
The London (UK) Metropolitan Police have ordered 117 Honda Civic Hybrids—the largest yet fleet deal for hybrid cars in the UK. (More...)
Following the successful trial of the Lexus RX 400h by Hampshire Police in August last year (earlier post), Wiltshire Constabulary will be the first police force in the UK to incorporate Lexus GS 450h to its fleet. (More...)
Hymotion has delivered one of its L5 Prius Plug-in Hybrid systems to HOURCAR, a car-sharing program that serves Minnesota’s Twin Cities. The Hymotion L5 plug-in system serves to more than double the fuel efficiency of Toyota’s Prius hybrid, delivering 100+ mpg depending upon speed and range. (More...)
PML Flightlink and its partner Synergy Innovations recently unveiled an in-wheel, plug-in series hybrid conversion of a MINI at the British Motor Show, the MINI QED. The QED supports an all-electric range of 200-250 miles and has a total range of about 932 miles (1,500 km). The car accelerates from 0-62 mph in less than 5 seconds. (More...)
HEAVY-DUTY HYBRIDS and PLUG-IN HYBRIDS
Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty announced that Metro Transit will purchase an additional 150 diesel-electric hybrid buses and 164 new clean diesel buses to replace 314 older buses. Metro Transit will also double the biodiesel content of its fuel supply from a B5 blend (5% biodiesel) to B10 by mid-2007. (More...)
North American Bus Industries, Inc. (NABI)—itself acquired by Cerberus Capital in February—has acquired Optima Bus Corporation located in Wichita, Kansas. NABI produces and sells a complete line of buses available with diesel, CNG, LNG, or diesel hybrid-electric propulsion. Optima manufactures the 30-ft. and 35-ft. Opus Low-floor buses, including the series hybrid Opus based on the ISE powertrain. (More...)
BATTERIES and ELECTRIC VEHICLES
Currie Technologies, a bicycle and scooter company founded by the former chairman and CEO of Hughes Aircraft and Delco Electronics, will introduce 10 new models of hybrid-electric bicycles (human pedal power + battery power) and 3 new models of electric scooters at the Eurobike International Bicycle Trade Fair held in Friedrichshafen, Germany on August 31, 2006. (More...)
ZAP is expanding the US sales of its three-wheeled, low-speed, all-electric microcar, the XEBRA. The XEBRA can seat four (maximum load 500 pounds) and has a range of up to 40 miles (65 kilometers) and a top speed of 40 mph (65 km/h). It uses a DC motor powered by a lead-acid battery pack. (More...)
BIOFUELS
Use of biodiesel can lower the balance point temperature in diesel particulate filters (DPF) compared to Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel, and can cause a measurable increase in the regeneration rate of the DPF, according to data from the first phase of a study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Cummins presented at DEER 2006. (More...)
Statoil—the Norwegian integrated oil and gas company and one of the world’s largest sellers of crude—recently began adding 5% biodiesel to all diesel sold at the group’s service stations in Sweden. (More...)
SeQuential Biofuels has opened a solar-powered retail biofuels station offering a full range of ethanol and biodiesel blends: E10, E85, B5, B20 and B100. (More...)
Colusa Biomass Energy Corporation has selected a 15-acre site within the Colusa Industrial Park (Colusa, California) for a 10-million-gallon per year cellulosic ethanol plant. Colusa will use approximately 120,000 tons per year of waste rice straw as the feedstock for the plant, which is located in a prime rice-producing area of the Sacramento Valley. (More...)
Novozymes won a 1.5-year-long case against Danisco concerning infringement of a Novozymes patent on enzymes for bioethanol. (More...)
Lotus Engineering, the engineering consultancy division of Group Lotus Plc, has developed an E85 version of the Lotus Exige—the Lotus Exige 265E—as a research car. Powered by a modified version of the 1.8-liter engine in the standard Lotus Exige S, the Exige 265E is more powerful than its gasoline counterpart, producing 264 hp (197 kW) at 8,000 rpm, and 184 lb-ft (249 Nm) of torque (at 5,500 rpm)—increases of 21% and 16% respectively over the gasoline model. (More...)
HYDROGEN
Statoil opened Norway’s first hydrogen filling station for motor vehicles as a step in creating the HyNor hydrogen highway between the capital, Oslo, and western Norway’s port of Stavanger. The station supplies hydrogen, natural gas and NaturalHy—a 8-20% hydrogen, 92-80% compressed natural gas blend. The Norwegian-produced sports car Fyk, unveiled on 21 August, runs on NaturalHy. (More...)
Shell is awarding $1 million to the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering department of Ohio State University to support a research project into the use of membranes for CO2-Hydrogen separation. (More...)
Hi-Z Technology and Dynamic Fuel Systems are exploring the use of thermoelectric generation using waste heat to power an on-board electrolysis unit to produce hydrogen for supplementary injection into the intake port of an engine to increase combustion efficiency. (More...)
The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) is soliciting applications for R&D funding for viable hydrogen storage technologies for on-board vehicular applications. (More...)
A team of researchers in Korea announced that they have identified a new material—titanium attached to a polymer—with a structure that can store hydrogen with gravimetric and volumetric density of 7.6 wt% and 63 kg/m3 at normal temperature without pressurization. (More...)
DIESEL
Speaking in the opening plenary session today of the Department of Energy’s Diesel Engine-Efficiency and Emissions Research (DEER) 2006 conference in Detroit, heads of engine research from Ford and Caterpillar each called for a research push to increase the basic efficiency of the diesel engine platform in addition to the ongoing efforts applied to emissions control. (More...)
A panel at DEER 2006 comprising GM, DaimlerChrysler, BMW, Honda, Volkswagen, the EPA and the Martec Group noted some major hurdles to a rapid proliferation of light-duty diesel models in the US. (More...)
General Motors will introduce a new V-8 turbodiesel that improves engine fuel efficiency by 25% for North American light duty trucks after 2009. This will be GM’s first engine to use a NOx aftertreatment system along with a diesel particulate filter to help achieve the Tier 2 Bin 5 (T2B5) and LEV 2 emissions standards. (More...)
In developing its promised Tier 2 Bin 5 diesel solution for the US, Honda is concentrating on advanced combustion management with Premixed Charge Compression Ignition (PCCI) and a trap-type lean NOx catalyst (LNC). (More...)
Ford Motor will offer a new 6.4-liter Power Stroke diesel in its 2008 F-Series Super Duty pickup, to go on sale early in 2007. (More...)
Eaton Corporation is developing an aftertreatment system that combines a fuel reformer catalyst with doser, Selective Catalytic Reduction system (SCR) and Lean NOx Trap (LNT) technology to create an exhaust aftertreatment system capable of meeting 2010 EPA diesel emissions requirements without the need for a urea storage and injection system. (More...)
California’s South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) is providing the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) with a $2.224-million grant to reduce emissions from 264 heavy-duty trucks by at least 95% through retrofits with diesel particulate filters. (More...)
SYNTHETICS
Arch Coal, the US’s second-largest coal producer, has acquired a 25% equity interest in DKRW Advanced Fuels, LLC. In exchange, Arch has agreed to extend its existing option agreement with DKRW Advanced Fuels, to work with DKRW Advanced Fuels to secure coal reserves for two additional coal-to-liquids (CTL) projects outside of the Carbon Basin, and to invest $25 million in the company. (More...)
Baard Energy, which is currently building several ethanol plants, reportedly is planning a $4-billion coal-to-liquids (CTL) plant in Wellsville, Ohio. (More...)
A Texas A&M University history professor and Syntroleum Corporation, owner of a compact Fischer-Tropsch fuels technology, are posting nearly a quarter of a million pages of coal gasification research conducted from the 1920s through 1980s on the Internet. (More...)
OTHER
Gates Corporation, a provider of belts, hoses hydraulics and related products for the auto industry, has introduced the first systems in its new Energy Saving product line targeted at both heavy-duty and light-duty vehicles. The new line includes a stop/start system, a two-speed drive system for passenger subsystems, and an idle-reduction system for heavy-duty trucks. (More...)
Nissan Motor has developed two new-generation six-cylinder V-type gasoline engines for front-engine, rear-wheel-drive vehicles. The engines offer a 10% improvement in fuel efficiency compared to vehicles equipped with the existing VQ engine as well as Super Ultra-Low Emission Vehicle (Japan) emissions. (More...)
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has introduced a new fuel-efficient commercial tire technology—Fuel Max—and three new tires for long-haul trucks that could deliver up to a 4% improvement in fuel economy, according to the company. ()Buyers%20of%20new%20smart%20cars%20in%20Australia%20are%20automatically%20enrolled%20in%20smart%20Australia’s%20Carbon%20Zero%20program,%20independently%20run%20by%20two%20different%20Australian%20organizations:%20Climate%20Friendly%20and%20Greenfleet.%20(TrackBack
Mike Millikin covers the ongoing evolution of sustainable mobility at Green Car Congress.
LIGHT-DUTY HYBRIDS and PLUG-IN HYBRIDS
The London (UK) Metropolitan Police have ordered 117 Honda Civic Hybrids—the largest yet fleet deal for hybrid cars in the UK. (More...)
Following the successful trial of the Lexus RX 400h by Hampshire Police in August last year (earlier post), Wiltshire Constabulary will be the first police force in the UK to incorporate Lexus GS 450h to its fleet. (More...)
Hymotion has delivered one of its L5 Prius Plug-in Hybrid systems to HOURCAR, a car-sharing program that serves Minnesota’s Twin Cities. The Hymotion L5 plug-in system serves to more than double the fuel efficiency of Toyota’s Prius hybrid, delivering 100+ mpg depending upon speed and range. (More...)
