Could this herald the start of eco-extremism? A Hummer owner in Washington D.C. got a nasty surprise when two masked men attacked his car, breaking all the windows and slashing every tire. As a final flourish the vandals scratched "FOR THE ENVIRON" onto the side of the car.
[Via MSNBC]
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This is the coolest bike I’ve seen in along time. Sorry to sound teenage, but this is the way to get around without a car. The Ixibike is a new design concept in collapsible two-wheelers. Not only does it have bendable handle-bars and pedals, which reduce it from a width of 22” to 12” in seconds, it also splits in half with the twist of one bolt. Now it’s easy to pop in the car, take on a bus or train and leave the short journeys to pedal power.
Related stories: Bike Friday folding bicycles | Urban mover folding electric bike
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On Friday 20th July Cenex, a government initiative dealing with low carbon and fuel cell technologies, will hold an exhibition at Leeds United's football ground. The purpose of the one day event, which is being held in partnership with Leeds City Council, is to promote a reduction in CO2 emissions from transport. Leeds Council are currently working with Cenex to reduce the carbon emissions of it's fleet, including 'hybridising' it's transit vans and converting some of it's buses to diesel hybrids. There will be a variety of low carbon vehicles at the event, and you have the opportunity to test drive them. The exhibition runs from 8.30am until 3.00pm and an itinerary of the day's events can be found here.
[via treehugger.com]
Related: Lothian buses go from red to green in new pilot scheme | More transport
If you are one of the many people who prefer to lease cars, rather than buying you may be interested to know you can now do it carbon neutrally. Eco Fleet provide cars for periods of 12 to 60 months, but unlike other companies they care about the environment and global warming, and their fleet only includes cars which produce low emissions. Those emissions are then offset through various schemes investing in renewable energy and forest restoration projects. Their website allows you to search for your hire car either by model, or by amount of CO2 it produces per kilometer. Eco Fleet deliver the vehicle to your door for no extra charge, and have competitive rates due to the large number of vehicles they own.
Related: Car pooling takes off on Facebook | Hydrogen powers car trial in Norway
I’ve always found Jeremy Clarkson annoying – I just don’t understand the attraction of cars and motoring and never have - but now he’s surprised even me with his latest car capers. In a sequence filmed by the BBC for its motoring programme Top Gear, Clarkson is shown zooming across the Makgadikgadi salt pans in Botswana, a protected area and the largest example of a salt-pan environment in the world.
The Guardian quote a BBC spokesperson as saying, “we employed several experts on the salt pans with environmental expertise who advised us on where we could and couldn't go, and ensured that we never went near any conservation areas.” But a local guide was quoted in The Telegraph as saying, “They said they were making a big film for the BBC and ignored me. They had quad bikes and three cars and they were driving all over the place, making marks on the salt pans.”
Apparently, it is usual practice to drive only in single file on the salt pans to minimise damage, but the marks made by the Clarkson and his team will last for years. It remains to be seen how long the damage to the BBC’s environmental reputation, in the wake of its much-vaunted support for Live Earth, will take to repair.
With this year's Tour de France well underway it's emerged that one of the top teams in the peloton have become carbon neutral. The Discovery Channel Team have offset all the carbon they produce in time for the TDF, and have also backdated it to 1st of January. They have even reflected their new status by redesigning their kit to include green bands, and have re-coloured their planet logo green. The cyclists themselves obviously don't produce any harmful emissions whilst racing, but they have a huge entourage of trucks, buses and cars that follow them around.
Related: Kodak Gallery: the first carbon neutral pro cycling team | Do carbon-offset schemes work?
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There are some electric motorbikes and scooters that I think should remain as concepts, and never rear their ugly heads on our streets. The Enertia Bike by Brammo Sports is an electric bike which is not only about to become a reality, hitting stores across the US at the beginning of next year, but as you can see it's also rather attractive too. [via treehugger.com]
Related: E-max funky electric scooter - The price might be right! | Vectrix electric scooter – Yay or nay?
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