Years and years ago I sat in a meeting entitled “Talking with the Enemy” where a bunch of enviros sat down with leading corporate executives and talked about the topical issues of the day. One of the participants was the man from Volvo who talked about the company’s prototype vehicle the LCP 2000, that could, … Read More
gas guzzlers
The End of the Road?
It is over fifty years ago when the then Chief Executive of General Motors, Charles Wilson, famously told the Senate in 1953 that “for years I thought that what was good for our country was good for General Motors, and vice versa”. Not any more. It could well be the end of the road for … Read More
The $50 Billion Bail-Out
I wonder how Main-Street feels about this one. Even though millions of Americans are already outraged over bailing out Wall Street, they are now being asked to bail out Detroit too. Later this morning expect dismal third-quarter results from GM and Ford, estimated at $2 billion each, which will probably plunge the markets even deeper … Read More
“A Good Day for Democracy”
Whilst the biggest political fight of the moment in Congress concerning the toxic bank bail-out continues to make headlines, another bitter political fight is coming to a head, but this one is in Brussels. On the one side are progressive MEPs, and members of the European Commission coupled with environmental groups and scientists who are … Read More
Oil Shortage a “Myth”, Says Industry Insider
Soaring oil prices, talk of peak oil… there is really nothing to worry about says a former oil man who claims that there is over twice as much oil in the ground as major producers say. Although it is widely assumed that the world has reached a point where oil production has peaked this idea … Read More
G8: Halve Emissions by 2050
Environment ministers from the G8 have urged their leaders to set a global target to halve greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, a small but vital step in the fight against climate change. But they stopped short of suggesting specific interim targets ahead of 2050, a key demand of developing countries in tough U.N.-led talks to … Read More
RIP the SUV …
Are the days of the SUV and large gas-guzzlers over? The New York Times reports how “Soaring gas prices have turned the steady migration by Americans to smaller cars into a stampede.” According to the Times: “In what industry analysts are calling a first, about one in five vehicles sold in the United States was … Read More
EU “Should Ban Inefficient Cars”
No that is not some long-haired environmentalist speaking, but the ex-chairman of Shell, Sir Mark Moody-Stuart. He is arguing that the EU should ban the sale of cars that do under 35 miles to the gallon (good thing his is not saying that in America – the roads would be empty!!)
Car Industry to Fight EU CO2 Plans
The European car industry has pledged to fight the already watered-down plans to reduce CO2 from new cars. Leading the fight will be the Germans and their powerful car industry, which is dominated by gas-guzzling cars like BMW, Porsches and Mercedes-Benz. Even the country’s Chancellor Angela Merkel has opposed the plans saying they were “not … Read More
Europe Divided Over Car Targets
It’s a political row that has been going on for months. Tomorrow the European Commission is due to publish its long-awaited plans to reduce carbon emissions from passenger cars to 120 grams per kilometre within five years. But a bitter fallout between France and Germany has plunged the key negotiations into crisis. French manufacturers such … Read More