PML Flightlink and its partner Synergy Innovations recently unveiled an in-wheel, plug-in series hybrid conversion of a MINI at the British Motor Show, the MINI QED. The QED supports an all-electric range of 200-250 miles and has a total range of about 932 miles (1,500 km). The car accelerates from 0-62 mph in less than 5 seconds. (More...)
HEAVY-DUTY HYBRIDS and PLUG-IN HYBRIDS
Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty announced that Metro Transit will purchase an additional 150 diesel-electric hybrid buses and 164 new clean diesel buses to replace 314 older buses. Metro Transit will also double the biodiesel content of its fuel supply from a B5 blend (5% biodiesel) to B10 by mid-2007. (More...)
North American Bus Industries, Inc. (NABI)—itself acquired by Cerberus Capital in February—has acquired Optima Bus Corporation located in Wichita, Kansas. NABI produces and sells a complete line of buses available with diesel, CNG, LNG, or diesel hybrid-electric propulsion. Optima manufactures the 30-ft. and 35-ft. Opus Low-floor buses, including the series hybrid Opus based on the ISE powertrain. (More...)
BATTERIES and ELECTRIC VEHICLES
Currie Technologies, a bicycle and scooter company founded by the former chairman and CEO of Hughes Aircraft and Delco Electronics, will introduce 10 new models of hybrid-electric bicycles (human pedal power + battery power) and 3 new models of electric scooters at the Eurobike International Bicycle Trade Fair held in Friedrichshafen, Germany on August 31, 2006. (More...)
ZAP is expanding the US sales of its three-wheeled, low-speed, all-electric microcar, the XEBRA. The XEBRA can seat four (maximum load 500 pounds) and has a range of up to 40 miles (65 kilometers) and a top speed of 40 mph (65 km/h). It uses a DC motor powered by a lead-acid battery pack. (More...)
BIOFUELS
Use of biodiesel can lower the balance point temperature in diesel particulate filters (DPF) compared to Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel, and can cause a measurable increase in the regeneration rate of the DPF, according to data from the first phase of a study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Cummins presented at DEER 2006. (More...)
Statoil—the Norwegian integrated oil and gas company and one of the world’s largest sellers of crude—recently began adding 5% biodiesel to all diesel sold at the group’s service stations in Sweden. (More...)
SeQuential Biofuels has opened a solar-powered retail biofuels station offering a full range of ethanol and biodiesel blends: E10, E85, B5, B20 and B100. (More...)
Colusa Biomass Energy Corporation has selected a 15-acre site within the Colusa Industrial Park (Colusa, California) for a 10-million-gallon per year cellulosic ethanol plant. Colusa will use approximately 120,000 tons per year of waste rice straw as the feedstock for the plant, which is located in a prime rice-producing area of the Sacramento Valley. (More...)
Novozymes won a 1.5-year-long case against Danisco concerning infringement of a Novozymes patent on enzymes for bioethanol. (More...)
Lotus Engineering, the engineering consultancy division of Group Lotus Plc, has developed an E85 version of the Lotus Exige—the Lotus Exige 265E—as a research car. Powered by a modified version of the 1.8-liter engine in the standard Lotus Exige S, the Exige 265E is more powerful than its gasoline counterpart, producing 264 hp (197 kW) at 8,000 rpm, and 184 lb-ft (249 Nm) of torque (at 5,500 rpm)—increases of 21% and 16% respectively over the gasoline model. (More...)
HYDROGEN
Statoil opened Norway’s first hydrogen filling station for motor vehicles as a step in creating the HyNor hydrogen highway between the capital, Oslo, and western Norway’s port of Stavanger. The station supplies hydrogen, natural gas and NaturalHy—a 8-20% hydrogen, 92-80% compressed natural gas blend. The Norwegian-produced sports car Fyk, unveiled on 21 August, runs on NaturalHy. (More...)
Shell is awarding $1 million to the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering department of Ohio State University to support a research project into the use of membranes for CO2-Hydrogen separation. (More...)
Hi-Z Technology and Dynamic Fuel Systems are exploring the use of thermoelectric generation using waste heat to power an on-board electrolysis unit to produce hydrogen for supplementary injection into the intake port of an engine to increase combustion efficiency. (More...)
The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) is soliciting applications for R&D funding for viable hydrogen storage technologies for on-board vehicular applications. (More...)
A team of researchers in Korea announced that they have identified a new material—titanium attached to a polymer—with a structure that can store hydrogen with gravimetric and volumetric density of 7.6 wt% and 63 kg/m3 at normal temperature without pressurization. (More...)
DIESEL
Speaking in the opening plenary session today of the Department of Energy’s Diesel Engine-Efficiency and Emissions Research (DEER) 2006 conference in Detroit, heads of engine research from Ford and Caterpillar each called for a research push to increase the basic efficiency of the diesel engine platform in addition to the ongoing efforts applied to emissions control. (More...)
A panel at DEER 2006 comprising GM, DaimlerChrysler, BMW, Honda, Volkswagen, the EPA and the Martec Group noted some major hurdles to a rapid proliferation of light-duty diesel models in the US. (More...)
General Motors will introduce a new V-8 turbodiesel that improves engine fuel efficiency by 25% for North American light duty trucks after 2009. This will be GM’s first engine to use a NOx aftertreatment system along with a diesel particulate filter to help achieve the Tier 2 Bin 5 (T2B5) and LEV 2 emissions standards. (More...)
In developing its promised Tier 2 Bin 5 diesel solution for the US, Honda is concentrating on advanced combustion management with Premixed Charge Compression Ignition (PCCI) and a trap-type lean NOx catalyst (LNC). (More...)
Ford Motor will offer a new 6.4-liter Power Stroke diesel in its 2008 F-Series Super Duty pickup, to go on sale early in 2007. (More...)
Eaton Corporation is developing an aftertreatment system that combines a fuel reformer catalyst with doser, Selective Catalytic Reduction system (SCR) and Lean NOx Trap (LNT) technology to create an exhaust aftertreatment system capable of meeting 2010 EPA diesel emissions requirements without the need for a urea storage and injection system. (More...)
California’s South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) is providing the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) with a $2.224-million grant to reduce emissions from 264 heavy-duty trucks by at least 95% through retrofits with diesel particulate filters. (More...)
SYNTHETICS
Arch Coal, the US’s second-largest coal producer, has acquired a 25% equity interest in DKRW Advanced Fuels, LLC. In exchange, Arch has agreed to extend its existing option agreement with DKRW Advanced Fuels, to work with DKRW Advanced Fuels to secure coal reserves for two additional coal-to-liquids (CTL) projects outside of the Carbon Basin, and to invest $25 million in the company. (More...)
Baard Energy, which is currently building several ethanol plants, reportedly is planning a $4-billion coal-to-liquids (CTL) plant in Wellsville, Ohio. (More...)
A Texas A&M University history professor and Syntroleum Corporation, owner of a compact Fischer-Tropsch fuels technology, are posting nearly a quarter of a million pages of coal gasification research conducted from the 1920s through 1980s on the Internet. (More...)
OTHER
Gates Corporation, a provider of belts, hoses hydraulics and related products for the auto industry, has introduced the first systems in its new Energy Saving product line targeted at both heavy-duty and light-duty vehicles. The new line includes a stop/start system, a two-speed drive system for passenger subsystems, and an idle-reduction system for heavy-duty trucks. (More...)
Nissan Motor has developed two new-generation six-cylinder V-type gasoline engines for front-engine, rear-wheel-drive vehicles. The engines offer a 10% improvement in fuel efficiency compared to vehicles equipped with the existing VQ engine as well as Super Ultra-Low Emission Vehicle (Japan) emissions. (More...)
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has introduced a new fuel-efficient commercial tire technology—Fuel Max—and three new tires for long-haul trucks that could deliver up to a 4% improvement in fuel economy, according to the company. ()
Make the most of our uranium
THE public mood on nuclear power is shifting because of the potential of a global catastrophe as a result of climate change.This key environmental issue will shape political decision-making as the situation becomes ever more urgent.
Ultimately, clean, green renewables like solar, wind and hot-rocks technology must be developed to generate electricity without producing the harmful gases causing climate change.
But to expect in the short-term that these forms of power could replace coal, gas and nuclear generators is simply wishful thinking.
Climate change demands immediate answers and nuclear power will inevitably be seen as part of the solution.
The world is energy hungry. No one can stop economic growth placing steadily increasing demands on supply.
Australia has a unique responsibility - and opportunity - because it has about 35 per cent of the known useable uranium resources.
Opposition Leader Kim Beazley and Premier Mike Rann are among Labor Party leaders who recognise this and who advocate scrapping the no-new uranium mines policy.
While some members of the ALP will seek to hold the line on environmental grounds, others recognise that large segments of the environmental movement now choose nuclear power as a lesser evil than climate change.
As the debate moves forward to accepting the advantages and inevitability of nuclear power, the question becomes how does Australia best contribute to combating the problems. These are the threat of terrorists or rogue states gaining access to radioactive material or technology and the safe storage of waste.
Enriching uranium in Australia, as advocated today by Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer, would help make the process safer by giving us - as a mature, responsible democracy - greater control of the product and lessening the chance of proliferation.
It will also elevate us from the world quarry's to a real player in an increasingly important and lucrative industry.
We have an obligation not to squander this resource and to obtain the best possible returns we can.
THE public mood on nuclear power is shifting because of the potential of a global catastrophe as a result of climate change.This key environmental issue will shape political decision-making as the situation becomes ever more urgent.
