We’re pursuing three areas of interest on Zerocarbonista - energy, transport and food - the big three issues we have to deal with as we transition to a world post oil. As yet though we’ve not really got our teeth into the food issue (pls excuse the pun).

So here we go - kicking off in style with our first ever guest post. It’s from Juliet Gellatley – founder of Viva! - the vegan association.

I first met Juliet (and came across Viva) a few months ago. It was a bit like meeting yourself in another reality. If Ecotricity was about food we’d be very much like Viva. I’ve a lot of admiration for what Viva does and stands for, and for what it’s achieved already.

Anyway, without further ado I’ll hand over to Juliet, who makes a compelling case for a change in diet and the way we ‘make’ our food. (more…)

Here it is then, the fourth episode of the making of our wind car.  By the time we get to the sixth I’m hoping it’ll be on the road.

^{Video production: Tim Walter Associates Limited}

Good vid this one, all looks very industrial over there in Norfolk - and stuff is starting to come together.

I’m thinking it’s about time to come up with a name, and I’ve come up with a short list. (more…)

The Severn Barrage will cost about £15 Billion to build, will last 100 years and generate enough electricity to power over 4% of the UK - that’s enough for roughly 5 Million homes.

It’s got a lot going for it in that respect.

There are big questions over its impact on the ecology of the Severn Estuary, serious questions. These need balancing I think with the bigger ecological impacts of not doing enough to combat climate change.

But put that all aside for a minute and assume the Barrage is on balance a good thing to build. (more…)

We thought the Greenbird had flown silently past the deafening roar of Top Gear towers, but we were wrong. Check out this link to watch the good ol’ Top Gear boys practically combusting internally at the prospect of cars powered by the wind. They got the wrong end of the stick of course - the fun end of the stick though - shame it ended up in the out-take bin…

Are bikes greener than cars? That was the question tackled in a recent post. Looking at the issue from the perspective purely of energy used to travel - the results were a little counter intuitive to most of us I think.

The big thing not in those calculations was the embodied energy and therefore carbon in both cars and bikes. Many people on this site argued it needs to be taken into account, and I don’t disagree with that. The inference was, I think, that taking this into account the bike would have a way lower impact – that bit I wasn’t so sure of. I’ve pulled together some figures now. (more…)

Here’s the third in our series of monthly wind car videos.

^{Video production: Tim Walter Associates Limited}

You can see the body really starting to take shape here, and hear Peter talk about ‘toughening up’ of the look, from his original.

We’ve ‘placed’ all the parts within the car now and began machining/producing some of the bigger components, like the transmission. (more…)

Did an interview with BBC’s Watchdog the other day, they came to visit us here in Stroud. They’ve been on a bit of a crusade against the Big 6 by all accounts - and now they’ve decided to take a look at us Indies - to see if we offer an alternative!

They asked the ‘Green/Brown price’ question… which isn’t easy to answer in a soundbite or two but I did my best! You never know how these things will turn out - it’s all in the edit.

The piece is going out on the show on Monday 24th November, BBC1, 7.30pm.

May have something to say about it here on Tuesday - as may you..?

Watchdog page for the episode can be found here (should be updated following broadcast with video etc)

This is perhaps a surprising question to ask.  The assumption we’d all probably make is that bikes must be the greenest form of transport.  Certainly that’s a view put to me in recent comments, arguing that I shouldn’t be promoting wind powered cars - mainly because bikes are greener than any kind of car. (more…)

Here’s the second of our monthly video updates on the Wind car project.

^{Video production: Tim Walter Associates Limited}

I’m off to Norfolk next week to take a look at the proposed body modifications and generally have a catch up with the team. I’m looking fwd to it.

Chassis has been lengthened, battery housing and transmission are now designed and under construction and we’re very slightly behind the estimated timeline, but still heading for Dec on the road. (more…)

Over the last few months we’ve been discussing here how we’ll all get around post oil, looking closely at how electric or wind powered cars might work.

The ranges made possible by new batteries seem very practical, when looked at against current car use patterns refuelling appears to be possible, even desirable, without the need for garages. And the National Grid appears readily able to accommodate the switch from oil to electricity for our entire car fleet.

So far so good. (more…)