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Transportation News: Japan, Biodiesel, Electric Bikes, Fuel cell Buses

Japan’s new Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi recently asked cabinet members to make sure they were moving toward his target of having a fully low-emission fleet of government cars in place in the next few years. “Japanese carmakers have excellent environmental and energy-saving technology. By getting it more broadly accepted in society, we can be a leader on environmental issues and make it a source of economic growth,” said Trade Minister Takeo Hiranuma. Yoriko Kawaguchi, environment minister, pledged to seek a global consensus on the Kyoto Protocol. He and Hiranuma asked senior officials of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association and Toyota Motor Corp to keep the supply of low emission cars consistent with demand. The Trade ministry is setting a goal 3.22 million electric, natural gas, methanol or hybrid vehicles on the road by 2010. Tokyo’s municipal government plans to base automobile taxes on the environmental performance of their cars. The most environmentally efficient vehicle will be used as a benchmark against which all other vehicles will be assigned eco-rankings. Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara called the plan “a very effective tool in asking automakers to share responsibility for air pollution.” The Tokyo City Tax Commission hopes to draft a city ordinance […]

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Hypercar Makes its Move: Driving for a Prototype

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Rocky Mountain Institute's Hypercar concept is behind many of the hybrid-electric designs entering the marketplace today. Their for-profit spinoff, Hypercar Inc.'s first concept car is a midsized SUV replacement, rated at the equivalent of 99 mpg.

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Mercury is On the Way Out, PVC is Next

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In March, the Maine Hospital Association signed an historic agreement for the 39 hospitals in the state. Not only will they discontinue the use of mercury-containing products, but they are the first in the nation to call for a reduction in the use of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic medical supplies. The agreement also encourages reduction of PVC use in building materials: “Consider longer term replacement of PVC in durable medical products, construction materials, and furniture when opportunities present themselves.” The Maine agreement builds on the national “Hospitals for a Healthy Environment” (H2E) agreement signed in 1998 by the American Hospital Association and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In the agreement, hospitals pledge to go “mercury free.” The H2E agreement also asks hospitals to address persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic (PBT) chemicals — those that are long-lived and build up in the food chain. Maine’s agreement focuses on one major PBT chemical — dioxin, a toxic byproduct of incinerating hospital waste that contains PVC plastic. The Maine agreement commits hospitals to “continuously reduce the use and disposal of PVC plastic in hospitals” through a series of specific action steps with annual reporting on progress achieved. It calls for phasing out all products […]

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