Ultimately, clean, green renewables like solar, wind and hot-rocks technology must be developed to generate electricity without producing the harmful gases causing climate change.
But to expect in the short-term that these forms of power could replace coal, gas and nuclear generators is simply wishful thinking.
Climate change demands immediate answers and nuclear power will inevitably be seen as part of the solution.
The world is energy hungry. No one can stop economic growth placing steadily increasing demands on supply.
Australia has a unique responsibility - and opportunity - because it has about 35 per cent of the known useable uranium resources.
Opposition Leader Kim Beazley and Premier Mike Rann are among Labor Party leaders who recognise this and who advocate scrapping the no-new uranium mines policy.
While some members of the ALP will seek to hold the line on environmental grounds, others recognise that large segments of the environmental movement now choose nuclear power as a lesser evil than climate change.
As the debate moves forward to accepting the advantages and inevitability of nuclear power, the question becomes how does Australia best contribute to combating the problems. These are the threat of terrorists or rogue states gaining access to radioactive material or technology and the safe storage of waste.
Enriching uranium in Australia, as advocated today by Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer, would help make the process safer by giving us - as a mature, responsible democracy - greater control of the product and lessening the chance of proliferation.
It will also elevate us from the world quarry's to a real player in an increasingly important and lucrative industry.
We have an obligation not to squander this resource and to obtain the best possible returns we can.
Emissions still the burning issue -
The Climate Group's Australian director, Rupert Posner, asks whether emissions trading is a good deal for Australian business.
Climate change is the issue of the day. Some of the consequences include rising sea levels, more extreme weather events, water shortages, changing disease vectors and millions of refugees.
It's more than just a potential environmental crisis - it's a burning political and economic issue, with global business frequently cast as fanning the fire.
The reality is that over recent years, as a scientific consensus has emerged and legislation has evolved, climate change has become a boardroom issue for many companies.
Of course, there are some who have stuck their heads in the sand but there are also many others who are leading the way on cutting energy use and developing low carbon products and services. Often they are discovering new business opportunities as a result.
One thing, in particular, that the business world is being asked to buy into is emissions trading. This is one of a relatively new breed of market-based environmental policy instruments aimed at reducing emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases as cost-effectively as possible.
Emissions trading remains a mystery to most companies. So what relevance does it have for the majority of people doing business? And, is a market-based solution really the answer to this potentially devastating environmental problem?
The concept of emissions trading is simple. Emitters of greenhouse gases are given an allocation of allowances (the number of tonnes of greenhouse gases they are allowed to emit over a particular time). At the end of the period the company must have sufficient allowances to match all its emissions. If a company is likely to generate more emissions than the number of allowances it holds, it faces two choices: invest in reducing its emissions at the source or buy allowances from another company that has met and gone beyond its targets, and therefore has allowances to sell.
If increasing numbers of companies choose to buy allowances to pollute rather than reduce their emissions directly, then the cost of the allowances goes up, making investment in emissions-reducing technologies more financially attractive. The economic principle is that by setting a market price for carbon we get emissions reductions at minimum cost. Sounds good so far.
But critically, for an emissions trading scheme to actually deliver on its environmental objective and encourage sufficient investment in low-carbon technologies, the allocations made to industry must be significantly below business-as-usual levels and set over a time frame consistent with investment decisions. What we have seen recently in the European Emissions Trading Scheme (EU-ETS), which was developed to help the European Union nations meet their targets under the Kyoto Protocol, was a "long" market where more credits were allocated than were needed. When the numbers were finally revealed in the last week of April the market all but crashed, with carbon prices losing more than half their value in the course of five days. Testament to the robustness of this fledgling market is that trading continued despite this knock.
In Australia there are some concerns over competitiveness - that without similar schemes in countries we compete with for trade, there is no level playing field.
However, it's equally apparent that an increasing number of companies, realising that emissions trading or some other greenhouse measure is inevitable, support strong government action. The thinking goes that if companies are going to have to make changes anyway, better that there is a stable framework within which to plan.
In a recent report prepared by The Climate Group and the UK Business Council for Sustainable Energy, looking at business views on international energy and climate policy, many of the companies surveyed stressed that they would prefer louder, clearer, longer-term policy signals to increase confidence and make investment decisions easier. This position was also supported by the Australian Business Roundtable on Climate Change.
In terms of emissions trading, this means a concerted effort from European governments to provide an allocation for the next trading period (2008-2012) that will support the developing market. Centrica, owner of British Gas, said: "We would support the biggest possible cuts in allocations". It also means governments clearly communicating their commitment to maintaining a trading regime in Europe, whatever happens on the broader international stage, and looking for ways to link into regional trading initiatives if the Kyoto Protocol does not ultimately deliver a solid international trading system.
But what does this mean for Australian businesses? Apart from those in the electricity business in NSW, Australian businesses largely have not had to worry about emissions trading. So should they forget about emissions trading and get on with running the business?
Firstly, it's worth noting that the European scheme is likely to be extended over time to cover a wider range of sectors, and if you are investing in Europe you need to know about this. And recently, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed an agreement with British Prime Minister Tony Blair to explore ways to link their carbon markets. Australian states also are examining an emissions trading scheme, and the current debate on low greenhouse gas technology is putting more focus on emissions trading as an effective driver for investment in these technologies.
While waiting for the policy framework to evolve, there is another critical factor to consider. With increasing mentions in the press, the profile of the climate issue is heading skywards. Individual awareness is growing and consumers will increasingly expect the businesses whose products and services they buy to be taking positive action.
In other words, even for those companies that are not yet covered by legislation or included under any particular trading regime, there are still major opportunities associated with being an early adopter. Understanding your emissions profile, reducing those emissions and communicating this effectively is increasingly becoming an opportunity for brand differentiation.
Take HSBC and Sky TV, for example, who recently became the first bank and media company in the world to go carbon neutral (reducing their net carbon emissions to zero). They achieved this not just by improving energy efficiency and buying green power but also by purchasing "offsets" to compensate for their remaining carbon footprint.
Offsetting is basically the process of purchasing emissions reductions made elsewhere (from a renewable energy project in the developing world, for example), to count against those of your own emissions, which are too difficult or expensive to tackle directly. It's an option already available to those participants in the regulated market of the EU-ETS and Kyoto. But the blossoming voluntary market demonstrates the increasing number of companies that want the benefits of flexibility when taking steps to reduce emissions. And because it is a voluntary market, Australian companies can participate.
So, the balance of evidence clearly demonstrates that, if emissions reductions are on the cards for the long term, then so-called "flexible mechanisms" are good for business. Understanding how they work opens up new opportunities for cost-effective climate strategies and will leave executives well prepared for future policy developments.
However, trading and offsetting systems need robust, credible frameworks to create the confidence and stability that are required to make them work over the long term. It is early days for emissions trading, with inevitable hiccups, but over time a global scheme will evolve.
It is likely that ultimately we will have to rely on a wide range of policies, some more flexible than others, to achieve the end goal of avoiding dangerous climate change and the catastrophic economic losses that would certainly entail. But one thing is near certain. Carbon is now money and more and more of us are going to be counting it.
The Climate Group works to catalyse leadership among governments and companies to address the challenge of climate change and has teamed up with the World Economic Forum and the International Emissions Trading Association to develop a global Voluntary Carbon Standard for trade in emission reductions.
The Climate Group's Australian director, Rupert Posner, asks whether emissions trading is a good deal for Australian business.
Climate change is the issue of the day. Some of the consequences include rising sea levels, more extreme weather events, water shortages, changing disease vectors and millions of refugees.
It's more than just a potential environmental crisis - it's a burning political and economic issue, with global business frequently cast as fanning the fire.
The reality is that over recent years, as a scientific consensus has emerged and legislation has evolved, climate change has become a boardroom issue for many companies.
Of course, there are some who have stuck their heads in the sand but there are also many others who are leading the way on cutting energy use and developing low carbon products and services. Often they are discovering new business opportunities as a result.
One thing, in particular, that the business world is being asked to buy into is emissions trading. This is one of a relatively new breed of market-based environmental policy instruments aimed at reducing emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases as cost-effectively as possible.
Emissions trading remains a mystery to most companies. So what relevance does it have for the majority of people doing business? And, is a market-based solution really the answer to this potentially devastating environmental problem?
The concept of emissions trading is simple. Emitters of greenhouse gases are given an allocation of allowances (the number of tonnes of greenhouse gases they are allowed to emit over a particular time). At the end of the period the company must have sufficient allowances to match all its emissions. If a company is likely to generate more emissions than the number of allowances it holds, it faces two choices: invest in reducing its emissions at the source or buy allowances from another company that has met and gone beyond its targets, and therefore has allowances to sell.
If increasing numbers of companies choose to buy allowances to pollute rather than reduce their emissions directly, then the cost of the allowances goes up, making investment in emissions-reducing technologies more financially attractive. The economic principle is that by setting a market price for carbon we get emissions reductions at minimum cost. Sounds good so far.
But critically, for an emissions trading scheme to actually deliver on its environmental objective and encourage sufficient investment in low-carbon technologies, the allocations made to industry must be significantly below business-as-usual levels and set over a time frame consistent with investment decisions. What we have seen recently in the European Emissions Trading Scheme (EU-ETS), which was developed to help the European Union nations meet their targets under the Kyoto Protocol, was a "long" market where more credits were allocated than were needed. When the numbers were finally revealed in the last week of April the market all but crashed, with carbon prices losing more than half their value in the course of five days. Testament to the robustness of this fledgling market is that trading continued despite this knock.
