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Environmental Research Web recently posted “Calculating the real carbon footprint of vehicles“, an article by Mikhail V Chester and Arpad Horvath of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, which looks at the environmental impact of various forms of transportation (Planes, Trains, Buses and Automobiles) over their entire lifetime, to determine overall greenhouse gasses and energy used.  The study includes vehicle manufacture, infrastructure, fuel, delivery of fuel and operation of the vehicle.

The energy usage numbers were simplified into MJ/PKT, mega-joules per passenger-kilometer-traveled. When looked at this way, many passengers riding a single vehicle, even if relatively inefficient, actually use less fuel each.  2 people riding an SUV (.9 MJ/PKT) can use less energy, per passenger, than 5 riders in a standard city bus (4 MJ/PKT); however, the numbers change once the bus is full (.5 MJ/PKT). Large Jet aircraft (1.4 MJ/PKT) compare quite favorably, simply because of how many passengers they can carry.

Energy consumption and GHG emissions per PKT (image from study)

My take-away from the article is that finding ways to share rides, rather than simply focusing on miles-per-gallon, can go along way toward conservation.

A PDF of the complete report can be downloaded from IOP Electronic Journals here.  What’s your take?

Back in April, I began an exercise in driving less and driving with fuel economy in mind. What I learned surprised me. Simple, obvious steps made the most difference. I drive a 98 Oldsmobile Alero and before I began, I was getting about 27 MPG, now I am up to 34 MPG. That’s a 7 MPG savings, using simple steps anyone can do.There are groceries, banks and just about everything I need within walking distance from work, so as a rule, I drive to work, then I drive home and that’s it. I occasionally drive to run some errands (there is only so much walking one can do on a lunch hour).

I began turning off the car at train crossings, or when stuck in a traffic jam, but the biggest jump occurred after slowing down to 60 MPH. I went from 29 MPG to 34 MPG. That’s huge.

Also, I rode my bicycle over 120 miles in June, and I’m well on my way to matching that for July. That’s trips to the hardware store, bank, goodwill, and beer runs (all within about 3 miles of my house). At 34 MPG, bicycling alone has saved 3 1/2 gallons of gas, or almost a 1/3 of a tank. That’s amazing!

A 7 MPG increase and 120 miles LESS driving per month (maybe more!) , just by slowing down to 60 MPH and riding my bike. It can’t get any easier than that!

I was also hoping to put less miles on he car over the course of the month, but I forgot to tell my wife about my project. She and I had discussed that fact that my car gets better mileage than her van, so she began driving my car more, so total miles drives per month varies for April, May and June.

I’m not the only one seeing these kinds of results, see these articles. How much can you save?

*photo by Kristin Brenemen

Sure, we’d all love to drive a Tesla roadster, or to kick the car habit all together, but some of us just aren’t ready. Maybe you have an excessive commute or maybe you have to take the kids to soccer and music lessons. Maybe that Tesla roadster just isn’t in this years budget. Here are some steps you can take with your current car to save fuel.

First, we’ll want to know the current MPG (miles per gallon) and GPM (gallons per month). Normally, we’d just want to know miles per gallon, but we are concerned about lowering our overall consumption.

Tracking the GPM is very easy. Begin by filling up your tank on the first day of the month and making a note of the odometer (number of miles). Throughout the month, track all fuel purchases and on the 1st of the following month, fill up again, noting gallons purchased and odometer reading. You can then add up your gallons purchased to calculate gallons consumed through the month (GPM). You can also divide the total miles by the gallons consumed to calculate the miles per gallon.

Now that we can measure our efforts, here some steps to improve our consumption!

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Last weekend I was able to buy 30 used solar greenhouse panels. I got a phenomenal price, all 30 for $50. They are 4 feet by 8 feet and normally sell for about $40 each.

I bought them for a number of reasons.

