Audubon And Toyota Over $1 Million In Funding to 41 Innovative Environmental Projects

To help some lesser known groups working on innovation in energy conservation, water, and engaging people in conservation Toyota and the National Audubon Society have awarded over $1 million in grants to 41 41 projects. That will get you a lot of medi compression stockings. Fo r a full listing of the projects and what they are working on click here. "Groups that won Innovation Grants this year have ingenuity and creativity on full display. And that's what it takes to tackle the environmental challenges we face today," said Audubon President and CEO David Yarnold. "I'm proud to partner with these innovators in creative approaches to achieve healthier communities and big conservation results."

"Cash for Guzzlers" to Be Debated

The AIADA newsletter reported that according to Automotive News, a bill to offer cash vouchers of up to $4,500 to people who swap cars and trucks for new, more fuel-efficient vehicles may be considered on the House floor as early as mid-June.

Where will this money come from? Your guess is as good as mine. I haven't seen anything that takes that into account, although I haven't read the latest "climate-change bill" either.

The measure passed the House Energy and Commerce Committee Thursday as part of a climate-change bill that also provides for the development of plug-in electric drive vehicles, but Sutton also broke out the cash-for-guzzlers provision and introduced it as a stand-alone bill Thursday in the hope of getting it passed more quickly by Congress.

The legislation would offer customers $3,500 vouchers if they trade in cars that get less than 18 mpg for new vehicles that get at least 22 mpg. Vouchers of $4,500 would be awarded if the new cars get at least 10 mpg more than the old.

The most disturbing thing about it though is that they are saying that the autos can be purchased from anywhere. Meaning that foreign cars are fair game. Of course this is something that is a good debate in my opinion. Does this force American auto makers to work even harder to catch up, or is this just going to push them further down the hole? Law makers may want to latch onto some term life insurance online if they do't at least try to help them compete for these dollars.

Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Alternative to Oil

Compressed Natural Gas is a resource that America has a lot of. According to the CEO of Chesapeake Energy, a major CNG producer in the United States, there is enough domestic CNG to meet our needs for the next 100 years based on estimated demand.

Some of us even use it in our homes for cooking and heating. Others actually use it as an alternative to oil gasoline in their cars. the cost to fill a tank on a car with CNG is much less than it is to fill with traditional gasoline. At the same time the mileage you get from it is virtually the same. If you threw your luggage into a car in Chicago and drove to New York with identical amounts of CNG, or regular gas you would get the same mileage in cars that offer both alternatives.

Take a look at this Introduction to Automotive CNG for a bit more depth on the alternative fuel source.

As an example, Honda makes a natural gas Civic. I own a 2002 model year Civic and I get about 30 miles to the GGE in the city and about 36-40 miles to the GGE on the highway. This is exactly the same as the gasoline version of the car gets.

Hydrogen Powered Turbine Test Successful

Turbine Truck Engines, Inc., is reporting that the company has successfully operated its full scale, fifth generation prototype engine utilizing compressed hydrogen as the fuel source. Testing produced zero emissions and required absolutely no modification to switch the Detonation Cycle Gas Turbine Engine from propane to hydrogen. The betting line for success for those with jobs in Las Vegas has just tightened up a bit.

Michael Rouse, CEO of Turbine Truck Engines, said: “This is another major milestone for TTE. The company is moving forward in a significant way that is catching the eyes of serious investors. Clean air technology of this magnitude is something the world urgently needs.”

Mark Johnson, President of HGenerators, the hydrogen gas-from-water electrolysis generator company added, “One hundred percent renewable hydrogen gas-from-water technology would literally enable anyone to make their own fuel and power their Turbine Truck Engine using water as the basic ingredient. The test results prove that turbine engine technology, utilizing hydrogen as a fuel source, has the least environmental impact due to zero emissions resulting in a truly green application."

Take a look at the video demonstration that they have released:

Energy Bill Could Accelerate Growth of NGV Fueling Infrastructure

One of the issues of this presidential election year is certainly that of fuel. Not just alternative fuels, but that of things like more drilling. A new House Energy Bill introduced is expected to expand natural gas fueling infrastructure. Also, saying that they are going to require at least one natural gas, and one other alternative fuels pump at retail gas stations.

The energy bill introduced today by the Democratic House Leadership -- the ‘‘Comprehensive American Energy Security and Consumer Protection Act’’ – could play a major role in expanding the natural gas fueling infrastructure in the U.S., according to NGVAmerica. Specifically, the bill would: (1) extend and expand the existing income tax credit for installing natural gas fueling stations (including doubling the income tax credit for natural gas home fueling appliances); (2) create Energy Security Bonds for grants and low-interest loans to place natural gas refueling property at retail motor fuel stations; and (3) mandate that, by 2018, each retail fueling station owned by a major integrated oil company shall have at least one natural gas or other alternative fuel pump (and necessary infrastructure and storage facilities).