In Australia there are some concerns over competitiveness - that without similar schemes in countries we compete with for trade, there is no level playing field.
However, it's equally apparent that an increasing number of companies, realising that emissions trading or some other greenhouse measure is inevitable, support strong government action. The thinking goes that if companies are going to have to make changes anyway, better that there is a stable framework within which to plan.
In a recent report prepared by The Climate Group and the UK Business Council for Sustainable Energy, looking at business views on international energy and climate policy, many of the companies surveyed stressed that they would prefer louder, clearer, longer-term policy signals to increase confidence and make investment decisions easier. This position was also supported by the Australian Business Roundtable on Climate Change.
In terms of emissions trading, this means a concerted effort from European governments to provide an allocation for the next trading period (2008-2012) that will support the developing market. Centrica, owner of British Gas, said: "We would support the biggest possible cuts in allocations". It also means governments clearly communicating their commitment to maintaining a trading regime in Europe, whatever happens on the broader international stage, and looking for ways to link into regional trading initiatives if the Kyoto Protocol does not ultimately deliver a solid international trading system.
But what does this mean for Australian businesses? Apart from those in the electricity business in NSW, Australian businesses largely have not had to worry about emissions trading. So should they forget about emissions trading and get on with running the business?
Firstly, it's worth noting that the European scheme is likely to be extended over time to cover a wider range of sectors, and if you are investing in Europe you need to know about this. And recently, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed an agreement with British Prime Minister Tony Blair to explore ways to link their carbon markets. Australian states also are examining an emissions trading scheme, and the current debate on low greenhouse gas technology is putting more focus on emissions trading as an effective driver for investment in these technologies.
While waiting for the policy framework to evolve, there is another critical factor to consider. With increasing mentions in the press, the profile of the climate issue is heading skywards. Individual awareness is growing and consumers will increasingly expect the businesses whose products and services they buy to be taking positive action.
In other words, even for those companies that are not yet covered by legislation or included under any particular trading regime, there are still major opportunities associated with being an early adopter. Understanding your emissions profile, reducing those emissions and communicating this effectively is increasingly becoming an opportunity for brand differentiation.
Take HSBC and Sky TV, for example, who recently became the first bank and media company in the world to go carbon neutral (reducing their net carbon emissions to zero). They achieved this not just by improving energy efficiency and buying green power but also by purchasing "offsets" to compensate for their remaining carbon footprint.
Offsetting is basically the process of purchasing emissions reductions made elsewhere (from a renewable energy project in the developing world, for example), to count against those of your own emissions, which are too difficult or expensive to tackle directly. It's an option already available to those participants in the regulated market of the EU-ETS and Kyoto. But the blossoming voluntary market demonstrates the increasing number of companies that want the benefits of flexibility when taking steps to reduce emissions. And because it is a voluntary market, Australian companies can participate.
So, the balance of evidence clearly demonstrates that, if emissions reductions are on the cards for the long term, then so-called "flexible mechanisms" are good for business. Understanding how they work opens up new opportunities for cost-effective climate strategies and will leave executives well prepared for future policy developments.
However, trading and offsetting systems need robust, credible frameworks to create the confidence and stability that are required to make them work over the long term. It is early days for emissions trading, with inevitable hiccups, but over time a global scheme will evolve.
It is likely that ultimately we will have to rely on a wide range of policies, some more flexible than others, to achieve the end goal of avoiding dangerous climate change and the catastrophic economic losses that would certainly entail. But one thing is near certain. Carbon is now money and more and more of us are going to be counting it.
The Climate Group works to catalyse leadership among governments and companies to address the challenge of climate change and has teamed up with the World Economic Forum and the International Emissions Trading Association to develop a global Voluntary Carbon Standard for trade in emission reductions.
Howard's phoney petrol price 'relief' plan
Zoe Kenny
With the price of crude oil predicted to remain high, a voter backlash against record petrol prices and the predicted dire consequences of climate change would seem enough to motivate any government into breaking Australia's dependence on polluting and increasingly expensive fossil fuels.
With Australia’s petrol prices having soared by 63% over the last four years to an average of $1.40 per litre, oil companies are raking in huge profits.
On August 23, BHP Billiton, Australia’s and the world’s biggest mining company, announced a record $13.7 billion annual profit. The company, which in partnership with Esso (Exxon) produces most of Australia’s crude oil supplies from its Bass Strait oil-rigs, said that “strong” oil prices had contributed to its 61% profit increase.
On August 25, Caltex Australia, which operates two oil refineries representing 30% of Australian capacity, announced a 12.6% rise in its profits for the first half of 2006. Reuters reported that, “discounting on-off items”, Caltex’s net annual “profit came in at A$276.7 million, up from A$237.4 million a year ago”.
“Refiner margins are expected to remain robust for the remainder of 2006 as global and regional supply remains tight”, Caltex managing director Des King said in a statement.
The August 9 Bulletin weekly reported that fuel price monitor MotorMouth estimated that due to the higher petrol prices motorists driving six-cylinder cars will be forking out an extra $2000 a year, while drivers of smaller cars will be paying an extra $900.
The plan that PM John Howard announced on August 14 — ostensibly to ease the impact of high petrol prices on ordinary motorists — will instead further line the pockets of the big oil companies, including with a direct subsidy of $100 million for on- and off-shore oil and gas exploration.
In an August 14 media release, Greens energy and climate change spokesperson Senator Christine Milne said, “Howard's fuel plan is an attempt at a short-term fix when Australia needs a plan to reduce our dependence on oil while reducing greenhouse gas emissions”.
LPG con
The centrepiece of the plan is a $2000 bribe to encourage drivers to convert from one fossil fuel, petrol, to another, liquified petroleum gas (LPG) or to buy LPG-run cars. The payment, however, is limited to those who can afford to shell out $3500 for the LPG conversion and then wait for the government to reimburse them.
The Victorian and NSW state Labor governments have rejected Howard's call for them to top up the subsidy with another $1000, which would have almost covered the $3500 cost, citing a lack of consultation and budgetary constraints.
Critics have also queried whether the cost of converting to LPG is worth it. On August 15, the federal Labor Party released a July 13 letter sent from Liberal special minister of state Gary Nairn to NSW Labor MP Jennie George which gave his reasons for rejecting the conversion of the federal government's car fleet to LPG. Nairn cited LPG's lack of availability and the fact that “the savings only stack up for cars travelling over 50,000km”.
Furthermore, the government intends to close the gap between the price of LPG and petrol over the next five years. As the August 15 Australian noted: “This week, LPG was selling for 50.9c in Sydney, compared with 132.9c for the cheapest unleaded petrol. The gap will close in 2011 when the federal government introduces an excise on LPG, which will rise in annual increments of 2.5c a litre until 2015. Petrol attracts an excise of 38.1c a litre.”
Critics of Howard's plan say it does nothing to relieve working people of the strain of increased petrol prices, and argue this could be done by cutting the fuel excise tax.
The Royal Automobile Club of Victoria (RACV) has called on the government to cut excise tax by 10 cents per litre, a move that would reduce government revenue by about $3 billion.
In addition to the excise tax, consumers also pay a GST on petrol, which flows to state governments.
However, the federal government's budgetary reliance on the $13 billion a year it gets from the fuel excise means that a real cut in excise tax is unlikely. Similarly, the state governments are unlikely to push for removing the GST on petrol.
Australians have one of the highest rates of car ownership in the world. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, in 2003 there were 13.2 million registered vehicles (including motor cycles). In 1992, only 16% of all people living in capital cities used public transport on an average weekday compared to 71% who used a car.
Use of private vehicles is more based on necessity than preference. In 1998, the ABS found that one in five people had public transport options. Often public transport is not reliable, or fast enough, forcing working people to rely on cars to get to and from work, or to do their weekly grocery shopping.
Public transport
If the state and federal governments were serious about reducing transportation costs for working people, they would be funding major expansions of public transport systems, rather than pouring billions each year into building new roadways.
Since petrol prices have soared, more people are using public transport. According to the August 21 Sydney Daily Telegraph, an extra 60,000 people per day are using public transport in Sydney since February. However, Howard's plan makes no mention of long-term plans to decrease Australia's reliance on private vehicles.
The state and federal governments are not serious about extending public transport options because they do not want to lose the revenue from taxes on petrol.
Apart from serious government investment, better public transport would require state and federal governments to take a stand against the profit-making interests of the big oil and car-making companies, as well as the banks and other financial corporations that are making megabucks from the public-private partnerships in toll-roads.
Another aspect of the petrol-price squeeze on household budgets is that a majority of consumer goods are transported by road in Australia. A rise in petrol prices almost immediately sends up the prices of many basic items. Two interest rate hikes in recent months have also meant that loan repayments are also eating into disposable incomes.
Ethanol
Another major aspect of Howard plan is a range of incentives for petrol stations to supply and promote ethanol-blend petrol (known as E10). Petrol stations could receive up to $40,000 from the government for supplying, promoting and achieving sales targets for E10.
There is still a debate about the environmental impacts of using ethanol (ethyl alcohol). A September 2005 ABC Science Online report cited research results obtained by Dr Robert Niven of the University of New South Wales, who claims that ethanol may increase groundwater contamination and photochemical smog.
On the other hand, the Renewable Fuels Australia website claims that ethanol reduces carbon monoxide and other toxic emissions by up to 30%. Ethanol displaces toxic chemicals such as benzene which is carcinogenic. Ethanol is quickly biodegradable.
In 2003, ethanol usage in the US reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 5.7 million tonnes — the equivalent of taking around 800,000 petrol-driven cars off the road.
