Job Alert: Project Manager – Green Trucks China Project — Smart Freight Center @ Netherlands

April 1, 2015 at 5:10 pm

Smart Freight Centre (SFC) is looking for an energetic and efficient individual with initiative to manage the implementation of the Green Trucks China project, and be part of our global team to advance green freight and logistics worldwide.

The Green Trucks China project is the first project of SFC to catalyze the sector-wide adoption of proven technologies. SFC has selected China as the first market and will operate under the umbrella of the China Green Freight Initiative (CGFI) that is managed by the China Road Transport Association. SFC has selected a ”green tires package” consisting of high quality tires supplemented with tire maintenance and telematics as the first technology package, which could reduce 20 million tons of carbon dioxide from trucks in China annually.

The full job ad is available on www.smartfreightcentre.org

Infograph: What if we burned all the fossil fuels we have?

March 18, 2013 at 6:13 pm

via Visual.ly

Here is a nice infographic that tries to answer one simple question reg. fossil fuels and their emissions..

What if we burned all the fossil fuels we have? infographic by OpenCanada.

 

A Gargantuan Gaseous Problem – Visualizing Emissions in New York City

November 20, 2012 at 6:06 pm

Via Atlantic Cities

How do you tell the story about big agenda issues like environmental impact and emissions in a city like New York? One way to do this is by taking all the relevant data you can get and stitching it together in a graphic format that visually demonstrates the scope of the problem.  Let’ s see how its done.  Let’s start with the problem.

Carbon Visuals and the Environmental Defense Fund created an animation showing giant blue balls standing in for New York’s greenhouse-gas emissions in 2010 (the last year data were available). Each sphere represents one ton of carbon-dioxide vapor. Added up, they represent 54 million metric tons of climate-toasting chemicals, which is the amount of emissions that NYC recorded in 2010.  It is quite arresting when you visually see a huge mountain (Everest-sized) of blue balls blanketing your entire city.  Check it out.

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtqSIplGXOA&hd=1′]

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Changing Paradigms – Guardian’s Interactive World Map of CO2 Emissions Paints An Intersting Picture of Globalization Since 1980

June 21, 2012 at 7:15 pm

via Guardian UK

This awesome interactive data visualization by Guardian, UK show how much the emissions profile has changed and shifted over the past few decades.. One shocking statistic I learned from this graph below is that the total CO2 emissions of Equitorial Guinea, small country in Western Africa, have increased by a whopping 3,390% Yep. !!!! Check out:

Gulping Gallons? Fuel Efficiency in the United States – An Infographic Overview

November 2, 2011 at 6:26 pm

(Source:  Moving Solutions, Inc. via Autobloggreen)

MoveBuilder has put together an excellent infographic that has all these values, along with such esoteric numbers as the fuel consumption of NASA’s Crawler-transporter and how fast a person could pedal a bike if he or she could metabolize gasoline as efficiently as food (912mph, which would be a really good reason to stay clear of the bike lane).

Fuel Efficiency in the US

Bad Britons? A snap shot of CO2 emissions resulting from UK Business Exhibitions

April 4, 2011 at 7:51 pm

(Source: Marlerhaley via  Killer Infographics & Autoblog Green)

Image Courtesy: Marler Haley, UK

On a related note, it might be worth noting that there is a already a lot of controversy surrounding the official numbers posted by the automakers versus the results from real life driving conditions in Europe.  Here is a peek at the ongoing debate:

Jos Dings, director of Brussels-based Transport & Environment, told Automotive News (sub. req.) that official CO2 emissions results posted by automakers are “less and less a reflection of what we are seeing on the road.” Dings says that the amount of CO2 emitted under controlled test conditions can be up to 50 percent lower than in real-world driving, telling AN that, “We don’t want cuts on paper. We want them in reality.”

Image Courtesy: via Autoblog -- CO2 emissions chart

Image Courtesy: via Autoblog — CO2 emissions chart

Click here to read more about this ongoing issue.

Transportation-related Side-Events at the UN Climate Change Conference, Cancun Mexico

December 2, 2010 at 5:39 pm

(Source: Bridging the Gap)

The latest edition of the United Nations Climate Change Conference CoP 16 opened its doors in Cancun, Mexico on November 29th  (duration – Nov 29th thru Dec 10) and our friends at Transport 2012 have created a compilation of side-events related to transportation issues at this conference.  Transportgooru is glad to share this with its readers (hoping some of you are already in Cancun, Mexico attending this event). Please check the Transport2012 website for an updated list:

Bridging the Gap: Pathways for Transport in the Post 2012 Process‘ is an initiative of GTZ, TRL, UITP, ITDP and Veolia Transport created to tackle CO2emissions from land transport and to integrate this major contributor to climate change into the international climate negotiation process. Click here to learn more about Bridging the Gap.

