Issue 8 December
2006
( Download
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A Publication of Sustainable
Solutions for all of BC’s Energy Needs
The idea of hybrid cars makes so much sense.
Why aren’t more people buying them?
by Rita Chung
The concept of Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEV; aka. Hybrid cars) is very simple. They run on two different fuel sources, combining the use of a gasoline engine and a battery-powered electric motor.
There are two categories of HEVs – the mild and the full hybrids. In mild hybrids, the electric motor cannot function independently of the gasoline engine, and its sole purpose is to provide extra power. The electric motor in mild hybrids either generates electricity for the battery or consumes electricity from the battery; the two processes cannot occur simultaneously. Examples of mild hybrids include the 2003 through 2005 Honda Civic Hybrids.
In full hybrids, the electric motor not only provides extra power, but can also function independently of the gasoline engine under certain conditions, such as at low speeds in some HEVs. In such cases, once the HEV reaches higher speeds, the gasoline engine will start up and completely take over the operation. Another difference between mild and full hybrids is that the electric motors in full hybrids can simultaneously generate and consume electricity. Examples of full hybrids include the SUV hybrids of Ford and Toyota, the Toyota Prius, and the 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid.
A HEV’s battery can be recharged not only by diverting the power generated by the gasoline engine to the battery, but also by recapturing energy during the process of regenerative braking. The latter process diverts some of the energy normally lost through friction during braking into moving the motor shaft. As a result, magnets on the motor shaft move in and out of an electric coil located on the stationary part of the motor (the stator), generating energy for the battery. The availability of this pollution-free method of recharging the battery for use by the electric motor reduces toxic emissions from the HEVs, making them more environmentally friendly than gasoline-fuelled vehicles. It has been found that hybrid cars generally produce an astounding 80% less pollution than gasoline-fuelled cars!
Aside from reduced emissions, the perks of driving hybrid cars include a fully recyclable nickel metal hydride (NiMH) battery, and better fuel economy, as the consumption of petrol is reduced (most hybrid cars can get up to 60mpg on the highway as opposed to 20-50 for gasoline-fuelled cars, with estimates going up to 190 mpg for future hybrids). Hybrid cars drive just like gasoline-fuelled cars, are capable of maintaining highway speeds, and are not affected by hot or cold weather conditions more than traditional vehicles. Unlike electric cars, there is no need to plug-in a HEV to recharge its battery. With all these advantages, hybrid cars seem an attractive vehicle choice. Nevertheless, many people have been hesitant in purchasing a HEV.
This hesitance stems primarily from three factors. The first, and most important, is that while an average hybrid car driven in average conditions can save up to US$500 per year on fuel costs, most hybrids cost between US$5000 and US$10,000 more than the equivalent gasoline-fuelled car. For example, while the base price of the 2007 Honda Civic Sedan is approximately USD$15,000, the base price of the 2007 Honda Civic Hybrid Sedan is approximately USD$22,500. This means that most hybrid cars will need at least ten years to begin generating economic savings. This is simply not a viable solution for many people looking to save the environment and money at the same time.
The second reason for people’s hesitance is that there is currently not a great variety of hybrid cars to choose from. The major hybrid car manufacturers are Honda, Toyota and Ford, and only a few hybrid models are produced by each. There simply is not enough variety to suit the needs and demands of most buyers.
The third main reason for hesitance is that hybrid technology is still relatively new, and according to the leading hybrid car mechanic, Craig Van Batenburg, owner of the Automotive Career Development Center in Worcester, Massachusetts, most mechanics have not been exposed to the vehicle enough to be comfortable with repairing it. Furthermore, the hybrid car system is much more complex, with more computers, sensors and components than traditional cars. These obstacles reduce the availability of cheaper maintenance on hybrid cars, forcing owners to rely on the use of the more costly manufacturer’s auto shops.
All is not doomed, however. With the emergence of more models of hybrid cars - including, in the next few years, some from new players in the field such as Nissan and Lexus - and with the increasing familiarity with hybrid cars and better technology, the advantages of driving a hybrid are bound to increase exponentially in five to ten years’ time. All the while, the disadvantages are likely to be reduced or resolved. Still, for the next few years, it will continue to be less convenient and financially favourable to own a hybrid car (calculations of savings of hybrid cars versus comparable gasoline-fuelled cars can be made at: http://automobiles.honda.com/models/model_overview.asp?ModelName=Civic+Hybrid). However, for those who can afford a HEV and view them as long-term investments, hybrid cars are definitely the way forward: they contribute to a cleaner environment, and definitely to a cleaner conscience!