Ethanol production can also increase employment in rural areas.
Many other countries have thrown their support behind ethanol as an alternative, renewable, fuel source to petrol. Brazil has been using ethanol as an alternative to petrol for several decades as a result of strong government support for research and development.
About 40% of all fuel sold in Brazil is ethanol, derived mostly from fermenting sugar cane. All petrol there is blended with at least 24-25% ethanol, and almost all petrol stations in Brazil — 29,000 out of 31,000 — also offer the choice of 100% ethanol.
Brazil intends to power 80% of its transport fleet with ethanol within five years. Australia, on the other hand, is only aiming to replace 1% of the petrol it uses with ethanol by 2010.
Whatever the verdict on ethanol, it is clear that Howard's plan will do nothing to break the stranglehold of the big oil companies on the fuel market. Australia needs a serious plan of research and development into alternative, renewable fuels and the government should be prepared to mandate their production once they are conclusively shown to be viable.
In a June 20 media release, Senator Milne said: “The Swedish government has set a goal of being oil-free by 2020; so should the Australian government. We need to give top priority to government support for biofuels development, more public transport and rail freight, promotion of hybrid and electric cars as well as hydrogen fuel-cell development. That's the only way we'll get the oil import monkey off our backs.”
From Green Left Weekly, August 30, 2006. Visit the Green Left Weekly home page.
Zoe Kenny
With the price of crude oil predicted to remain high, a voter backlash against record petrol prices and the predicted dire consequences of climate change would seem enough to motivate any government into breaking Australia's dependence on polluting and increasingly expensive fossil fuels.
With Australia’s petrol prices having soared by 63% over the last four years to an average of $1.40 per litre, oil companies are raking in huge profits.
On August 23, BHP Billiton, Australia’s and the world’s biggest mining company, announced a record $13.7 billion annual profit. The company, which in partnership with Esso (Exxon) produces most of Australia’s crude oil supplies from its Bass Strait oil-rigs, said that “strong” oil prices had contributed to its 61% profit increase.
On August 25, Caltex Australia, which operates two oil refineries representing 30% of Australian capacity, announced a 12.6% rise in its profits for the first half of 2006. Reuters reported that, “discounting on-off items”, Caltex’s net annual “profit came in at A$276.7 million, up from A$237.4 million a year ago”.
“Refiner margins are expected to remain robust for the remainder of 2006 as global and regional supply remains tight”, Caltex managing director Des King said in a statement.
The August 9 Bulletin weekly reported that fuel price monitor MotorMouth estimated that due to the higher petrol prices motorists driving six-cylinder cars will be forking out an extra $2000 a year, while drivers of smaller cars will be paying an extra $900.
The plan that PM John Howard announced on August 14 — ostensibly to ease the impact of high petrol prices on ordinary motorists — will instead further line the pockets of the big oil companies, including with a direct subsidy of $100 million for on- and off-shore oil and gas exploration.
In an August 14 media release, Greens energy and climate change spokesperson Senator Christine Milne said, “Howard's fuel plan is an attempt at a short-term fix when Australia needs a plan to reduce our dependence on oil while reducing greenhouse gas emissions”.
LPG con
The centrepiece of the plan is a $2000 bribe to encourage drivers to convert from one fossil fuel, petrol, to another, liquified petroleum gas (LPG) or to buy LPG-run cars. The payment, however, is limited to those who can afford to shell out $3500 for the LPG conversion and then wait for the government to reimburse them.
The Victorian and NSW state Labor governments have rejected Howard's call for them to top up the subsidy with another $1000, which would have almost covered the $3500 cost, citing a lack of consultation and budgetary constraints.
Critics have also queried whether the cost of converting to LPG is worth it. On August 15, the federal Labor Party released a July 13 letter sent from Liberal special minister of state Gary Nairn to NSW Labor MP Jennie George which gave his reasons for rejecting the conversion of the federal government's car fleet to LPG. Nairn cited LPG's lack of availability and the fact that “the savings only stack up for cars travelling over 50,000km”.
Furthermore, the government intends to close the gap between the price of LPG and petrol over the next five years. As the August 15 Australian noted: “This week, LPG was selling for 50.9c in Sydney, compared with 132.9c for the cheapest unleaded petrol. The gap will close in 2011 when the federal government introduces an excise on LPG, which will rise in annual increments of 2.5c a litre until 2015. Petrol attracts an excise of 38.1c a litre.”
Critics of Howard's plan say it does nothing to relieve working people of the strain of increased petrol prices, and argue this could be done by cutting the fuel excise tax.
The Royal Automobile Club of Victoria (RACV) has called on the government to cut excise tax by 10 cents per litre, a move that would reduce government revenue by about $3 billion.
In addition to the excise tax, consumers also pay a GST on petrol, which flows to state governments.
However, the federal government's budgetary reliance on the $13 billion a year it gets from the fuel excise means that a real cut in excise tax is unlikely. Similarly, the state governments are unlikely to push for removing the GST on petrol.
Australians have one of the highest rates of car ownership in the world. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, in 2003 there were 13.2 million registered vehicles (including motor cycles). In 1992, only 16% of all people living in capital cities used public transport on an average weekday compared to 71% who used a car.
Use of private vehicles is more based on necessity than preference. In 1998, the ABS found that one in five people had public transport options. Often public transport is not reliable, or fast enough, forcing working people to rely on cars to get to and from work, or to do their weekly grocery shopping.
Public transport
If the state and federal governments were serious about reducing transportation costs for working people, they would be funding major expansions of public transport systems, rather than pouring billions each year into building new roadways.
Since petrol prices have soared, more people are using public transport. According to the August 21 Sydney Daily Telegraph, an extra 60,000 people per day are using public transport in Sydney since February. However, Howard's plan makes no mention of long-term plans to decrease Australia's reliance on private vehicles.
The state and federal governments are not serious about extending public transport options because they do not want to lose the revenue from taxes on petrol.
Apart from serious government investment, better public transport would require state and federal governments to take a stand against the profit-making interests of the big oil and car-making companies, as well as the banks and other financial corporations that are making megabucks from the public-private partnerships in toll-roads.
Another aspect of the petrol-price squeeze on household budgets is that a majority of consumer goods are transported by road in Australia. A rise in petrol prices almost immediately sends up the prices of many basic items. Two interest rate hikes in recent months have also meant that loan repayments are also eating into disposable incomes.
Ethanol
Another major aspect of Howard plan is a range of incentives for petrol stations to supply and promote ethanol-blend petrol (known as E10). Petrol stations could receive up to $40,000 from the government for supplying, promoting and achieving sales targets for E10.
There is still a debate about the environmental impacts of using ethanol (ethyl alcohol). A September 2005 ABC Science Online report cited research results obtained by Dr Robert Niven of the University of New South Wales, who claims that ethanol may increase groundwater contamination and photochemical smog.
On the other hand, the Renewable Fuels Australia website claims that ethanol reduces carbon monoxide and other toxic emissions by up to 30%. Ethanol displaces toxic chemicals such as benzene which is carcinogenic. Ethanol is quickly biodegradable.
In 2003, ethanol usage in the US reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 5.7 million tonnes — the equivalent of taking around 800,000 petrol-driven cars off the road.
Ethanol production can also increase employment in rural areas.
Many other countries have thrown their support behind ethanol as an alternative, renewable, fuel source to petrol. Brazil has been using ethanol as an alternative to petrol for several decades as a result of strong government support for research and development.
About 40% of all fuel sold in Brazil is ethanol, derived mostly from fermenting sugar cane. All petrol there is blended with at least 24-25% ethanol, and almost all petrol stations in Brazil — 29,000 out of 31,000 — also offer the choice of 100% ethanol.
Brazil intends to power 80% of its transport fleet with ethanol within five years. Australia, on the other hand, is only aiming to replace 1% of the petrol it uses with ethanol by 2010.
Whatever the verdict on ethanol, it is clear that Howard's plan will do nothing to break the stranglehold of the big oil companies on the fuel market. Australia needs a serious plan of research and development into alternative, renewable fuels and the government should be prepared to mandate their production once they are conclusively shown to be viable.
In a June 20 media release, Senator Milne said: “The Swedish government has set a goal of being oil-free by 2020; so should the Australian government. We need to give top priority to government support for biofuels development, more public transport and rail freight, promotion of hybrid and electric cars as well as hydrogen fuel-cell development. That's the only way we'll get the oil import monkey off our backs.”
From Green Left Weekly, August 30, 2006. Visit the Green Left Weekly home page.
Shell Announces $1 Million Research Project to Ohio State University for Clean Hydrogen Technology Research: Financial News - Yahoo! Finance
HOUSTON, Aug. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Shell has awarded a $1 million research project to the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering department of Ohio State University for research in CO2-Hydrogen membrane separation.
This investment is part of a broader Shell strategy to invest and develop technologies that would benefit the commercialization of hydrogen.
This research examines a novel approach to membrane separation technology used in production of hydrogen from fossil fuels. The benefits of this particular technology are that unlike conventional methods, this process allows separation of pure CO2 at a lower cost. This is essential for economical carbon capture and sequestration, which allows zero-emission production of hydrogen. In addition, this technology may lower the cost of producing hydrogen, bringing it closer to commercialization.
"Shell believes that by funding the efforts of Ohio State's professor Winston Ho's team, we can potentially realize a new and viable technology in the Hydrogen field which could accelerate the arrival of hydrogen-based power and transportation solutions," said Duncan Macleod, Vice President of Shell Hydrogen.
