We are lucky today to get the loan of the new plug-in electric hybrid Mini Countryman for the weekend from our friends at BMW. Jo, our sales and business administrator, drew the long straw and will get to enjoy the new car until Monday.
It shows an electric range of up to 22 miles (25 if you drive really gently), so the average driver won’t need to switch on the 1.5l engine.
Looking forward to lots of fun with an iconic car.
Four decades ago, the electric car looked set to be an acceptable commuting vehicle within a few years.
From 1977: “The electric car seems inevitable. As oil resources dwindle, it will appear far more prudent to develop an automobile powered by electricity, charged by an already-in-place power generation system, than to invest in huge plants to produce synthetic gasoline. Electric automobiles would snuggle nicely into a large, unexploited niche in the electric economy by recharging at night when electric demand is low and power plant capacity idle.
“But as yet electric cars have proven abysmal technical failures. For example, in its 1975 tests of two electric cars on the market, Consumer Reports magazine found ‘major safety and operating problems.’ The cars performed poorly, not even living up to their modestly advertised abilities. They accelerated sluggishly, balked at hills, and petered out at inopportune times. The magazine declared that ‘it would be foolhardy to drive either car on any public road.’ The electric cars now on the market have a range of only about 30 miles at 50 miles per hour, with 0-to-30 acceleration times of about 12 seconds. What’s more, the cars were not significantly cheaper to run than comparable gasoline-powered subcompacts.
“Two test electric vehicles recently commissioned by the Energy Research and Development Administration could mark some resurgence for the electric car. The two electric car versions are being built for E.R.D.A. by General Electric Co. and AiResearch Manufacturing Co.
“Both vehicles will possess about the same range and performance characteristics—70 miles between charges, 60-mile-an-hour speeds, and 0-to-30 m.p.h. in about eight seconds. They will also both be about the size and weight of a conventional subcompact, and will operate for about the same costs as a conventional car.”
Read more: Technology Review 1977
BRUSSELS – The European Commission is considering the introduction of a ‘zero emission vehicles’ (ZEV) mandate.
If translated into legislation this means that Europe’s car makers will have to comply with minimum quotas for the production and sales of zero emission vehicles. Such a move will give an unprecedented push to the supply of electric vehicles in Europe, while putting an end to the transport sector’s stubborn CO2 emissions which have seen no significant decline over the past decade and still remain higher than in 1990.
he introduction of a ZEV mandate is being deliberated as the EU regulation setting CO2 standards for new cars and vans (together referred to as light duty vehicles) is currently undergoing reform. Late last year the Commission conducted a public consultation, to which Bellona submitted its views, strongly supporting the tightening CO2 standards, and the inclusion of a targeted mechanism, mandating quotas for the sales of zero emission vehicles. The Commission’s legislative proposal is expected later this year, following which it will be handed over to the European Parliament and Member States.
Meeting the EU’s target of reducing CO2 emissions from transport by 60% and eliminating the use of fossil fuels in cars by 2050 will necessitate immediate efforts to transition to a low- and zero-emission transport sector. Existing CO2 legislation has fallen short in doing so however, largely as a result of the inadequacy of the EU vehicle emission testing regime (the NEDC test) which has accompanied fuel economy standards and thus allowed car makers to systematically cheat their way into compliance.
Read more: BELLONA
Global warming will not affect everyone equally. Here we look at seven key regions to see how each is tackling the consequences of climate change
It could have been the edge of the Sahara or even Death Valley, but it was the remains of a large orchard in the hills above the city of Murcia in southern Spain last year. The soil had broken down into fine white, lifeless sand, and a landscape of rock and dying orange and lemon trees stretched into the distance.
A long drought, the second in a few years, had devastated the harvest after city authorities had restricted water supplies and farmers were protesting in the street. It was a foretaste of what may happen if temperatures in the Mediterranean basin continue to rise and desertification grows.
All round the world, farmers, city authorities and scientists have observed changing patterns of rainfall, temperature rises and floods. Fifteen of the 16 hottest years have been recorded since 2000. Carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions steadily climb. Oceans are warming and glaciers, ice caps and sea ice are melting faster than expected. Meanwhile, heat and rainfall records tumble.
The evidence for the onset of climate change is compelling. But who and where is it hitting the hardest? How fast will it come to Africa, or the US? What will be its impact on tropical cities, forests or farming? On the poor, or the old? When it comes to details, much is uncertain.
Mapping the world’s climate hotspots and identifying where the impacts will be the greatest is increasingly important for governments, advocacy groups and others who need to prioritise resources, set goals and adapt to a warming world.
Read more: The Guardian