Promoting bicycling can have major impact on mitigating GHG emissions

In the Netherlands, one in four trips is made on a bicycle. If the whole world biked as much as they do in the Netherlands, over 680 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions could be avoided every year. than Freedman discusses the benefits of cycling in an article on The Independent website. And while … Continue reading Promoting bicycling can have major impact on mitigating GHG emissions →

Polluting vehicles can be exchanged for up to €4,000 to help pay for an electric bike under a new scheme in France

France has created a new subsidy scheme which is seen as the most generous of an array of incentives to persuade the country to get out of old-style transport and embrace active mobility. Charles Bremner discusses the subsidy in an article on The Times website. On your ebike, and here’s €4,000 for it, says … Continue reading Polluting vehicles can be exchanged for up to €4,000 to help pay for an electric bike under a new scheme in France →

Today the legend of autobahns is associated with Germany’s failure to meet its climate obligations

Germany's long love affair with its high-speed freeways could hit a dead end as calls grow to stop autobahn extensions to combat climate change. Stuart Braun discusses latest developments in an article on the Deutsche Welle website. Autobahns speed up climate crisis When German electronic band Kraftwerk released the iconic song "Autobahn" in 1975, … Continue reading Today the legend of autobahns is associated with Germany’s failure to meet its climate obligations →

The number of clean air zones across Europe has risen 40% since 2019, forcing older and more polluting vehicles off the road

Low-emission zones, now in 320 cities, are increasing as EU battles pollution health emergency Dirty air is the greatest environmental threat to human health, cutting life expectancy by almost two years. Arthur Neslen explains latest developments in an article on The Guardian website. Old cars forced off road as Europe’s clean air zones nearly … Continue reading The number of clean air zones across Europe has risen 40% since 2019, forcing older and more polluting vehicles off the road →

New EEA reports on which European cities have the best air quality

The cleanest cities in Europe in terms of air quality during 2020 and 2021 were Umeå in Sweden, and Faro and Funchal in Portugal according to the updated European city air quality data viewer published by the European Environment Agency (EEA) recently. In addition to the viewer, the EEA also published two reports looking at … Continue reading New EEA reports on which European cities have the best air quality →

“The return to the electric motor is only just beginning and is still stumbling over the distribution network”

'The return to the electric motor is only just beginning and is still stumbling over the distribution network,' said economist Pierre-Cyrille Hautcœur in his column on the Le Monde website. And it needs public investment into infrastructure not to fail as it did in the early 20th century. 'In 1905, half the world's cars were … Continue reading “The return to the electric motor is only just beginning and is still stumbling over the distribution network” →

New EEA report on the pollutants causing over 10% of all cancer cases in Europe

Exposure to air pollution, second-hand smoke, radon, ultraviolet radiation, asbestos, certain chemicals and other pollutants causes over 10% of all cancer cases in Europe, according to a European Environment Agency (EEA) report published this week. The good news is that these risks are preventable. Exposure to pollution causes 10% of all cancer cases in … Continue reading New EEA report on the pollutants causing over 10% of all cancer cases in Europe →

The Supreme Court limited the EPA’s authority on emissions, dealing a blow to efforts to address climate change

The EPA ruling means it may now be mathematically impossible through available avenues for the US to achieve its greenhouse gas emissions goal. Peter Kalmus, a climate scientist and author of Being the Change: Live Well and Spark a Climate Revolution, provides his views in an article on The Guardian website. The US supreme … Continue reading The Supreme Court limited the EPA’s authority on emissions, dealing a blow to efforts to address climate change →

The economic lockdowns imposed across many parts of the world to stop the spread of Covid brought clear skies to some areas only temporarily

Discouragingly, any improvements in air quality during the Covid lockdowns were only temporary according to recent analysis. Rebecca Ratcliffe discusses the developments in an article on The Guardian website. Air pollution got worse during lockdown in many countries, study finds Lockdowns imposed to stop the spread of Covid led to “virtually no change” in … Continue reading The economic lockdowns imposed across many parts of the world to stop the spread of Covid brought clear skies to some areas only temporarily →

Read all about it – important new publications

New JRC report – Prosumerism and energy sustainability This report from the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre develops a sociotechnical understanding of energy prosumerism to investigate how energy prosumerism can lead to actual reductions of energy and resource demand. The report starts out by explaining what a sociotechnical and broad understanding of prosumerism means. Thereafter, … Continue reading Read all about it – important new publications →