This current project is preceded by two years of preliminary studies conducted by Ohio State University for Shell. Ohio State University has one of the nation's top Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering departments with extensive expertise in coal/hydrocarbon processing as well as in fuel cells and hydrogen.
Shell Oil Company, including its consolidated companies and its share in equity companies, is one of America's leading oil and natural gas producers, natural gas marketers, gasoline marketers and petrochemical manufacturers. Shell, a leading oil and gas producer in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, is a recognized pioneer in oil and gas exploration and production technology. Shell Oil Company is an affiliate of The Shell Group, which operates in over 140 countries and territories employing more than 112,000 people.
HOUSTON, Aug. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Shell has awarded a $1 million research project to the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering department of Ohio State University for research in CO2-Hydrogen membrane separation.
This investment is part of a broader Shell strategy to invest and develop technologies that would benefit the commercialization of hydrogen.
This research examines a novel approach to membrane separation technology used in production of hydrogen from fossil fuels. The benefits of this particular technology are that unlike conventional methods, this process allows separation of pure CO2 at a lower cost. This is essential for economical carbon capture and sequestration, which allows zero-emission production of hydrogen. In addition, this technology may lower the cost of producing hydrogen, bringing it closer to commercialization.
"Shell believes that by funding the efforts of Ohio State's professor Winston Ho's team, we can potentially realize a new and viable technology in the Hydrogen field which could accelerate the arrival of hydrogen-based power and transportation solutions," said Duncan Macleod, Vice President of Shell Hydrogen.
This current project is preceded by two years of preliminary studies conducted by Ohio State University for Shell. Ohio State University has one of the nation's top Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering departments with extensive expertise in coal/hydrocarbon processing as well as in fuel cells and hydrogen.
Shell Oil Company, including its consolidated companies and its share in equity companies, is one of America's leading oil and natural gas producers, natural gas marketers, gasoline marketers and petrochemical manufacturers. Shell, a leading oil and gas producer in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, is a recognized pioneer in oil and gas exploration and production technology. Shell Oil Company is an affiliate of The Shell Group, which operates in over 140 countries and territories employing more than 112,000 people.
A load of hot air?
Hardly a day goes by without a new dire warning about climate change. But some claims are more extreme than others, giving rise to fears that the problem is being oversold and damaging the issue.
How much has the planet warmed up over the past century? Most people reckon between two and three degrees. They are not even close. The real figure, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is 0.6C.
It's not surprising most people get it wrong. We are bombarded by stories warning us that global warming is out of control. The most extreme warn us we will be living in a tropical Britain where malaria is rife and Norfolk has disappeared altogether.
Dr Hans Von Storch, a leading German climate scientist and fervent believer in global warming, is convinced the effect of climate change is being exaggerated.
Drought or flood"The alarmists think that climate change is something extremely dangerous, extremely bad and that overselling a little bit, if it serves a good purpose, is not that bad."
Why do the stories that reach the public focus only on the most frightening climate change scenarios? We decided to find out for a BBC Radio 4 documentary.
In 2005 the scientific journal Nature published the first results of a study by Climateprediction.net, a group of UK climate scientists. They had been testing what effect doubling the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere would have on temperature.
The vast majority of their results showed that doubling CO2 would lead to a temperature rise of about 3C. Such an increase would have a major impact on the planet. The scientists of Climateprediction.net say that is what you would expect their model to produce, and many other scientists have produced similar results. However a tiny percentage of the models showed very high levels of warming - the highest result was a startling 11C.
Attention grabbing
When it came to selling the story to journalists, the press release only mentioned one figure - 11C.
If journalists decide to embroider on a press release without referring to the [research], we can't as scientists guard against that
Dr Myles AllenThe ensuing broadsheet headlines were predictably apocalyptic, from "Global warming is twice as bad as previously thought" to "Screensaver weather trial predicts 10C rise in British temperatures".
They may be dramatic but they are also wrong. Dr Myles Allen, principal investigator at Climateprediction.net, blames the media.
"If journalists decide to embroider on a press release without referring to the paper which the press release is about, then that's really the journalists' problem. We can't as scientists guard against that."
But is the media solely to blame? We asked several climate scientists to read the paper and the press release publicising it. All were critical of the prominence given to the prediction that the world could heat up by 11C.
"I agree the 11C figure was unreasonably hyped. It's a difficult line for all scientists to tread, as we need something 'exciting' to have any chance of publishing... to justify our funding," one scientist wrote us.
Not easy being green
Even government agencies have been criticised for overselling climate change. When the Environment Agency publicised research on global warming over the next 1,000 years, it predicted cataclysmic change; temperature rises of 15C and sea levels increasing by 11m. The agency said action was needed now.
Emotive issueBut this isn't how the study's lead author, Dr Tim Lenton sees it. His research shows if you did nothing for a century you would still only get a fraction of the worst case scenario. He says there's consternation among scientists at the presentation of their science by the Environment Agency. Scientists would have liked to have seen a more balanced picture presented.
Clive Bates, head of environment policy at the agency, says it's simply a case of Dr Lenton not understanding the way the media works. "He was involved in signing off the press release, there is nothing in there that is actually incorrect."
The difficulty for climate scientists is that their work has a political dimension. Take the study carried out by researchers at the Cloud Forest Preserve in Costa Rica. It claimed a link between climate change and frog extinctions. The lead scientist Dr Alan Pounds said: "Disease is the bullet killing frogs, but climate change is pulling the trigger."
Climate culprit for frog deaths The press had a field day, as it seemed to show global warming was causing damage now. Indeed the beautiful and now extinct Golden toad was christened the first victim of climate change.
Dr Pounds' team claim global warming is producing ideal conditions for a fungus to thrive which causes the disease, which then kills off the frogs. Critics say there's a problem with this theory. The fungus doesn't need high temperatures to wipe out frogs. It is killing frogs in different areas with different climates.
When I contacted Dr Pounds to discuss his research, he admitted they did not know how the fungus was affected by climate but was confident they had shown as statistical relationship.
"We wouldn't have proposed the hypothesis that we did had we not found such a strong relationship; we are not saying that's the only possible mechanism," he said.
US sceptics
We have spoken to many frog specialists who are sceptical of Dr Pounds' paper. Normally it wouldn't really matter which frog expert was wrong.
Planet pays for US love of cars?But there is another group who are involved - climate change sceptics in the United States. They are already criticising Dr Pounds' research to show you can't trust climate scientists or the journals they write in.
Dr Cindy Carey, a frog specialist from Colorado University, warns that climate scientists have to be more sceptical of their own research.
"A bad paper that gets a lot of publicity could backfire considerably and they'll say see scientists are trying to convince people of climate change on the back of bad data."
All of the climate scientists we spoke to fervently believe global warming is being caused by human activity. Many agree there's also a major problem with alarmism. As one scientist said: "If we cry wolf too loudly or too often, no-one will believe us when the beast actually comes for dinner."
Overselling Climate Change was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on Thursday 20 April at 2000 BST. Or you can use the Listen Again service on the Radio 4 website, linked on right of this page.
Hardly a day goes by without a new dire warning about climate change. But some claims are more extreme than others, giving rise to fears that the problem is being oversold and damaging the issue.
How much has the planet warmed up over the past century? Most people reckon between two and three degrees. They are not even close. The real figure, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is 0.6C.
It's not surprising most people get it wrong. We are bombarded by stories warning us that global warming is out of control. The most extreme warn us we will be living in a tropical Britain where malaria is rife and Norfolk has disappeared altogether.
Dr Hans Von Storch, a leading German climate scientist and fervent believer in global warming, is convinced the effect of climate change is being exaggerated.
Drought or flood"The alarmists think that climate change is something extremely dangerous, extremely bad and that overselling a little bit, if it serves a good purpose, is not that bad."
Why do the stories that reach the public focus only on the most frightening climate change scenarios? We decided to find out for a BBC Radio 4 documentary.
In 2005 the scientific journal Nature published the first results of a study by Climateprediction.net, a group of UK climate scientists. They had been testing what effect doubling the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere would have on temperature.
The vast majority of their results showed that doubling CO2 would lead to a temperature rise of about 3C. Such an increase would have a major impact on the planet. The scientists of Climateprediction.net say that is what you would expect their model to produce, and many other scientists have produced similar results. However a tiny percentage of the models showed very high levels of warming - the highest result was a startling 11C.
Attention grabbing
When it came to selling the story to journalists, the press release only mentioned one figure - 11C.
If journalists decide to embroider on a press release without referring to the [research], we can't as scientists guard against that
Dr Myles AllenThe ensuing broadsheet headlines were predictably apocalyptic, from "Global warming is twice as bad as previously thought" to "Screensaver weather trial predicts 10C rise in British temperatures".
They may be dramatic but they are also wrong. Dr Myles Allen, principal investigator at Climateprediction.net, blames the media.
"If journalists decide to embroider on a press release without referring to the paper which the press release is about, then that's really the journalists' problem. We can't as scientists guard against that."
But is the media solely to blame? We asked several climate scientists to read the paper and the press release publicising it. All were critical of the prominence given to the prediction that the world could heat up by 11C.
"I agree the 11C figure was unreasonably hyped. It's a difficult line for all scientists to tread, as we need something 'exciting' to have any chance of publishing... to justify our funding," one scientist wrote us.
Not easy being green
Even government agencies have been criticised for overselling climate change. When the Environment Agency publicised research on global warming over the next 1,000 years, it predicted cataclysmic change; temperature rises of 15C and sea levels increasing by 11m. The agency said action was needed now.
