Cars & Transportation

As part of a $500 million plan to clean up the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles--which are significant sources of air pollution in the Los Angeles basin--half of the 16,000 diesel trucks that currently operate at the ports will be replaced with liquefied natural gas (LNG) models. With diesel at over $4 a gallon, many truckers have already been slowing down to save fuel, but no amount of slowing down can reduce the emission of conventional pollutants from the oldest trucks, which is the biggest problem currently facing the ports. Trucking companies, therefore, have finally agreed with the plan, and this October will begin replacing their oldest, most inefficient and dirtiest trucks. The goal is that by 2012 "only trucks meeting the EPA's 2007 clean air standards will be allowed in the ports." (It's not clear why trucks that don't meet those standards are currently allowed in the port, although it's probably a question of cost, as well as the fact that a significant potion of America's products enter through these two ports).

The Clean Air Action Plan will also require that ships turn off on-board systems while they are at the docks. Finally, the target for overall emissions reductions from the port is 45%, which includes an 80% reduction in truck emissions.

Via: ::GreenBiz.com

See Also: ::Take Your Natural-Gas Vehicle To Utah!, ::Norwegian LNG Could Satisfy 10% of US East Coast Natural Gas Demand, ::Port Cities at Risk of Climate Change-Induced Coastal Flooding, ::Real Treehuggers Support Adding LNG Terminals, and ::EPA Petitioned to Limit CO2 Emissions from Ships

Business & Politics

Last year we wrote about the Climate Registry. John said: "Good metrics are a necessity for reducing carbon dioxide emissions from stationary sources. "Good" means everyone uses an agreed-to baseline year, to which all changes are compared, uniform methods for estimating emissions, and validation by third parties. With good metrics, plans for reduction, regardless of whether they are voluntary or mandatory, will be of higher value. The Climate Registry meets all these prerequisites."

Well, this year Ford became the first automaker to join voluntarily the Climate Registry, showing that it at least has the intention (we'll have to see how much action will follow) to be more transparent and accountable when it comes to greenhouse gas emissions. Most members of the registry are states and provinces, and it is a good sign to see big companies also joining. We encourage others to follow Ford's example, and then to take action to reduce their emissions. ::Official Ford Announcement

Cars & Transportation

Technology Review has created a useful animated primer on regular hybrid cars, plug-in hybrids and 'extended-range' electric car. The latter is what the Chevy Volt will be; A plug-in hybrid, but unlike with regular hybrids and plug-in hybrids, the gasoline engine cannot turn the wheels directly. All it can do is charge the battery, which then powers electric motors that turn the wheels.

TR's animation shows operation of the vehicles both in charged conditions and when the battery is depleted. It's well-done and should answer the questions of those who are not familiar with the differences between these types of vehicles that are bound to become increasingly popular in the near future. You can see the animated primer here: ::Electric Cars Primer

Business & Politics

Last week, three of the world's biggest oil companies reported record-breaking quarterly profits in excess of $27 billion. It's pretty hard to fathom that kind of money - but what is easier for the rest of us to see in real terms is also breaking records: the cost of a gallon of gas.

And of course as the gas prices skyrocket yet again, rather than getting the energy leadership our country really needs, we hear the same old calls to drill for more domestic oil - especially in some of our last wild places, like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the Polar Bear Seas (the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas off the coast of Alaska).

Business & Politics

In a side conversation a few days ago, Emerald City's Siel -- a fellow Angeleno -- took me to task for summarily dismissing the potential merits of the recently proposed congestion pricing scheme. She helpfully pointed me to a column penned by her friend, Damien Newton, who makes a convincing argument in favor of HOT (high-occupancy toll) lanes. His spirited defense rests on two central points: First, the pricing structure of the HOT lanes has not yet been hammered out -- so people like me should stop belaboring the equity issue for now -- and, secondly, this scheme should help expand and improve the MTA's services. He writes:

"Once the schedule's nailed down, it very well could be that cars with more than one passenger will be paying a very reduced rate and cars with three or more people driving free. It could also be that cars with two or more passengers will be able to access the HOT lane in non-peak hour periods for free, but have to pay a small fee during peak hours. The truth is, carpoolers probably won’t be seeing much, if any, of a change in the cost of their commute."

Cars & Transportation

A small team composed of young apprentices at Bentley were given pretty much carte blanche, and this cute electric vehicle is what came out after many weekends and evenings of hard work. We doubt that regular Bentley customers would be interested, but it's still a cool project.

"With a positively gorgeous carbon fiber composite body riding on a four-wheel single-wishbone fixed suspension and 1 x 16-inch Michelin low-rolling-resistance tires, the Continental DC (as in Direct Current) moves under the power of a 24-volt electric motor (from a motorized wheelchair, in fact) producing 0.5 horsepower and 5.1 pound-feet of torque and juiced by a pair of 12-volt batteries."

Cars & Transportation

Okay, we agree that the horsepower arms race is ridiculous, but going back to one horsepower in this way is going a bit far in the other direction!

More photos below.

Cars & Transportation

China, it seems, can't build fast enough or big enough these days, be it new airport terminals, dams, buildings for the Olympics, coal fired power plants, or bridges. In fact, last week China opened the world's longest sea bridge, spanning 22-miles across Hangzhou Bay, linking Shanghai and Ningbo, an industrial city. The previous record holder was the 20.2-mile long Donghai bridge, which links Shanghai and a port by the name of Yangshan.

So what will the bridge accomplish? The vice-president of an electric company based in Ningbo said it best: "I think it will be easier for our company to recruit high-calibre employees, who always prefer working in small cities like Cixi but living in big cities like Shanghai. They can leave Shanghai for Cixi in the morning and go back in the afternoon. It's only 1.5 hours' drive." Aside from the living in big cities part, that sounds a lot like America. Granted, the bridge will reduce the driving distance between the two cities by 75 miles, but it will clearly enable increased sprawl, congestion and car-ownership. But hey, given development patterns in the U.S. over the last 50 years, who are we to judge?