First, I know that we (this country) needs to go on an energy diet. We can’t just make new things that use less power. We just need to use less energy and buy less stuff. With these panels I will be able to enclose my front porch and cover a few windows, keeping my house warmer, with free solar energy.

Second, these panels were removed from an existing green house which was damaged in a hail storm. There are enough good panels for me to reuse. By reusing I am not only keeping them out of a land fill, I am not purchasing something new.

Third, a few years ago, I built a greenhouse and covered it with plastic. The plastic has blown off twice. With these panels and some lumber, I will be able to build a greenhouse that stays warmer and I will no longer worry every time the wind begins to blow.

Fourth, my wife has suggested that we build a passive solar heater for the pole barn, an idea that I am warming up to.

I’ve already covered one window, using home made wood braces and the difference is noticeable.

I used a router to make 3 braces, similar to the one in this picture. They hold the sides and top of the greenhouse panel. The bottom of the greenhouse panel sits on the window sill and is sealed with tape. In the future, the tape will be replaced with foam weather stripping.

The panels need about 1/32 on an inch per foot for expansion, so for a 40 inch x 48 inch panel needs a 1/16 of an inch gap per side between the panel and the braces. When I enclose the porch, I’ll post a full writeup.

I found about these panels from a friend of mine. He knew I like to reuse and do my own projects, so when he saw them at a garage sale, he let me know. What I learned is that while we each need to do what we can to reduce our own consumption, we can’t do it alone.

From the Article:

Levels have hit peaks almost every year in recent decades and are far above 270 ppm level seen before the Industrial Revolution of the 18^th century.

… increase of 2 ppm from 2006 reflected an accelerating rise in recent years. “When I was young, scientists were talking about 1 ppm rises” every year, he said. “Since 2000, it has been a very rapid rate.”

link

There is a fantastic article in the International Council of Shopping Centers trade magazine “Shopping Centers Today” titled MAKING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT PROFITABLE

From the Article, Charles Zimmerman, Wal-Mart’s vice president of prototype and new-format development says:

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Waiting for Solutions
by Eric of Eric’s Projects

Over the years, my family has become more aware of the price of the things we own.  Much of the clothing, electronics and other items are made by workers that cannot afford the very items they are making. There are also the environmental issues to consider.  Automobiles can take up to twice their weight in raw materials to produce.  Electronics take many times more.

As a family, we strive to purchase items that we feel are fairly made.  To us, that means that the workers received a fair wage.  We also strive to purchase items that produced with recycled materials and/or are  sustainably produced.  Second hand items are ok.

For those items where there wasn’t a fair choice, we set aside 1/4 the purchase price of the item.  This is our fair trade markup.  These funds were set aside at purchase time.  At the end of the year, the fair trade funds go to organizations that we feel support sustainable living and fair trade.  Everyone in the family, adults and children, participate in our fair trade program.

Some items were easy.  I was able to find journals I like to write in, made in Canada with recycled paper.  We have been able to find almost all the clothing and furniture we need second hand.
It is amazing how much you can find when you start looking.
Some items immediately became unavailable.  I had been taking photos for my website, but my digital camera was old and didn’t work well in poor light.  We use a 200Mhz laptop to access the Internet.  I like to  listen to music in my car and wanted an MP3 player.  None of these items are fairly made.  Even paying the fair trade markup, I didn’t feel right purchasing them.  I decided to wait.
Over time, I was able to find solutions.  For playing music, I found a CD player at Goodwill.  I have it connected to my car stereo.  It even plays CD-RWs, so I can rewrite disks when I want to listen to new music.

As for the digital camera, recently someone on a message board put one up for $100.  It was an upgrade for me, so I purchased it.  My mother-in-law ironically, recently lost her digital camera, so I passed my older one to her.

As for the laptop, a friend of mine, whom I help with computers from time to time, knew I was interested in a used laptop.  He is going to let me have his laptop when he upgrades.
For me, being committed to making the right kind of purchases, making my own thoughts clear, then waiting for the right solution has paid
off.