Emotive issueBut this isn't how the study's lead author, Dr Tim Lenton sees it. His research shows if you did nothing for a century you would still only get a fraction of the worst case scenario. He says there's consternation among scientists at the presentation of their science by the Environment Agency. Scientists would have liked to have seen a more balanced picture presented.
Clive Bates, head of environment policy at the agency, says it's simply a case of Dr Lenton not understanding the way the media works. "He was involved in signing off the press release, there is nothing in there that is actually incorrect."
The difficulty for climate scientists is that their work has a political dimension. Take the study carried out by researchers at the Cloud Forest Preserve in Costa Rica. It claimed a link between climate change and frog extinctions. The lead scientist Dr Alan Pounds said: "Disease is the bullet killing frogs, but climate change is pulling the trigger."
Climate culprit for frog deaths The press had a field day, as it seemed to show global warming was causing damage now. Indeed the beautiful and now extinct Golden toad was christened the first victim of climate change.
Dr Pounds' team claim global warming is producing ideal conditions for a fungus to thrive which causes the disease, which then kills off the frogs. Critics say there's a problem with this theory. The fungus doesn't need high temperatures to wipe out frogs. It is killing frogs in different areas with different climates.
When I contacted Dr Pounds to discuss his research, he admitted they did not know how the fungus was affected by climate but was confident they had shown as statistical relationship.
"We wouldn't have proposed the hypothesis that we did had we not found such a strong relationship; we are not saying that's the only possible mechanism," he said.
US sceptics
We have spoken to many frog specialists who are sceptical of Dr Pounds' paper. Normally it wouldn't really matter which frog expert was wrong.
Planet pays for US love of cars?But there is another group who are involved - climate change sceptics in the United States. They are already criticising Dr Pounds' research to show you can't trust climate scientists or the journals they write in.
Dr Cindy Carey, a frog specialist from Colorado University, warns that climate scientists have to be more sceptical of their own research.
"A bad paper that gets a lot of publicity could backfire considerably and they'll say see scientists are trying to convince people of climate change on the back of bad data."
All of the climate scientists we spoke to fervently believe global warming is being caused by human activity. Many agree there's also a major problem with alarmism. As one scientist said: "If we cry wolf too loudly or too often, no-one will believe us when the beast actually comes for dinner."
Overselling Climate Change was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on Thursday 20 April at 2000 BST. Or you can use the Listen Again service on the Radio 4 website, linked on right of this page.
Money flowing to new ideas in energy
With rising energy prices stoking demand for new technologies, venture capital firms are showering attention, and hundreds of millions of dollars, on a field investors have long ignored: alternative energy.
Start-ups working with solar, battery, hydrogen, wind, and fuel cell technologies raised $445.1 million in venture funds nationally in the first six months of this year, 56.1 percent more than the $285.2 million raised by such companies in all of 2005, according to figures newly compiled by the National Venture Capital Association trade group.
In New England, venture investments in alternative energy companies spiked to $87.9 million in the first half of 2006, six times more than the $13.5 million invested all of last year.
At today's higher energy prices, ``a lot of the things that didn't look economical in the past are starting to look more economical," said Jeff Andrews , a partner at Atlas Venture in Waltham who's been prowling for alternative energy investments.
Andrews said interest in the field has been heating up at venture firms across the country as soaring oil prices leave financially pinched businesses and consumers clamoring for alternatives. ``You don't have to look very far to see what the cost of energy is," he said.
Among the Massachusetts start-ups that have drawn venture funding are A123 Systems, a Watertown company that is pioneering a new kind of rechargeable lithium ion battery that would be more powerful and durable than the batteries that now power hybrid cars. The company raised $30 million in February -- the largest funding round so far in 2006 for an energy start-up in New England -- from a consortium of venture investors that includes North Bridge Venture Partners of Waltham and Silicon Valley powerhouse Sequoia Capital.
Earlier this year, A123's batteries entered the consumer market powering a new cordless line of Black & Decker's DeWalt power tools, such as hammer drills and circular saws. A123 executives are now talking to American and European automakers about incorporating the lithium ion batteries in new hybrid vehicles scheduled to be introduced between 2009 and 2011. ``I believe we have the right technology at the right time," said A123 cofounder Yet-Ming Chiang , a materials science professor who developed the tiny nanomaterials used in the batteries in his lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
At least some of the fervor for funding energy start-ups can be attributed to the souring of interest in other sectors of the economy.
``Venture capitalists have gone through a dry spell finding attractive investments in telecommunications and software," said Howard R. Berke , founder and chief executive of Konarka Technologies Inc., a Lowell company developing flexible plastic solar cells for use in everything from building materials to mobile phones. ``They see clean energy as a new focus area."Continued
With rising energy prices stoking demand for new technologies, venture capital firms are showering attention, and hundreds of millions of dollars, on a field investors have long ignored: alternative energy.
Start-ups working with solar, battery, hydrogen, wind, and fuel cell technologies raised $445.1 million in venture funds nationally in the first six months of this year, 56.1 percent more than the $285.2 million raised by such companies in all of 2005, according to figures newly compiled by the National Venture Capital Association trade group.
In New England, venture investments in alternative energy companies spiked to $87.9 million in the first half of 2006, six times more than the $13.5 million invested all of last year.
At today's higher energy prices, ``a lot of the things that didn't look economical in the past are starting to look more economical," said Jeff Andrews , a partner at Atlas Venture in Waltham who's been prowling for alternative energy investments.
Andrews said interest in the field has been heating up at venture firms across the country as soaring oil prices leave financially pinched businesses and consumers clamoring for alternatives. ``You don't have to look very far to see what the cost of energy is," he said.
Among the Massachusetts start-ups that have drawn venture funding are A123 Systems, a Watertown company that is pioneering a new kind of rechargeable lithium ion battery that would be more powerful and durable than the batteries that now power hybrid cars. The company raised $30 million in February -- the largest funding round so far in 2006 for an energy start-up in New England -- from a consortium of venture investors that includes North Bridge Venture Partners of Waltham and Silicon Valley powerhouse Sequoia Capital.
Earlier this year, A123's batteries entered the consumer market powering a new cordless line of Black & Decker's DeWalt power tools, such as hammer drills and circular saws. A123 executives are now talking to American and European automakers about incorporating the lithium ion batteries in new hybrid vehicles scheduled to be introduced between 2009 and 2011. ``I believe we have the right technology at the right time," said A123 cofounder Yet-Ming Chiang , a materials science professor who developed the tiny nanomaterials used in the batteries in his lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
At least some of the fervor for funding energy start-ups can be attributed to the souring of interest in other sectors of the economy.
``Venture capitalists have gone through a dry spell finding attractive investments in telecommunications and software," said Howard R. Berke , founder and chief executive of Konarka Technologies Inc., a Lowell company developing flexible plastic solar cells for use in everything from building materials to mobile phones. ``They see clean energy as a new focus area."Continued
Boeing hydrogen plane set to lift off
BOEING is developing a light aircraft powered by fuel cells and electric motors, making it potentially the greenest plane ever to fly.
It would emit no carbon dioxide, the main gas blamed for global warming, or other pollutants, leaving just a trail of water. It would also be almost completely silent. The hitch? It would fly at only 70mph.
NI_MPU('middle');
The decision to develop the plane comes amid growing concern over high carbon dioxide emissions from passenger jets.
Boeing is working with Intelligent Energy, a British fuel cell designer. It hopes the two-seater aircraft will make its maiden flight in the next 12 months.
“What we are designing is a demonstrator aircraft to see if it can be done,” said Boeing. “This technology is in its infancy but it has great potential.”
The aircraft is based on the Diamond Dimona, an Austrian plane chosen for its light weight. Boeing engineers in Madrid have stripped out its fuel tank, replacing it with a bottle of compressed hydrogen that will feed into a fuel cell.
There, the hydrogen will be chemically combined with oxygen from the air to generate power. This will then be fed to an electric motor to turn the propeller.
The system is mechanically simple. Fuel cells have no moving parts and run silently. They tend, however, to be bulky and expensive, which is why their use has never become widespread.
Dr Jon Moore, director of communications at Intelligent Energy, based in Loughborough, Leicestershire, said technological advances were now making such devices far lighter and cheaper, but aviation remained the biggest challenge.
“The secret lies in making a fuel cell powerful enough to get an aircraft off the ground and to keep it climbing,” he said. “That takes a huge amount of energy and it is a big obstacle.”
Boeing has overcome this by backing up the fuel cell with batteries that provide extra power for take-off and then recharge while the aircraft is cruising.
The Boeing project will be the first manned fuel cell- powered aircraft. Last year AeroVironment, a Californianfirm, flew an unmanned surveillance plane, the Global Observer, which was powered by a fuel cell.
Even if Boeing succeeds with its aircraft it will take many years to scale it up for commercial use.
Another big problem is finding a supply of “green” hydrogen. Most commercially produced hydrogen is synthesised in refineries from fossil fuels such as natural gas. Critics call this “black hydrogen” because carbon dioxide is generated as a by-product, cancelling out many of the potential benefits.
BOEING is developing a light aircraft powered by fuel cells and electric motors, making it potentially the greenest plane ever to fly.
It would emit no carbon dioxide, the main gas blamed for global warming, or other pollutants, leaving just a trail of water. It would also be almost completely silent. The hitch? It would fly at only 70mph.
NI_MPU('middle');
The decision to develop the plane comes amid growing concern over high carbon dioxide emissions from passenger jets.
Boeing is working with Intelligent Energy, a British fuel cell designer. It hopes the two-seater aircraft will make its maiden flight in the next 12 months.
