Interesting Ideas

In this episode of CleanTech Talk, CleanTechnica‘s Scott Cooney interviews Taiga Motors CEO and cofounder Sam Bruneau. Sam shares the story behind building the world’s first electric power-sports vehicle company and why electrification on water and off-road matters now more than ever. From the launch of the new Orca WX3 ... [continued]

The post From Startup to Industry Pioneer: Taiga’s Off-Road Electrification Journey appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Inside Presence, the Icelandic-Danish artist’s epic new show in Brisbane, what you see changes based on where you stand or how you look – crucial when it comes to tackling the climate crisis

I gasp as it comes into view: an enormous sun looming above, its surface roiling with what looks like thousands of tiny atomic explosions. It seems to notice me as well: when I stop, it stops too. It’s both awe-inspiring and unnerving.

In the mirrors around the glowing orb, I spot Icelandic-Danish artist Olafur Eliasson – globally renowned for large-scale installations that challenge your sense of perception – posing for selfies with the crowd.

Robotaxis may be much better, safer drivers than most humans — maybe — but there’s no doubt that there are still a variety of edge cases where humans would handle a situation better, and there probably always will be. The latest example is a “funny” one (in this case), but ... [continued]

The post Waymo Drives Right into Police Scene, and Golf Course appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Kenya’s electric motorcycle ecosystem is now starting to flourish thanks to the hard work and vision of several innovators over the past 8 years which saw a tremendous opportunity to transform one of the key pillars of the county’s transport landscape. The share of electric motorcycles in new motorcycle registrations ... [continued]

The post 40% Of Bolt’s Motorcycle Fleet Is Now Electric, Making It Nairobi’s Largest EV Ride-Hailing Provider appeared first on CleanTechnica.

TL;DR — Public charging is expensive and messy because the business model is wrong. Instead of selling electricity, charging operators should just provide infrastructure — and utilities should bill drivers directly at their home rate. A single API can make this happen and unlock the kind of seamless experience Tesla ... [continued]

The post A New Billing Architecture To Transform EV Charging Economics appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Mark Carney is considering lifting a tanker ban that has protected coastal communities for 53 years

The distress call went out to the Canadian coast guard station after midnight on an October night. The Nathan E Stewart, an American-flagged tugboat, sailing through the light winds and rain of the central British Columbia coast, had grounded on a reef.

The captain tried to reverse, moving the rudder from hard over port to hard over starboard. The boat pivoted but did not move, and the tug repeatedly struck the sea bed.

Caistor St Edmund, Norfolk: I have memories of seeing them at night, on our pyjama-clad safaris round the farm, but they haven’t been here for a decade

There’s a shimmering in the sky and I can’t work it out. Driving, I can only snatch glimpses of flickering light. I pull into a lay-by near home. Now I can make out five or six broad-winged birds, flying in a loose flock. They are black and white and their motion reflects the low sun, flashing light and contrasting dark, like a disturbance in the force field.

Lapwings, or “peewits” as they are known for their call, are birds of my childhood. Every spring, they nested in the same field and, in winter, flocks gathered. I loved their crest and the way their petrol-sheened plumage changed with the light, from dark green to bronze or purple.

In another CleanTechnica YouTube discussion, Jose Pontes, Larry Evans, Raymond Tribdino, and I got together to discuss how electric vehicles will differentiate themselves as core EV metrics (like range and charging speed) become less varied and less notable. We discuss the highly mature Chinese EV market, self-driving vehicles, and more. ... [continued]

The post How Vehicles Differentiate in Mature EV Markets — YouTube Discussion appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Exclusive: ‘extremely unhelpful’ policy seen as deterrent to clearing thousands of dump sites across England

Millions of pounds in landfill tax owed to the government has to be paid by the Environment Agency (EA) if it clears any of the thousands of illegal waste dumps across the country.

Of the £15m that taxpayers are paying for the clearance of the only site the agency has committed to clearing up – a vast illegal dump at Hoad’s Wood in Kent – £4m is landfill tax.

Every year, 1bn tonnes of food are wasted. I value my meals and the work that has gone into them, so I am now always prepared and ready to take home delicious leftovers

I’ve always loved catching up with friends and family over a meal out. Not only is it a chance to find out the latest gossip and what everyone’s up to, but it’s also an opportunity to try out new foods and share that experience together.

But looking back, I’ve realised that I’ve been guilty of contributing to food waste by leaving meals unfinished. Sometimes, I didn’t realise how big portions would be or I’d get so focused on chatting to everyone that I would forget to eat everything until it was time to go.