For more information:
2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid
Climate Change Game Continues to Grow
by Scott Sinclair
In February of 2006, the Vancouver Chapter of BCSEA started an expanded version of the Kamloops Chapter’s pilot project to teach students about Climate Change while having fun playing a Board Game. Dale Littlejohn and I wrote a few grant applications to raise $61,500 from Vancity, Environment Canada and CMHC to allow us to hire a full time coordinator for the project. Keltie Craig began working in February along with a great crew of BCSEA volunteers to teach 2,000 grade 5 and 6 students about Climate Change and the many sustainable energy options they can consider to reduce their families’ personal impact on Global Warming. In September of 2006, Shirlene Cote joined our team as Keltie departed to pursue a graduate degree at UBC. Shirlene is currently on track to reach an additional 2,000 students before the current phase of our project ends in March of 2007. Also, Monica Nissen of Nelson has delivered the program to ten classes of students in her region through a separate Climate Change Game Initiative. Finally it is important to note that in 2006 we began a partnership with the City of Vancouver’s One Day program to create a contest called the Superhero Showdown, to award prizes to students and teachers who follow through with Climate Change Actions.
Climate Change Game Rules
As a team of Superheroes, game players have the challenge of saving the Earth from Global Warming in 15 minutes. The team rolls a die to move from start to finish. When the dinosaur game piece lands on a square, the team must answer a question about energy behaviour, sustainable energy, climate change, or sustainable transportation. The team must agree on an answer, be able to back up their answer with explanations of how and why it is right. If the team is correct, they roll the die to move forward, if they are wrong, they move backwards. It is a race against the clock to try to choose the right actions, before it is too late. Teams win by crossing the finish line in 15 minutes or less. |
This summer, while we were not in schools delivering the program, we updated the Game Board, personal action, and energy knowledge questions to reflect recommendations from our volunteers and Advisory Committee. In addition, we analyzed the results from our first 77 classes. Using data collected from a questionnaire that students completed before and after our program, we found a consistent improvement in climate friendly behaviour, and increased knowledge of the energy solutions. According to our analysis we saved approximately 1,150 tonnes (0.5 tonnes of CO2 emissions per student) between February and May of 2006. This was fantastic news, though an even more exciting development unfolded. The Superhero Showdown we began with the City of Vancouver in very small numbers (90 students) was averaging 1.8 tonnes of savings per student. So we began to focus on an expansion of the program that would emphasize the ‘Showdown’ while continuing to reach greater numbers of students across the province.
Over the past few months, we have created a vision of expansion for the project that will see us deliver the CC Game workshops and Superhero Showdown Contest to 15,000 students across BC in 2007. This expansion will take the project to schools in Victoria, Abbotsford and Squamish, as well as enabling our Chapters in Prince George, Kelowna, Comox, and Dawson Creek to spread our message of sustainable energy into the minds of our youth. We are pleased to announce that last month, the Vancity Envirofund awarded us $40,000 towards this program expansion, and we are awaiting a reply on an application to Environment Canada.
As a final note, I would like to thank all the members and supporters of BCSEA for allowing us to make this project happen. I encourage you all to continue your involvement in our association as individual members, business members, by becoming monthly energizers or by making a donation at www.bcsea.org/getinvolved as we really need your support to continue with this work. Keep in mind that it is the holiday season, and you could make a donation to the BCSEA in the name of your loved ones as a gift for their future.
Send me a note at ssinclair@bcsea.org to find out how you can bring the Climate Change Game to your community.
For more information: www.bcsea.org/activities/ccgame/
BCSEA Vice President Scott Sinclair accepting a cheque
for $40,000 from Vancity CEO Dave Mowat
at an Envirofund Award Ceremony in Vancouver.
The Salt Spring Energy Strategy
An island takes action on climate change
by Elizabeth White
What do you do if you live in a small community without the resources to develop an official community energy plan? Answer: you do it yourself. In the case of Salt Spring Island, our Earth Festival Society obtained a number of small grants and prepared a baseline energy and emissions report for the Island which considered transportation fuel, home energy use, and the energy embodied in our food. We then invited the community to use this information to develop a series of priority actions. These were formulated into the Salt Spring Energy Strategy. The objectives of this strategy are to save energy, reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and reduce local air pollution, with the target of reducing energy consumption and GHG emissions by over 20% by 2012. Reaching this target will be an impressive achievement. Given the Island’s growth trends, even if we achieve the specified per capita cuts, we will only be holding total energy consumption and emissions at 2002 levels. But you have to start somewhere. The pie chart shows the actions needed to achieve the planned savings.
The plan calls for five percent of Salt Spring’s residential energy needs to be met through renewable energy from solar domestic hot water, microhydro, and photo-voltaic devices. Tidal current power generation has potential for the Island, but was not included in the Energy Strategy because the technology has not been proven.
