Green Buckeye

Back in January I posted links pointing toward the candidates' stands on the environment and climate change. I'm posting some items I've posted previously here again for reference.

• League of Conservation Voters "Chart the Candidates" (detailed one-to-one comparision)
• NPR compares the still-standing candidates on climate change (quick and easy read)
• No Impact Man's wrote a comprehensive post with a positive future slant that I recommend
• The Council on Foreign Relations covers the candidates on numerous issues. Here is their page on Climate Change

Grist also has (had?) a great page on the candidates, but the whole Grist site appears to be down right now. In the event it comes back soon:

• Grist's presidential comparison chart (down as of 3/2/2008 11:50 a.m.)
• Grist's article, "How Green is Your Candidate" (also down)

Edited 3/3/2008 to correct a linking error.

Labels: 2008 Presidential Primaries, climate change, environment, resources

Columbus State is offering an overview course in environmental science this spring. The course is a "hybrid," meaning that most instruction is online with Sunday in-person lab sessions. Details appear below.

Thanks to Ira for fowarding to the COSR listserv.

Labels: environment, learning

Over and over on green web sites and blogs I've read that one way to reduce greenhouse gases (GHGs) and save money is to stop idling. They urge me to shut down my engine if I'm going to be stopped for more than 10 seconds, 30 seconds, 2 minutes, 10 minutes - none of them seem to agree on how long.

Frankly, I was skeptical. Even though I know that, "When you're not moving, you're getting zero miles per gallon," wasn't there some mitigating reason not to turn off the engine? Doesn't the engine need to be warmed up? What about the amount of gas it takes to start the engine - isn't that more than when the engine is running? What about the wear and tear on the engine with all that on and off? After all, I don't want to save a few pennies or emissions only to have to replace my engine early.

I decided to research a little more. Here's what I found.

Car Talk

• In Driving Tips for Treehuggers, Click and Clack reassured me that "Except in below-zero conditions, you can just start the engine and drive off." Unless I'm scraping ice off the windshield, looks like I'll be turning the key and driving off. Some of the other sources indicated that cars needed no more than 30 seconds of warm-up idling.

Edmunds

• I figured they would be the most mainstream and skeptical. Guess what? In What Really Saves Gas? And How Much? the Edmunds folks said you could improve fuel economy by as much as 19% by avoiding excessive idling. Their recommendation? Shut it down if you're stopping for more than a minute. This was the longest amount of time recommended by any of the media sources, which I would expect given their love of car culture.

California Consumer Energy Center

• This page busts several myths, and comes to the conclusion that "more than ten seconds of idling uses more fuel than restarting the engine." They also say that "component wear caused by restarting the engine is estimated to add $10 per year to the cost of driving," which they think will be recovered from the savings from not idling. According to this source then, I can go ahead and shut the engine off if I'm stopping for 10 seconds or longer, and I don't worry about the wear and tear. The Canada Office of Energy Efficiency backs this up, too.

So here are Tina's Green Buckeye guidelines for idling:

• Unless it's below zero, start the car and drive off. The most conservative recommendation for warming up the car is 30 seconds, so if you can't get out of the habit completely, warm up for 30 seconds.
• Except in traffic, if you're going to be stopped for more than 10 seconds, shut off the car. You'll save money and greenhouse gases. You can take the Edmunds conservative recommendation of one minute, but you won't save as much.
• Park the car and walk into the fast-food joint or bank instead of using the drive-thru. It's better for you, it's better for your mileage, and it's better for the planet!

Labels: consumer choices, environment, tips, transportation

Even though the pundits are saying Ohio's March 4th presidential primary comes "too late to matter," I'm reading up on the candidates' positions on energy and the environment.

Of the online candidate comparisons I've found, I like Grist's the best. It displays pictures of the candidates as a visual cue, and it divides the energy and environmental issues into a manageable level of granularity. Grist seems to have the most comprehensive coverage of this issue overall with their regularly updated article, "How Green Is Your Candidate?"

Another good comparison comes from the League of Conservation Voters. Click their 'Chart the Candidates' link for an easy-to-compare matrix like Grist's. This site also offers more in-depth coverage of each candidate as well as the candidates' responses to a set of questions.

An interesting take on a comparison matrix is Popular Mechanics' site Geek the Vote '08. The information on that site appears to come primarily from the policies posted on the candidates' web sites.

Depending on whom you consider the most credible source, you might also want to check out similar comparisons from NPR, the Pew Forum, or the Council on Foreign Relations.

Labels: 2008 Presidential Primaries, climate change, environment, renewable energy, resources

A guy named Steve Sherlock in Franklin, Massachusetts, is taking matters into his own hands in his town. Read about the small action he takes during his weekly walk around the neighborhood.

What small things are you doing to make your neighborhood better?

Labels: environment, leadership, recycling

Congratulations to Al Gore and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on winning the 2007 Nobel Prize for peace. Perhaps this additional attention from the international community will provide even more credibility and urgency for the message about global warming and climate change.

Labels: awards, environment

A project called "Blog Action Day" has put a call out to bloggers to write about the environment on October 15. Thousands of bloggers have committed to posting something that day or to donating their blog's earnings that day to an environmental charity. You can register to participate on their web site.

Tag: BlogActionDay

Labels: blogging, environment