A couple of months ago, just before the $4,000 used EV tax credit ended, I published an article on the cheapest used electric car options I could find — well, with some limitations. It’s now time to compare those to what’s on the market now. I loosened up the limitations ... [continued]

The post Cheapest Used Electric Cars in the USA, Part 2 appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Backlog delaying ‘shovel-ready’ ventures will be cleared with aim of building virtually zero-carbon power system by 2030

Britain’s energy system operator is pulling the plug on hundreds of electricity generation projects to clear a huge backlog that is stopping “shovel-ready” schemes from connecting to the power grid.

Developers will be told on Monday whether their plans will be dismissed by the National Energy System Operator (Neso) – or whether they will be prioritised to connect by either the end of the decade or 2035.

Cameras capture lone creature collecting materials for its lodge in riverside nature reserve

A wild beaver has been spotted in Norfolk for the first time since beavers were hunted to extinction in England at the beginning of the 16th century.

It was filmed dragging logs and establishing a lodge in a “perfect beaver habitat” on the River Wensum at Pensthorpe, a nature reserve near Fakenham in Norfolk.

Allendale, Northumberland: Every winter I return to it with my secateurs, but hollies certainly know how to protect themselves

It has become an annual ritual, the cutting of branches from this shapely holly for a winter wreath. A mixture of the wild and of things garnered from my garden, I push twigs and vines into a metal frame packed with moss from drystone walls. Resinous rosemary and pine, silver seedheads of clematis, trails of ivy, lichens, ferns, honesty – each year is different with whatever I happen to find.

This particular holly is always a good source of scarlet berries, but this year it is even more jewelled than usual. It has, for now, been untouched by birds who cannily eat shorter-lived fruits first (wild raspberry, rowan, elder), leaving the solid drupes of holly until other food is scarce. Then its bounty might be guarded by a mistle thrush, possessively seeing off other possible feasters. Hollies are dioecious, with male and female flowers on different trees, so this is a female, its fertility the result of bees ferrying pollen from nearby males.

Species extinct as breeding birds in Britain since 1416 to be reintroduced in Barking and Dagenham as part of rewilding effort

Above the roar of traffic, the rumble of the tube and the juddering construction noise of a towering new datacentre in Dagenham, east London, will soon rise a beautiful and unlikely melody: the bill-clattering of white storks.

The birds will next year make a historic return to the UK capital as part of an ambitious rewilding effort to bring charismatic nature into busy city communities.

Flood and weather alerts in place across western half of region as parts of Iraq and Iran also face significant rain

Weather alerts are in effect across the Pacific north-west this week as a series of atmospheric rivers are forecast to deliver multiple rainfall events and heavy mountain snow from western British Columbia in Canada, to Washington and Oregon in the US.

More than 200mm (8ins) of rainfall is expected across the western half of Washington state and north-west Oregon by Friday, with between 100-150mm expected in cities such as Seattle and Portland. About 400mm are possible on the western side of the Cascades, while more than a foot of snow is expected above 1,800-2,100 metres.

In Zwickau, Germany, construction is starting on a new Syncraft Climate Positive Powerplant that will turn regional forest waste into renewable energy and green carbon. The project is led by BiokohlenWerk Zwickau and is coordinated by Procarbic Management, part of the Prolignis Group. The technology at the heart of the ... [continued]

The post New Syncraft Powerplant Being Built In Partnership With Procarbic appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Kia says it won't bring the EV5 to the US but will offer it in Canada, while Scout will sell mostly plug-in hybrids.

The post Kia EV5 For Canada, Scout Pre-Orders Heavily Favor PHEV Option appeared first on CleanTechnica.

First of all, I want to note that whether Tesla sales are booming in China or not is sort of irrelevant to Tesla’s/Elon Musk’s vision for the company and how it is supposed to succeed now. Musk has all but given up on serious growth from normal automaker improvements, vehicles ... [continued]

The post Are Tesla Sales Really Popping in China? appeared first on CleanTechnica.

Was the plant-based meat substitute industry wrong to recommend its products as a climate solution? That’s what Impossible Foods CEO Peter McGuinness insists, saying that the approach severely restricted the company’s potential customer base early on. The approach may have contributed to an inevitable pattern of steadily falling US faux ... [continued]

The post Is The Plant-Based Food Sector Really Too Woke? appeared first on CleanTechnica.