 One advantage of a grassroots community energy strategy is that the goodwill and interest of the community snowballs into actions well beyond the imaginings of the program coordinators. A number of examples have been evident on Salt Spring. Local hero and grandmother Dorothy Cutting decided to drive her hybrid car to the arctic to publicize the effects of the climate crisis. The local movie theatre showed special screenings of ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ and ‘Who Killed the Electric Car’, followed by panel discussions. More movies are on their way. Craftsman Chris Dixon has written eloquently on climate change and persuaded the local newspaper to run a regular ‘green space’ section. A new group sprang up to lobby the federal and provincial governments to take action on climate change.
Our local governments, the Islands Trust and Capital Regional District, have been supportive and are increasing their involvement. Salt Spring is participating in the provincial Community Action on Energy Efficiency (CAEE) program. CAEE provides support for planning initiatives and, through the Energy Savings Plan (ESP), gives local homeowners continued access to grants and to the otherwise-cancelled federal EnerGuide for Houses program. ESP assistance for low-income housing audits and upgrades is also available. The Salt Spring Energy Strategy Task Force has been established to oversee implementation of these initiatives, and is currently making recommendations for energy revisions to the Official Community Plan. An Area Farm Plan and food security initiatives are underway to help increase local food production.
Growing public awareness and local government involvement are very encouraging, but whether significant energy use reductions have been achieved is unclear. Our target date of 2012 is only five years away, and so far, about 60 of the Island’s 5,000 homes have had energy audits - slightly over one percent. The number of registered light vehicles on Salt Spring has increased by about three percent per year since 2002. On a more positive note, 12% of new vehicles purchased in 2006 were either hybrids or Smart Cars, and growth rates are declining.
It seems that reaching our targets through voluntary measures alone will be very challenging. If Salt Spring is to meet its 2012 targets, federal and provincial support in the form of legislated standards will be needed.
The Salt Spring Energy Strategy is coordinated by a non-profit group, the Earth Festival Society, with the help of The Salt Spring Island Conservancy, Island Natural Growers, and other island groups. Sponsors include Environment Canada, Islands Trust, MEMPR, Capital Regional District, and VanCity Credit Union. For more information: www.saltspringenergystrategy.org.
From Québec to B.C.
On Friday September 22, BCSEA's Peter Ronald participated in a press conference at the Fairmount Hotel in Vancouver to discuss the unveiling of Quebec's Climate Change Action Plan that will achieve Kyoto targets for the province. Quebec's Environment Minister Claude Bechard was in town to meet with local environmental groups to explain their plan, and encourage our province to follow suit. BCSEA participated in this event with the David Suzuki Foundation, the Pembina Institute and others. Peter Ronald fielded a number of questions from the media en francais, showing the dynamic abilities of our provincial coordinator. Attached is a photo of Peter and Minister Bechard at the event.
For details on Quebec's Kyoto Plan please visit: http://www.mddep.gouv.qc.ca/changements/plan_action/2006-2012_en.pdf
BCSEA Coordinator Peter Ronald (right) and
Quebec Environment Minister Claude Bechard
Announcing the success
of Mayne Island’s
Cool Island Project to the rest of Canada
The Gulf Islands - Canada's first Cool Community?
by Peter Judd
As we are constantly reminded these days, the Earth’s atmosphere is quickly warming up, and without immediate action, much damage will soon come upon us. Climate change is an amorphous giant of a topic that is taking decades to quantify and that can leave John Q. Public with a bad case of guilt and anxiety. This situation presents a powerful call to action, to which we can all respond. As individuals and families, citizens groups and towns, we have the power to make meaningful change, without waiting for hopelessly fence-sitting governments, thwarted by powerful, knuckle dragging polluters, to act.
A brief review: Plant matter in our oceans and forests can absorb about four billion tons of CO2 equivalent emissions every year. The problem is that mankind is now creating twice that amount, largely through the burning of fossil fuels. The resulting changes in the Earth’s climate are becoming very apparent. Polar ice sheets are melting. Rising oceans threaten enormous coastal populations (80% of mankind) with flooding. Stronger storms and Ethiopian-style droughts are become commonplace. All a very stark foretaste. Yes, we are talking about our life-support system! Global warming is the single largest problem ever to face humanity.
So here's an idea - let's act now! Even while the Australian government, for example, is locked in inaction on the Kyoto treaty on global warming, its own citizens’ groups are creating CO2 reduction schemes that will result in meeting that country's Kyoto targets! Australia, Canada and the U.S. are some of the world's largest CO2 producers per capita, so our actions carry the greatest effect on the future of our one blue planet.
