My dictionary defines the word volt as a unit of electromotive force. I think that about sums up the new electric car called the Volt that is currently in development now.
It is not lost on me that the car maker that is accused of killing the electric car is at the forefront of bringing it back !
The Chevrolet Volt is a battery powered electric vehicle that uses a gas engine to create additional electricity to extend its range. It uses what General Motors is calling the E-Flex system. E for electricity and Flex for the many ways you can generate it. The electricity to operate the Volt can come from a number of sources: natural gas biofuels hydroelectric wind solar and of course regular gas.

This Hybrid School Bus story isnt a new one but I just found out about it and thought I would share anyway.
Over in the US they have taken a huge step forward with school transport. The programme led by the non-profit organisation Advanced Energy is planned to revolutionise the school bus market. Starting with 19 hybrid buses in several states this year and the most recent going to Texas the programme will eventually be rolled out country-wide.
The buses are primarily run on diesel and also have an electric motor. The plug in technology that they use means the batteries can be re-charged overnight and therefore more energy taken from them whilst the bus is being driven. Electricity is relatively inexpensive so as well as creating less pollution they can in the long term save money for schools too. If the buses were charged on renewable energy then they would be even greener!
For a more detailed explanation of how it all works visit the technical pages of the Hybrid School Bus website.
Learning about these school buses got me thinking about public transport in general. Here in Nottingham a car park which was demolished in January 2006 and re-built recently opened in the middle of the city. The lovely people of Nottingham had lived without the car park for nearly two years and nothing disastrous happened so I cant help but ask why bother re-building it at all? The Nottingham City Council website boasts that the new Trinity Car Park has 120 more spaces than the old one a special shopper tariff and

San Francisco is nicknamed

Back in December I wrote a post about my experiences in searching for a suitable carbon offset Which Carbon Offset?
In response Matt Feldman who runs the Carbon Neutral Digest blog kindly offered to provide us with some clarification on the types of carbon offsetting packages that are available and the benefits and downfalls of some of them.
Much of Matts work on the Carbon Neutral Digest involves reviewing offset providers and so I jumped at the chance of having someone with more experience on the subject share their knowledge with us.
Matts article Choosing a Carbon Offset Provider can be read over at Green Guys Global. Enjoy!
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Its been a little while since I complained about lighting outside buildings (and inside for that matter) so I thought it was about time I had another moan.
The government has given their response to a petition on floodlighting I signed a while ago. The petition requested a ban on uneccessary floodlighting and asked the government to lead by example and reduce the lighting on their own buildings.
You can read the whole response at the 10 Downing Street e-petition site but the straight answer is that they do not intend to bring in a policy which bans floodlighting.
They say that

I like greentomatos pragmatic ethos they believe that everyone can be kinder to the planet but know we arent going to start giving up our comforts any time soon. Thats why theyre here to help us figure out all the green conundrums of everyday life.
One of the latest innovations from these guys is the greentomatokit which they very kindly sent me to try out. The first thing that struck me as our postman handed me the parcel was that the packaging itself is biodegradable It even explains saying that excess packaging is bad for the planet and thats why they chose this potato starch covering. Nice one guys! Ive ordered stuff from various suppliers of environmentally friendly products and too often been disappointed by the excessive use of bubble wrap and polystyrene (yuk!).
This starter kit is for those wanting to go green at home but dont know where to start and straight away Im thinking what a great house-warming (hmmm or house-cooling?) gift this would make. It contains all the essentials covering the major areas to make change in your home:
Heating = Radiator panels & room temperature thermometer
Electricity = Energy saving light bulbs & turn it off stickers
Water = A Save a Flush
Waste = No junk mail dont forget your bag & recycling stickers
Plus it all comes in a giant cotton bag (much bigger than the regular tote style ones) to re-use for shopping and cut out the nasty plastic variety I have a bag addiction so naturally I love this.
I have to say though that aside from all these goodies my favourite part of the kit is the sheet that explains why each item will help green up your home and how much carbon or water you can save when you use them. For me this is the most important item because this kit isnt for an already enthusiastic greeny its for those who need a nudge in the green direction. We cant expect people to make any kind of a change to such a personal part of their lives (their home) without explaining why it benefits them as well as the planet.
OK so how do you get one of these kits? Well you can go straight over to the greentomato website and hit buy or you can sign up to the GGG Newsletter and get a special discount coming up for newsletter subscribers only! The first GGG newsletter comes out Friday 8th February so make sure youre signed up before then where youll receive full details of the offer.
In the meantime mosey on over to the greentomato website anyway and check out what theyre doing.
To learn more about the thinking behind the greentomatokit and the measurable benefits it can help you make in the greentomatos January 2008 press release.
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In these days of

I found this story online at the New York Times so fascinating that I had to share it.
Two scientists are proposing a concept for removing carbon dioxide from the air and turning it back into gasoline. They call their idea Green Freedom. The air would be blown over a liquid solution of potassium carbonate the CO2 would be extracted and subjected to a chemical reaction that would turn it into fuel. Sounds simple enough. And is it actually doable? Yes! So why hasnt anyone done it yet? Because apparently it takes a ton of energy to produce preferably a huge nuclear power plant!
The article goes on to evaluate and compare all alternative fuels we are looking into nowadays hydrogen biofuels and electric cars. They all have their pros and cons; but heres a paragraph I found really interesting:
Gasoline it turns out is an almost ideal fuel (except that it produces 19.4 pounds of carbon dioxide per gallon). It is easily transported and it generates more energy per volume than most alternatives. If it can be made out of carbon dioxide in the air the Los Alamos concept may mean there is little reason to switch after all. The concept can also be adapted for jet fuel; for jetliners neither hydrogen nor batteries seem plausible alternatives.
Gas is the most perfect fuel!?! If this idea can actually come true we could have the perfect close-loop cycle: gas to CO2 back to gas.
Heres the link to the full article written by Kenneth Chang on 2.19.08 at the New York Times.
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The law of conservation of energy states that energy can not be created or destroyed it can only be changed from one form to another. So how can we conserve enough energy for our growing demands without damaging the environment?
There are so many arguments amongst environmentalists Government scientists and energy companies about what energy source will be the answer to all of our problems that its really hard for Jo Public to know what the best solution is.
I am going to attempt to take the knowledge that I have learnt during the first year of my BSc in Environmental Studies and write a series of posts exploring a variety of energy solutions.
In each post I will explore the process of converting energy from one form to another the disadvantages and advantages of each one.
The categories will include:
Fossil fuels
Nuclear
Wind
Solar
Hydro and Tidal Wave
Geothermal
Biofuels and Biomass
Kinetic energy
I will aim to write at least one post a week though my apologies now if I get a bit behind.
It would be good to use the posts to have discussions with you all with respect to what you think about the energy solutions and how realistic it is for our energy needs to be met via that source.
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Im wearing a nice new hat this morning for my latest Green Girls Global post. This is my Towns-4-Towns Coordinator hat which is the role I now perform part-time at the national charity Action for Market Towns (AMT).
Go go Settle Hydro
My latest venture for AMT working with North Yorkshire County Council is to organise a study tour to the new community hydro electric scheme in the market town of Settle North Yorkshire.
The project has been an eventful one and if you come along on 11th November the team behind it promises to bring you The Good the Bad and the Ugly but mostly just Fabulous of pulling off such a scheme.

The Archimedean screw
The