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Webinar Alert: Driving and the Built Environment: The Effects of Compact Development on Motorized Travel, Energy Use, and CO2 Emissions

October 20, 2009 at 4:03 pm

This webinar will explore the findings of Transportation Research Board Special Report 298: Driving and the Built Environment:  Effects of Compact Development on Motorized Travel, Energy Use, and CO2 Emissions.  This congressionally mandated study examines the relationship between land development patterns and vehicle miles traveled (VMT) in the United States to assess whether petroleum use, and by extension greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, could be reduced by changes in the design of development patterns.   The study estimates the contributions that changes in residential and mixed-use development patterns and transit investments could make in reducing VMT by 2030 and 2050, and the impact this could have in meeting future transportation-related GHG reduction goals.

Commissioned papers used by the committee to help develop Special Report 298 are available online.  A four page summary of and a press release on the report is also available online.

Image Courtesy: TRB - Click the image to access the report

The committee chair, José A. Gómez-Ibáñez, Derek C. Bok Professor of Urban Planning and Public Policy of Harvard University, will present the study findings.   The report estimates the contributions that changes in residential and mixed-use development patterns and transit investments could make in reducing VMT by 2030 and 2050, and the impact this could have in meeting future transportation-related GHG reduction goals.

Questions from the audience will be addressed by Dr. Gómez-Ibáñez and two committee members who also contributed to the report:

  • Dr. Marlon Boarnet, University of California, Irvine
  • Mr. Andrew Cotugno, Portland METRO

Questions may be posed any time during the webinar, and will be answered at the end of the session.
Registration:  There is no fee to join this webinar. Space is limited, so we encourage participants to register 24 hours prior to the start of the webinar.

For questions about using this software, including webinar audio or visual complications, please contact Reggie Gillum at rgillum@nas.edu or 202-334-2382.

Good job, y’all! Rise in annual global CO2 emissions halved in 2008

June 28, 2009 at 6:23 pm

(Source: Autobloggreen, Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, Guardian, UK)

  • Financial crisis, pricey oil halve rise in CO2 emissions
  • Developing nations now emit more than industrialised world

Image Courtesy: Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL)

High oil prices and the impact of a global recession halved yearly rises in global greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels in 2008, the first evidence of an impact from the financial crisis, a study said on Thursday.

Also for the first time, the share of global carbon emissions from developing countries was higher than from industrialised nations, at 50.3 percent. China recently overtook the United States as the world’s top carbon emitter.

The good news comes to us via a study by the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL) which points out that the use of biofuels and an increase in the use of renewables has helped achieve the encouraging result. It’s also worth noting that America actually reduced emissions by 3 percent and that the continuing increases are mostly occurring in developing countries. One final positive worth underlining is that 2008 was the first year investment in renewables was greater than investments in fossil-fuelled technologies.

Thursday’s data showed that global carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels and from cement production reached 31.6 billion tonnes in 2008, up 40 percent from 1990 levels and a doubling since 1970. Scientists say that annual increases in global greenhouse gas emissions must level off and start to fall by 2015-2020 to avoid the worst effects of climate change.

Emissions increased by 1.7 percent in 2008 compared with 3.3 percent in 2007. Since 2002, the average annual increase was almost 4 percent, the study said.

Click here to read the results of the entire PBL study. Below is an interesting exceprt from the report.

Trends in USA, European Union, China, Russia and India

In total, CO2 emissions of the USA and the European Union decreased by about 3% and 1.5% in 2008, Although China’s emissions showed an increase of 6%, this is the lowest increase since 2001. Cement production in China showed a similar pattern, with a 2.5% increase in 2008, a drop from 9.5% in 2007. The declining increase of China’s emissions fits in the trend since 2004, when its emissions increased by 17%. Smaller contributions to increasing global emissions were made by India and Russia, which emissions increased by 7% and 2%, respectively.

Since 1990, CO2 emissions per person of China have increased from 2 to 5.5 tonne of CO2 per capita and decreased from 9 to 8.5 for the EU-15 and from 19.5 to 18.5 for the USA. These changes reflect the large economic development of China, structural changes in national and global economies and the impact of climate and energy policies.

It can be observed that due to its fast economic development, per capita emissions of China quickly approaches levels that are common within the industrialised countries of the Annex I group under the Kyoto Protocol. Among the largest countries, other countries that show fast increasing per capita emissions are South Korea, Iran and Australia. On the other hand per capita emissions of the EU-15 and the USA are gradually decreasing over time. Those of Russia and Ukraine have decreased fast since 1990, although the emissions in 1990 and therefore the trend are rather uncertain due to the dissolution of the former Soviet Union in the early 1990s.

