Green Options » fuel prices

Electric Planes Lifting Off at the EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin

John Ivanko — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 18:25:01 +0000

First we had electric trains. Then electric cars. Now, airplanes.

Sonex, a national leader in providing affordable high performance kit aircraft, is developing a concept Waiex E-Flight Electric-Powered plane.

I caught up with Mark Schaible, Marketing Director for Sonex, at the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) AirVenture last year, the largest aircraft event on the planet. The EAA AirVenture is held in July and early August every year in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, at the Wittman Regional Airport.

“That’s our goal,” says Schaible, surrounded by the entire family of kit aircraft, including the Sonex Sport Trainer, Sonex Sport Acro and Xenos Sport Motorglider. “Keep ahead of the marketplace with an electric airplane. Someone is going to do it, so it might as well be us. We have made a lot of progress and are working very hard toward first flight [with our Waiex E-Flight Electric Powered aircraft].”

Ten Ways to Eat Local, Seasonal Food All Year

Bryan Luukinen — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 15:41:06 +0000

Food Prices Too High? Tired of overpriced, undersatisfying meals? Want to have fresh, local food on hand all year-round? Ten Ways looks at eating local, fresh and delicious.

It’s not hard to see the value in local, seasonal food, but how does one go about finding it, preparing it, and saving a little money along the way? Check out this installment of Ten Ways for a few tips on enjoying wonderful food 365 days a year.

Grow Something Edible

Planting seeds, starts or other edible living things in and around your home (wild yeast cultures or sprouts count too) are great ways to have fresh, delicious food on hand. Plus, it’s cheap. Seed packages start at less than a dollar, soil or compost can be purchased (or found) at pennies per pound, and water in the form of rain or out of the tap are both economical choices. Aside from an investment of time, growing your own food requires little else.

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Americans Driving Less as a Result of High Fuel Prices

Jennifer Lance — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 14:12:37 +0000

This may not be a newsflash for some, but higher gas prices are causing Americans to drive significantly less. For the first half of 2008, 30 billion less miles were traveled by car than in 2007. Mass transit, bicycling, car pooling, and even horses (in my community at least) are making a come back to help Americans save money at the pump.

Via: 7Gen Blog

For example, the Soaring Society of America, representing over 11,000 active soaring and motorglider pilots, has promoted the ecological benefits of non-motorized flight for years. Using the power of the sun to keep their machines aloft for hours on end, gliders (sailplanes) exploit the sunshine striking Earth’s surface, causing the air to warm and rise. Thanks to aeronautical design and the use of light composite materials, a glider can lift upwards on this stream of warming air and ride it to the base of clouds, across great distances and speeds nearing 100 mph. “No fuel, no money, no problem,” sums up Anne Mingiovi with a smile at the Soaring Society of America exhibit area at the EAA AirVenture last year.

Like at the gas pump, aviation fuel has taken huge price swings over the past year. “For 100 low-lead, the most common general aviation fuel, its price has swung up and down with fuel prices in general,” explains Knapinski. “It still remains $1 to $1.50 per gallon higher than auto fuel, and is tied with the price of oil. Another challenge has been the increasing ethanol blends in motor fuels. Ethanol is quite damaging to aircraft fueling systems as they now exist, and with thousands of aircraft able to use non-ethanol auto fuel, that inclusion can swiftly become a safety issue.” This is, in part, why some of the more innovative aircraft companies are exploring biodiesel engines or electric-powered flight.

“The EAA has always been the organization where those who are thinking ahead find a community of support,” adds Knapinski. “Every year at Oshkosh there are new ideas, concepts and prototypes that challenge the status-quo thinking of aviation. For instance, General Electric sent its aviation engineering
staff to Oshkosh in 2008 to find out what notable ideas might be coming out of the individual innovators and tinkerers. That is the reputation of EAA members and their organization, which all comes together at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh each summer.”

So, the entrepreneur economy—as evidenced by the thousands of exhibitors and aircraft designers—continues to soar at the EAA AirVenture.

Want to catch what’s next in energy-efficient aviation? Land at this year’s EAA AirVenture.

Photos Courtesy of Beige Alert @ Flickr under Creative Commons license.

Goodbye Trucks and SUVs; Hello Gas Saving… Geo Metro?

Nick Chambers — Tue, 27 May 2008 22:09:39 +0000

Could it be that Americans are finally warming up to the idea that life doesn’t revolve around how good your car looks and that putting food on the table is more important than driving an SUV? I mean really, it’s about time, no? The pundits have been saying it for the past year, but it looks like the prediction that the average American would rather eat than spend money on fuel is finally coming true. Not only that, it’s coming in droves.

100 Tips for ‘Hypermiling’

Shirley Siluk Gregory — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 15:48:18 +0000

With the threat of gasoline prices climbing to $4 per gallon, eco-conscious drivers have yet another reason to boost their mileage and reduce their fuel consumption. So here are 100 tips for “hypermiling,” courtesy of GasolineCreditCards.com’s EcoTrekker.

Photo courtesy of Aaron Lawrence via Wikimedia Commons.