At a May 4, multi-dimensional eco-conference, entitled "Our Future, Our Challenge" and hosted by the ENACT club of Princeton Day School, gizmologists could get a look at some of the latest electric vehicles. David Crane, CEO of the locally based energy company NRI, showed off his Tesla.
A Rutgers prof brought a Chevy Volt.
And then there was an electric motorcycle (note the "No Co2" license plate). The sign identified it as a 2012 Zero S ZF9 (Zero for short), with a range of 114 miles, top speed of 94 mph, and a recharge costing all of $1.50. A review in Popular Mechanics of this year's model shows a mileage rating of nearly 500 miles per gallon (electrical equivalent) in the city. That's a big enough number to make one start believing in the future, especially after years of hearing car companies brag about cars whose gas mileage is worse than 20 years ago.
The review describes the experience of riding an electric motorcycle this way: "Ever heard birds chirp while cruising along at 50 mph? The aural experience of electric bikes is unparalleled, and the feeling of pushing silently through space challenges everything you’ve come to associate with motorized two-wheeled transport."
Other dimensions of the conference were workshops on raising chickens and bees, foraging for edible plants, and starting a farm, along with excellent talks by David Crane and Climate Central's Heidi Cullen. Ms. Cullen announced that the earth's atmospheric CO2 concentration had just that day hit the big four oh oh (400 ppm), which rhymes with "oh, oh!".
2 comments:
Somebody on Madison St has got an electric vehicle-- I saw it getting charged in their driveway when I was walking to the Garden Theater. I think it may have been a Volt. I always wondered how easy it would be to charge it up, and whether you could do it outside or in the rain.
I do worry about the effects of lithium mining in Chile and Bolivia, but I suppose it's better than oil.
One thing that could help limit mining over time is the reuse and recycling of electric car batteries. Here's one of the more informative posts I found on the issue, with a short quote about how the batteries can continue to be useful even after they no longer perform well enough to remain in a car:
http://www.edmunds.com/fuel-economy/what-happens-to-ev-and-hybrid-batteries.html
"For instance, several major power utilities are working with companies — including General Motors, Ford, Toyota and Nissan — to explore the use of the batteries for stationary storage of the power produced in off-peak periods by wind turbines and solar generation stations. Lithium-ion packs also are being tested as backup power storage systems for retail centers, restaurants and hospitals, as well as for residential solar systems."
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