Clean Fleet Reporthybrid & electric cars smart charged with renewable energy
Ford Expands Hybrid Success to Electric Vehicles
It is Ford with the world’s most fuel-efficient SUV – the Ford Escape Hybrid. It is Ford that is now selling a mid-sized hybrid which can be driven to 47 mph in electric vehicle mode – the Ford Fusion Hybrid. It is Ford that is successfully testing the Ford Escape Plug-in Hybrid with major electrical utilities across the nation. It is Ford, not Toyota, which will be selling commercial electric vehicles in the United States in 2010. Through continued advances and strategic partnerships in hybrid-electric, plug-in hybrid, and battery-electric vehicles, Ford is positioned to compete and even lead in growth segments of the auto industry.
Test Driving the New Nissan EV
Walking up to the new Nissan Electric Vehicle prototype car, my first surprise was getting into the right hand front seat. This car was only one of two in existence and driving in Japan is like the UK, on the left side of the road.
United States Wind and Solar Grow as Coal Use Decreases
According to the latest figures published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) in its “Electric Power Monthly” report released on March 24, 2009, non-hydro renewable sources of electricity enjoyed double-digit growth during the past year while coal, natural gas, and petroleum experienced notable declines and nuclear power remained stagnant.
Top 10 Low Carbon Footprint Cars (and one SUV) for 2009
The Clean Fleet Top 10 Low Carbon Footprint Passenger Vehicles include the expected (Prius) and the unexpected (an SUV). The vehicles are generally gas misers (in one case a CNG miser). Some are roomy midsized sedans and one is the king of legally parking where none of the others qualify.
Clean Energy from Freight Trains and Gravity
It is common to see trains with four locomotives moving over 100 cars and 15 million pounds of weight. 15 million pounds moving downhill could be converted to clean renewable energy instead of heat lost in braking.
President Obama Announces $2.4 Billion for EVs and Battery Development
President Barack Obama announced the availability of $2.4 billion in funding to put American ingenuity and America’s manufacturers to work producing next generation Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles and the advanced battery components that will make these vehicles run.
Solar, Wind and Biofuels Grew 53 Percent in 2008
Three major clean-energy sectors — solar photovoltaics (PV), wind power, and biofuels — grew 53 percent from $75.8 billion in 2007 to $115.9 billion in revenues in 2008, according to the Clean Energy Trends 2009 report. By 2018, Clean Edge forecasts that these three sectors will have revenues of $325.1 billion.
New Generation of Clean Car Advocates
No one has more at stake in the emerging climate crisis than today’s youth. Scientists have proven that greenhouse gases are accumulating in the stratosphere at record levels. As the earth heats, a billion people cannot get enough food and clean water. This twelve year old boy writes from an area that increasingly suffers from draught, wild fires, and homes lost to a rising ocean.
Public Transit Supports Record Riders Despite Loss of Revenue
Despite falling gas prices and an economic recession, increasing numbers of Americans took 10.7 billion trips on public transportation in 2008, the highest level of ridership in 52 years and a modern ridership record, according to a report released today by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA).
Ethanol – the Good, the Bad, the Ugly, the Beautiful
We must move past fuel from food and haste to fuels from wood and waste. Although the economics do not yet favor major production, pilot plants are taking wood and paper waste and converting it to fuel. Other cellulosic material is even more promising. Some grasses, energy crops, and hybrid poplar trees promise zero-emission fuel sources. These plants absorb CO2 and sequester it in the soil with their deep root systems.