Toxic battle brewing over a new breed of automobile refrigerant HFO-1234yf; Greenpeace Germany sounds alarm; German Environment Minister calls it “highly risky economic and technical adventure”

June 12, 2009 at 2:07 pm

(Source: R744.com &1234facts.com)

In a letter sent to German OEMs on 27 May, Greenpeace Germany is attacking the global car industry for deliberately or recklessly downplaying the formation of highly toxic hydrogen fluoride from HFO-1234yf by several magnitudes. A review of a SAE scientific paper supported by global OEMs revealed that at the correct rate of HF concentration “all passengers would die with close to certainty”.

The manufacturers are touting that HFO-1234yf meets the automotive industry’s needs for a cost-effective, commercially viable low global warming potential (GWP) replacement for R-134a refrigerant.

Some of the stated benefits of HFO-1234yf include:

  • lower lifetime greenhouse gas emissions
  • dramatically shorter atmospheric lifetime
  • compatibility with current automotive a/c systems
  • superior cooling efficiency
  • best ease of adoption
  • safety for mobile applications

In the early 1900’s, CFCs provided the first form of refrigeration. As their ozone-depleting potential became recognized, the Montreal Protocol was adopted by many nations to begin the phase out of both CFCs and HCFCs. HFCs were developed to fill the void and while they were non-ozone depleting, they did have global warming potential.

“It is unknown to us if this is a factual error or if there are manipulative intentions behind this misinformation. Fact is, however, that the (correct) rate of HF concentration from the refrigerant 1234yf in a passenger compartment will not be around 150 ppm (depending on the vehicle) but will be a multitude of that. At these concentrations all passengers will die with close to certainty,” the Greenpeace letter, sent to the boards of all car manufacturers united in the VDA on 27 May, reads.
“As a result, the claim that 1234yf will be an alternative is not only wrong but also life threatening; the legal consequences not calculable,” the letter continues before calling on all carmakers to point out this dangerous misinformation in the automotive industry and correct the calculation.

Greenpeace refers to a peer-reviewed SAE Paper presented by Roberto Monforte, Fiat, at the SAE World Congress in Detroit on 21 April. The paper, obtained by R744.com, states that if 0.55 kg of HFO-1234yf are completely released in an accident and exposed to a flame inside the passenger compartment of a Pontiac Grand Prix model the concentration of highly toxic hydrogen fluoride will not surpass 150 ppm (parts per million). HFO-1234yf would therefore not pose a higher risk to the passenger than the currently used refrigerant R134a.

A calculation strongly rejected by Greenpeace and external industry sources, who suggest that this figure might be understating the actual formation of HF by up to 1000 times. If 0.55 kg of 1234yf are burned, 0.39 kg of HF will develop. Calculated on a cabin volume of 3m3 (weight of air 3.6 kg), a concentration of 100,000 ppm would occur, or 10.7%. As opposed to 150 ppm, this 1000 times higher concentration would be enough to kill busloads of humans. Even with varying vehicle types, the HF rate inside the compartment could be hundreds of times higher than that assumed in the SAE paper. Click here to read more about the Greenpeace argument.

In the middle of this fiasco, Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel has raised his voice to warn the German automotive industry against a “highly risky economic and technical adventure” with an untested, flammable, and toxic refrigerant 1234yf. Moreover, manufacturers should not expect the EU R134a phase-out schedule to change, but rather choose CO2 now as the most energy-efficient and safe alternative available.

German Environment Minister: Untested 1234yf an “adventure”In an interview with ACE, a leading automotive club representing the interests of 550.000 Germans, the Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel has taken a clear stance in favour of CO2 in the currently hotly debated question of which refrigerant to choose for future car air conditioning systems:

“Fact is: With CO2 there is an environmentally friendly alternative to R134a available, and it has been proven in real life,” Gabriel stated. “The VDA has to know what it does to strengthen its credibility or not,” he referred to the clear commitment to CO2 already issued in 2007 by all carmakers united in Germany’s automotive association VDA. The Environment Ministry would continue to support CO2 (R744) as not only the most ecological option, but also that with a significantly higher energy efficiency, as measurements by the Federal Environment Agency have proved.

Untested chemical “high adventure”
Gabriel also issued a clear warning to the automotive industry to not use untested alternative refrigerants. The currently discussed flammable and toxic chemical 1234yf would be a completely new substance not yet fully investigated by public authorities for its ecological and health risks. As a consequence, manufacturers deciding for 1234yf would embark on a “high economic and technical adventure”, Gabriel concluded.

The Minister warned the German automotive industry against a further use of R134a in cars after 2011. According to Gabriel, the EU MAC Directive, prescribing the use of refrigerants with a Global Warming Potential of below 150 in future passenger cars, will not be changed. Carmakers should acknowledge that he would hold on to the agreed phase-out schedule starting in 2011, with a gradual ban of R134a until 2017. As a result, from 2011, the deprivation of type approval for cars using the climate-damaging refrigerant would be enforced as originally scheduled.