“What we are designing is a demonstrator aircraft to see if it can be done,” said Boeing. “This technology is in its infancy but it has great potential.”
The aircraft is based on the Diamond Dimona, an Austrian plane chosen for its light weight. Boeing engineers in Madrid have stripped out its fuel tank, replacing it with a bottle of compressed hydrogen that will feed into a fuel cell.
There, the hydrogen will be chemically combined with oxygen from the air to generate power. This will then be fed to an electric motor to turn the propeller.
The system is mechanically simple. Fuel cells have no moving parts and run silently. They tend, however, to be bulky and expensive, which is why their use has never become widespread.
Dr Jon Moore, director of communications at Intelligent Energy, based in Loughborough, Leicestershire, said technological advances were now making such devices far lighter and cheaper, but aviation remained the biggest challenge.
“The secret lies in making a fuel cell powerful enough to get an aircraft off the ground and to keep it climbing,” he said. “That takes a huge amount of energy and it is a big obstacle.”
Boeing has overcome this by backing up the fuel cell with batteries that provide extra power for take-off and then recharge while the aircraft is cruising.
The Boeing project will be the first manned fuel cell- powered aircraft. Last year AeroVironment, a Californianfirm, flew an unmanned surveillance plane, the Global Observer, which was powered by a fuel cell.
Even if Boeing succeeds with its aircraft it will take many years to scale it up for commercial use.
Another big problem is finding a supply of “green” hydrogen. Most commercially produced hydrogen is synthesised in refineries from fossil fuels such as natural gas. Critics call this “black hydrogen” because carbon dioxide is generated as a by-product, cancelling out many of the potential benefits.
Experimenting with Hydrogen Transportation
RIO DE JANEIRO, Aug 26 (IPS) - Brazil has joined the industrialised countries in the race for hydrogen power, announcing the development of public buses running on this source of "clean" energy. But experts say the new vehicles will only be commercially viable at the end of the next decade, or even later. Five buses with hydrogen fuel cells will be put to the test in 2007 in Sao Paulo and neighbouring cities. The four-year experiment calls for total travel of one million kilometres. If they pass the test, the hydrogen bus fleet will be expanded to 100 or 200. A similar project will get under way next year in Rio de Janeiro. Hydrogen allows the manufacture of quieter-running and more long-lasting vehicles, and is an attractive alternative when faced with the skyrocketing prices of oil and the need to protect the environment. Hydrogen represents "a jump in efficiency of 20 to 30 percent with respect to the existing combustion engines, which are inefficient and only use one third of the energy generated by liquid fuels," Jayme Buarque de Hollanda, director general of the National Institute of Energy Efficiency (INEE), explained to Tierramérica. One source of hydrogen is production through the electrolysis of water, of natural gas, or of alcohol. The hydrogen bus project in Sao Paulo, which has the backing of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), opted for electrolysis, the most simple and readily available technology. The problem is the initial investment. "The prototype of these vehicles costs 10 times the price of a diesel bus," says Marcio Schettino, coordinator of the project, developed by a partnership between the Sao Paulo Metropolitan Urban Transportation Agency and the Ministry of Mines and Energy. "Another 15 years will be needed before this technology is competitive with other vehicles," he admitted in a Tierraméric interview. Making hydrogen economically viable requires time. "Its production (whether from water, gas or alcohol) is still very costly. Furthermore, there are problems with transport and storage, because hydrogen is flammable and volatile," says Antonio Nunes Junior, president of the Brazilian Association of Electric Vehicles, ABVE. At the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, a project in consortium with several companies -- the state-owned oil company Petrobras, several bus manufacturers, and scientific institutions -- will produce hydrogen from natural gas to supply a bus that is also slated to begin circulation next year, near the university. The objective of that project is "to develop the technology and research," distinguishing it from the otherwise similar effort in Sao Paulo, focused on testing the buses in practice, said Nunes. According to Hollanda, in Brazil there would not be any great difficulty to supply electricity for electrolysis, but also promising is obtaining hydrogen from ethanol, which is already produced in massive quantities in this country, has high energy efficiency and important environmental advantages. "Clean energy doesn't exist," given that all sources produce some sort of waste, although in different quantities in of different types, says Hollanda, qualifying the arguments that praise hydrogen as a "zero pollution" energy source. "What we have to do is seek one that least affects the environment and the most appropriate solution for each place," he adds. For now, faced with the uncertainty surrounding hydrogen energy, Brazil is staking its bets on hybrid electric vehicles. This technology, used in 43 buses already serving the Sao Paulo metropolitan area, combines electrical generation from fuel, and batteries that accumulate the energy not consumed at certain moments of travel, and making use of it in others, when a boost is needed, such as driving uphill. The hybrids are a good transition option, "because the outlook for hydrogen isn't clear," said Nunes. They can use diesel, gasoline, natural gas or ethanol, maintaining its environmental advantages and saving fuel, as well as having a longer life on the road. An electric motor can travel 1.5 million km, while conventional ones begin to present problems at a distance 10 times less, he added. But hybrid buses cost 30 to 40 percent more than those that run on diesel, Nunes acknowledged. That cost for acquisition could be compensated in the long run, saving fuel, brakes and other components, especially with government incentives. Stricter environmental regulations, as are being implemented in some parts of the United States, as well as government policies for public transportation, could stimulate change in the transport technology base, he said. Once a certain scale is achieved, which would drive down the costs of hybrids, that option could become competitive, overcoming the limitations of the market. (* Mario Osava is an IPS correspondent. Originally published Aug. 19 by Latin American newspapers that are part of the Tierramérica network. Tierramérica is a specialised news service produced by IPS with the backing of the United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Environment Programme.) (END/2006)
RIO DE JANEIRO, Aug 26 (IPS) - Brazil has joined the industrialised countries in the race for hydrogen power, announcing the development of public buses running on this source of "clean" energy. But experts say the new vehicles will only be commercially viable at the end of the next decade, or even later. Five buses with hydrogen fuel cells will be put to the test in 2007 in Sao Paulo and neighbouring cities. The four-year experiment calls for total travel of one million kilometres. If they pass the test, the hydrogen bus fleet will be expanded to 100 or 200. A similar project will get under way next year in Rio de Janeiro. Hydrogen allows the manufacture of quieter-running and more long-lasting vehicles, and is an attractive alternative when faced with the skyrocketing prices of oil and the need to protect the environment. Hydrogen represents "a jump in efficiency of 20 to 30 percent with respect to the existing combustion engines, which are inefficient and only use one third of the energy generated by liquid fuels," Jayme Buarque de Hollanda, director general of the National Institute of Energy Efficiency (INEE), explained to Tierramérica. One source of hydrogen is production through the electrolysis of water, of natural gas, or of alcohol. The hydrogen bus project in Sao Paulo, which has the backing of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), opted for electrolysis, the most simple and readily available technology. The problem is the initial investment. "The prototype of these vehicles costs 10 times the price of a diesel bus," says Marcio Schettino, coordinator of the project, developed by a partnership between the Sao Paulo Metropolitan Urban Transportation Agency and the Ministry of Mines and Energy. "Another 15 years will be needed before this technology is competitive with other vehicles," he admitted in a Tierraméric interview. Making hydrogen economically viable requires time. "Its production (whether from water, gas or alcohol) is still very costly. Furthermore, there are problems with transport and storage, because hydrogen is flammable and volatile," says Antonio Nunes Junior, president of the Brazilian Association of Electric Vehicles, ABVE. At the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, a project in consortium with several companies -- the state-owned oil company Petrobras, several bus manufacturers, and scientific institutions -- will produce hydrogen from natural gas to supply a bus that is also slated to begin circulation next year, near the university. The objective of that project is "to develop the technology and research," distinguishing it from the otherwise similar effort in Sao Paulo, focused on testing the buses in practice, said Nunes. According to Hollanda, in Brazil there would not be any great difficulty to supply electricity for electrolysis, but also promising is obtaining hydrogen from ethanol, which is already produced in massive quantities in this country, has high energy efficiency and important environmental advantages. "Clean energy doesn't exist," given that all sources produce some sort of waste, although in different quantities in of different types, says Hollanda, qualifying the arguments that praise hydrogen as a "zero pollution" energy source. "What we have to do is seek one that least affects the environment and the most appropriate solution for each place," he adds. For now, faced with the uncertainty surrounding hydrogen energy, Brazil is staking its bets on hybrid electric vehicles. This technology, used in 43 buses already serving the Sao Paulo metropolitan area, combines electrical generation from fuel, and batteries that accumulate the energy not consumed at certain moments of travel, and making use of it in others, when a boost is needed, such as driving uphill. The hybrids are a good transition option, "because the outlook for hydrogen isn't clear," said Nunes. They can use diesel, gasoline, natural gas or ethanol, maintaining its environmental advantages and saving fuel, as well as having a longer life on the road. An electric motor can travel 1.5 million km, while conventional ones begin to present problems at a distance 10 times less, he added. But hybrid buses cost 30 to 40 percent more than those that run on diesel, Nunes acknowledged. That cost for acquisition could be compensated in the long run, saving fuel, brakes and other components, especially with government incentives. Stricter environmental regulations, as are being implemented in some parts of the United States, as well as government policies for public transportation, could stimulate change in the transport technology base, he said. Once a certain scale is achieved, which would drive down the costs of hybrids, that option could become competitive, overcoming the limitations of the market. (* Mario Osava is an IPS correspondent. Originally published Aug. 19 by Latin American newspapers that are part of the Tierramérica network. Tierramérica is a specialised news service produced by IPS with the backing of the United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Environment Programme.) (END/2006)
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