All of these provisions were originally part of the New Alternative Transportation to Give Americans Solutions Act , introduced in July by Reps. Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) and Dan Boren (D-OK). “The NGV industry is deeply indebted to Reps. Emanuel and Boren for their leadership in supporting the growth of natural gas vehicles in America,” said NGVAmerica President Richard Kolodziej. “The industry is in discussions with auto manufacturers to produce and sell more NGVs here. A rapidly growing natural gas fueling infrastructure will facilitate those decisions.”

So...does this bill actually do anything for you? Will there be small business for sale in the fueling sector because they don't want to deal with the regulations? All in all I don't see a huge impact here for anyone. I am always of the opinion that the market dictates what businesses need to do. Since Japan and other countries are killing us in alternative fuel vehicles, you have to believe that eventually our automakers will get on board and build the ones that we demand as well. At this point here is little going on that gives you hope for our auto industry. Will a bill like this help push them that way? You would think that to be the case, but our automakers haven't done anything to keep themselves from losing money the last decade so what makes us think that they will in this one?

Alternative Fueling Station Locator

While out on the road for business and handing out your personalized pens for a bit of marketing activity, you may wonder where you can find an alternative fueling station in the area. The U.S. Department of Energy has recently set up a page that gives the locations of all the stations in the United States as well as driving directions to them. You can also find a printable version of the list to take with you if you happen to be on a cross country road trip.

The following alternative fuels are included in the mapping application: compressed natural gas (CNG), E85 (85% ethanol, 15% gasoline), propane/liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), biodiesel, electricity, hydrogen, and liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Find the maps here.

Japanese Lead Eco-Car Race

While presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama speak of the need for less reliance on foreign fuel, and for some odd reason even talking of off shore drilling that won't even help us for another 20 years, the Japanese automakers are producing cars that rely on alternative fuel already. The Detroit automakers are on the other hand acting as if someone needs to hit them on the head with a paella pan to wake up as they are trailing by miles in the development and manufacturing of Eco-friendly alternative fuel vehicles in the world market.

According to Newsweek, Japanese automakers are now going to the next level, entering the green-car mass market, in many cases years before their competitors.

Nissan plans to introduce an electric vehicle to the United States and Japan by 2010, with a global rollout in 2012. Toyota is road-testing a plug-in hybrid and plans to launch it in 2009. Honda is preparing for the launch of a new car highly anticipated for its innovative green technologies, including its state-of-the-art battery. Mazda will offer the world's first hydrogen-gasoline hybrid in Japan by next March. "Globally, Japanese companies are definitely at the top right now, and I expect them to remain No. 1 in the future," says Mike Omotoso, an auto analyst for J.D. Power and Associates. "It's definitely having a positive impact on the Japanese economy."

L.A. Auto Show: BMW to Show Alternative Fuel Cars

While many of you will be leaving the comforts of your leather home theater seating to visit the show I thought I would post some highlights from a recent interview of Ian Robertson, New Chairman and CEO of Rolls-Royce Motorcars and member of the BMW AG board of management in charge of sales and marketing. In which he discusses a bit about what is in store for the LA Auto Show in regards to BMW.

AIADA: Last year BMW introduced its hydrogen vehicle. What are other fuel options are being explored?

IR: If you look at all the fuel alternatives that are available, there are many under development that have not actually seen the light of day yet. I hear people say ‘Is it going to be a hybrid, is it going to be an all electric car, is it going to be one that runs on some other fuel?’ The answer is, this industry has been around for over 100 years and we are extremely good at developing technologies due to circumstances. Over the next two years we will see lots of technologies starting to appear.

AIADA: How is BMW proceeding with the various options?

IR: As a technological leader, BMW has a number of ideas but we are not putting all our focus on one technology. We have multiple ideas that are coming through. Some of them will be more successful than others, I am sure.

AIADA: When will this new technology be shown? At the Paris Auto Show?

IR: You will have to wait to see what we show in Paris, but one thing is for certain: you will see in LA some alternative fuel vehicles that will come to market.

AIADA: Thanks Ian, see you in LA. Full interview

Auto Suppliers Urge Congress to Support Move to Greater Fuel Efficiency

The biggest manufacturing sector in the United States, motor vehicle parts supliers, is urging Congress to pass legislation that would assist the industry's transition to more fuel efficient technologies. The stress giving the population acne over gas prices is starting to finally get suppliers to urge for more help. They know the profirts are there. Just do it already.

The Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association (MEMA), a trade association representing motor vehicle parts suppliers, is asking congress to provide funding that would help automakers and parts suppliers retool their facilities, purchase new equipment, and expand or build new facilities to meet the demand for more fuel efficient vehicles. They are also seeking for funding for advanced battery technology to help speed the development of plug-in hybrids and pure plug-in vehicles.

"The entire industry is transitioning to more efficient vehicles and more fuel-saving technologies," said MEMA President and CEO Bob McKenna. "We hope that when Congress returns next month, they will encourage this transition by providing the necessary funding to assist the hundreds of companies, big and small, that are working to get this job done."

2008 Alternative Fuels and Vehicles Conference

You can't get away from gas prices right now so interest in the Alternative Fuels and Vehicles Conference in LAs Vegas is drawing a bit more attention than it probably has in previous years. Between sessions of checking out the women in their sexy swimwear at the pool some people actually took the time to collect videos of the many presentations that were available on the various panels.

