Climate Cities
All Stories
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This Rocks Our Sox Off
Boston will require new large buildings to meet green building standards Hooray, Boston: The city is soon expected to require that all new construction projects of 50,000 square feet or more meet green building standards. Projects will be required to follow at least 26 of about 70 suggestions for green design and construction, similar to […]
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How a grassroots biodiesel group can show the way for others
The way that Rob Del Bueno backed into the world of biofuel almost by accident, as told in the article “Small Potatoes,” is emblematic of the way most folks get engaged in grassroots biofuel development. It starts with a desire to use a renewable fuel to power your life long before a GMO-happy megacorporation was […]
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Mileage in Mirror Is Smaller Than It Appears
U.S. EPA revises vehicle mileage formula for 2008 and beyond Wondering why your Escalade gets eight miles to the gallon, not the 11 that was advertised? U.S. EPA to the rescue! In a move reflecting “real-world numbers,” the agency has revised the way it crunches mileage numbers for the first time since 1984. The new […]
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Using grease and other goodies, small biodiesel producers are making a big difference
If you live in a city of any size, you’ve likely seen them out there: boxy little ’80s-era foreign cars, bumpers adorned with pro-ecology and anti-war slogans, and references to “grease.” Even the fumes they emit may smell different: literally like French fries, in some cases; like generic used vegetable oil in others. Foh sizzle […]
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Umbra on the promise of ethanol
Dear Umbra, Lately I’ve been struggling with the idea of ethanol as a green fuel. It seems to be getting a lot of attention in the government and media, and it is being touted as the answer to this country’s petroleum woes (see GM’s “Live Green, Go Yellow” campaign). But from what I’ve read, ethanol […]
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Folks, We’re Encountering Some Turbulence
E.U. and U.S. at odds over emissions cap for intercontinental flights In two weeks, E.U. environment commissioner Stavros Dimas will unveil draft rules for capping airline emissions, and we’ll give you one guess who’s blocking the runway. At issue is whether to regulate intercontinental flights that use European airports for takeoff or landing, or to […]
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Kick It into Underdrive
Americans driving less, SUV fervor cooling Who woulda thunk it: For the first time in 25 years, Americans are driving less. A study by Cambridge Energy Research Associates finds that the average American drove 13,657 miles in 2005, down from 13,711 in 2004. So that’s, let’s see … um, carry the one … a whopping […]
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A Grist special series on biofuels
What is ethanol, and how's it different from biodiesel, and where does fry grease come in? Are there cars that can run on biofuels, and who's making them, and where can they fuel up? Who sells it, who makes money off it, and why's it such a political darl
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Top Goes the Diesel
L.A. auto show sees Germans, GM committing to clean-tech cars This week’s Los Angeles Auto Show has set the car world abuzz. General Motors, plagued by its gas-guzzling reputation and notorious electric-car bungle, announced its commitment to creating a rechargeable plug-in hybrid, becoming the first automaker to do so. “The technological hurdles are real, but […]
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A Bee in His Bonnet
London mayor proposes steep congestion charge for gas-guzzlers London Mayor Ken Livingstone has announced plans to make the city’s weekday congestion tax much steeper for drivers of polluting vehicles. Under the proposal, owners of SUVs and other gas-guzzlers would shell out the equivalent of about $47 a day to motor into London between 6:30 a.m. […]