One small community, and as such an example for countless others, Mayne Island – one of BC’s Gulf Islands - has risen to the challenge. It all began when three alarmed residents started writing in the local newspaper on the topic of sustainability. The interest generated spawned the Cool Islands project. A brief workshop followed, which presented the basic problems and some attainable lifestyle changes that could provide redress. A spreadsheet was used to estimate the present family emission levels, and to show the reductions possible through new personal choices. The ambitious goal of the project is to enrol 2/3 of the community in a lifestyle that decreases their personal emissions from the Canadian average of 13 tonnes per year to only six tonnes per year. Participants receive the coveted Cool Island Thermometer logo to inspire friends, neighbours and businesses. A large thermometer in the town centre will display the total decreased emissions of the participants in an effort to encourage others to join.
The cheapest, fastest and longest lasting ways a country can affect emissions are through energy conservation (living well while choosing to use less), and energy efficiency (houses, cars, appliances, farming, etc.). The opportunity at hand is to be actively creating a new way of life. A way of life with an energy source is inexhaustible and non-polluting. Nothing else is sustainable. Luckily there are hundreds of options; we just have to educate ourselves. Oh yes, and ACT! As the song says, "Do what you can, where you are, and do it now!"
Impractical ideas, you say? Remember, in a democratic society: "When the people lead, the leaders will eventually follow".
See www.sustainmayne.org for a detailed description of - and your input to - the Cool Island / Cool Communities Project and the tools available for public use.
MILLIJOULES
By
Guy Dauncey
Europe’s Tax on Flying
Since 1990, the greenhouse gas emissions from Europe’s international flights have increased by a whopping 87%, and pressure has been mounting to do something about it. CO2 emissions from British airports increased by 100% between 1990 and 2000, while they decreased by 9% from all other sources. As a result, the European Commission is proposing that starting in 2011, all European airports will have to start monitoring their CO2 emissions, and buy permits to cover them. The cost for an average flight within Europe will be $12; international flights could cost up to $54; US and Canadian airlines will have to buy permits to cover their emissions on European routes. So here’s the big question: By 2011, will US and Canadian passengers pay up freely, knowing we have to control our emissions, or will they respond with a major tantrum?
 Spain’s Solar Law
Starting in April 2007, every new non-residential building in Spain must be fitted with PV panels to generate 30-40% of the building’s electricity. They must also be fitted with solar hot water panels to generate 30-70% of the hot water, depending on where the building is located, and its expected water usage. Spain’s construction lobby has complained that this will increase building costs by 8-12%, but Spain’s Housing Minister, Maria Antonio Trujillo, says the extra cost will be no more than 1%, which will be offset by the energy savings achieved.
Rooftop PV panels at work
Natural Gas’s Micro CHP
Stand back! There’s a new kid on the block in the micro-generation family. I’m not sure if he’s fully welcome, since he still burns fossil fuels, but it’s time to meet him. Combined Heat and Power (CHP) has been used for some time in European cities which use district heating networks to heat buildings and generate power at the same time. Micro-CHP does the same thing on a household level, burning natural gas to generate both heat and electricity. This is very efficient in that it extract 90% of the useful energy from the fuel, compared to 30% for coal-fired electricity. In Japan, 30,000 home-owners have installed them, and in Britain, 80,000 are on order. They come as a sleek metal box costing $13,000 to $20,000 US, and payback (they say) is 3-7 years, depending on the price of electricity. But… it still burns natural gas, which we’ll soon be shipping in from Russia and Iran. For pictures, and details, see www.climate-energy.com
EEStor’s Stunning New Batteries
Is it a bird that will fly? That’s the question mark around the EEStor claim to have developed a stunning new EV battery technology that will deliver 500 miles for $9 worth of power (50 cents a day for an electric vehicle driving 10,000 miles a year). EEStor says the battery will cost 50% less per kilowatt-hour, weigh 90% less than a lead-acid battery, and can be fully charged in less than 5 minutes, which is doubtless what persuaded the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers to buy $3 million in preferred stock. And who are KPCB? They have previously made major investments in Google, Amazon.com, and Netscape, so they have a good track record. The ZENN Motor Company of Toronto has confirmed plans to use EEStor batteries in its EV Feel Good Cars by 2008 (www.zenncars.com). If this pans out, it may spell the end of the internal combustion engine. For details, google EEStor – but be warned – the company is being super-secretive!
Vancouver’s Sewer Heat
Who would have guessed? The energy we need to heat our buildings is right under our streets, in the sewer pipes. The German company RabTherm has shown that by retrofitting the bottom of a sewer pipe with a heat-capture sleeve (see photo), you can use a heat pump to extract the energy, and transfer it to nearby buildings using a district heating network. And now - in Vancouver! The South East False Creek Olympic Village in Vancouver will gain 65-70% of its heat this way, and the method could potentially be extended to the entire False Creek Flats area. In Europe, there are 21 sewer heat plants in operation and a further 100 are being built or planned, ranging in size from 9 to 200 metres (80 kW to 2 MW). In South East False Creek, 350 metres of sewer will produce 2.5 MW of heat, at a cost of $2-3 million.
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