Month of December, 2008

Farms in Australia are big. CO₂ emissions in Australia are big - the largest per capita emitter in the developed world.

In the week that Australia announced its remarkably unambitious 5% reduction in CO₂ emissions by 2020 (on 2000 baseline as well!), a farm has announced that it has to close.

We have tried many, many times to get our Eco Vehicles Top Trumps on Top Gear. I think I might settle for tonight's edition of the show. It featured four of the cars in our pack - the Prius, the G-Wiz, the Tesla and the FCX. Whilst it was disappointing that the Tesla's reliability let it down, and the team missed out the glaring issue of the 10 times the energy required to produce Hydrogen as you get out of the car, the bigger issue is clear. Eco Vehicles have stirred Top Gear's loins.

The US car companies have had their request for financial assistance turned down by the US senate. Apparently the heads of the companies flew to Washington in their private jets. Now call me strange but I think I would have travelled there in my new plug in hybrid Chevy Volt...Maybe it won't now get into the next Eco Vehicles Top Trumps pack.

If you are remotely stirred by cycling, watch this, a great short film with great music.

British Rail used to have this brilliant strap-line..."We're getting there" which I felt was fabulously understated and unambitious, but firmly rooted in reality. I think the same can be applied to recent climate change mitigation I have noticed. 

Three candidates for irony of the week then....