If you go to the Auto Channel page for the Conference and scroll down to the bottom of the article you will find a list of 30+ videos from the conference. Various new technologies are discussed as well as the state of alternative fuels by a few speakers.

Automakers Scramble to Produce Hybrids, Alternative Fuel Vehicles

With gasoline hovering north of $4 a gallon and public demand shifting rapidly, automakers are scrambling to get more energy efficient vehicles, alternative fuel vehicles, and hybrids on the market. Wow...way to look a head. Could have done this 5 years ago.

On June 16 Toyota announced two hybrids in the coming year, a Lexus (to debut in January), as well as the third-generation Toyota Prius, which will be out sometime in 2009.

Toyota is at working on lighter, more powerful lithium ion batteries that will first be used in the company's plug-in hybrid, which has a production date of 2010. Still...the lack of hydrogen fueling availability is a concern spurring thoughts that people will be wearing out their Ecco shoes faster than their tires if they don't have fuel available.

General Motors remains confident that their long-discussed, all-electric, Chevrolet Volt will be in showrooms in 2010 as well, with the capability to run 40 miles on battery-power alone. The company has yet to name a supplier for the Volt's battery.

California clean-vehicle goals may be cut

All those tree huggers that spend more money on luxury watches than you probably do on your food may be in for some bad news.

Samantha Young writing for the AP reported that California air regulators on Thursday were considering a major cutback to the state's clean-vehicle program, a move that would delay a large deployment of battery-powdered and hydrogen vehicles.

The decision also will affect efforts to promote zero-emission vehicles in 12 other states.

Tree huggers unite.

Analysis of Alternative Fuel Vehicles in Europe

A nice analysis of more alternative fuel vehicles here. After being at some races the last couple of weeks I need to look into some sort natural skin care products to get my dust plastered skin fixed. Also, it is something nice to read about after watching these cars blowing through fuel like no other. The article is more than just an article, but an in depth analysis on what is going on in Europe. Interesting read none the less.

14th Alternative Fuels & Vehicles National Conference and Expo 2008

Like I always say, this stuff interests me a whole lot. Not only because of the impact on the world, but the fascination with technology and science. Anyone that says this kind of stuff isn't important should probably start looking for a Raleigh personal injury lawyer because there are plenty of people that do :).

he Alternative Fuels & Vehicles National Conference + Expo 2008 (AF&V 2008) will be held in Las Vegas, Nevada, from May 11-14, 2008. Details about the national conference, presented by the Alternative Fuel Vehicle Institute (AFVI), are now available on the AFVi website. This is the only event held in North America that attracts 2,000 key experts and end users to accelerate the commercial adoption of alternative fuels, vehicles, and advanced transportation technologies. It will be held at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino. more

GM Prepares Fuel Cell Technology for Future Production

Not sure what to think about this. You hear that this is possible and worth a look, but at the same time you hear that it is too costly and will never work. At this point I don't think it is anything we are going to see in the next 5 years so it is nothing more than news really. News to me is that my battery is holding up, but I had to get a new alternator this week.

"Eight years ago we said that hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle technology could make a major contribution to solving the energy and environmental challenges facing the automobile industry," said Larry Burns, GM Vice President, Research and Development. "Today's announcement signals another important milestone as we move fuel cell vehicles closer to future production."

Read more...

President targets oil, energy use

So....Georgie is trying to do a good deed, eh? Suprising since he is about to be out of a job. I guess he has a lot of speaking engagements lined up like Pops did. Remember how Sr. had that speach for stock options at one point and made like $5 mil from it? I can't imagine anyone really wants to hear G.W. ramble on about anything, but you never know. Surely he has a financial interest in this thing.

WASHINGTON -- President George W. Bush called for an ambitious increase in the fuel economy of cars and trucks and a surge in alternative fuels as a centerpiece of his State of the Union speech Tuesday, part of a plan to cut the nation's gasoline consumption by 20% in a decade.

Bush's proposal drew a wary reception from automakers and environmental groups, who likely will wage pitched battles in the coming months over the specifics, especially whether Bush's goals for fuel economy increases will be hard standards or soft targets.

Full story

Wagoner calls for U.S. to focus on alternative fuel

Glad to see this in the news. Hopefully a big name speaking out like this will get more involved in the alternative fuel struggle. We need to stay ahead of the competition here and we need help doing it.

DEARBORN -- General Motors Corp. Chairman and CEO Rick Wagoner said Washington should not slack off on efforts to develop alternative energy sources now that oil prices have fallen.

Wagoner pressed the issue during a speech Tuesday night at the Automotive News World Congress in Dearborn, where fuel economy and energy policy were hot topics.

"With the price of oil at its lowest level in 19 months, we run the risk of reverting back to our traditional energy policy," Wagoner said. "That is, relying heavily on the lowest-cost energy available on world markets, including imported oil, without providing adequate support for developing alternative sources.

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070117/AUTO01/701170401/1148