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Eco123 Revista da Economia e Ecologia
ZERO EMISSIONS. The plane SOLARIMPULSE 2 and its pilot Bertrand Piccard are at present flying from west to east high about the Atlantic. Since take-off in New York, one day, nine hours, 17 minutes and 52, 53, 54, 55 … have elapsed. The destination is Europe. In close to four days – on Thursday, 23rd June – he is planning to land his plane in Seville.
But why in Seville and not in Faro? Why in Spain and not in Portugal? Have those responsible at Faro airport and in the RTA tourist board once again failed to read the signs of the times? While people are drilling for dirty oil and gas in the Atlantic off Tavira and Aljezur, local politicians and tourism managers could have demonstrated NOW that, from today onwards, the signs of the times point to clean mobility.
In an impressive way, they could have shown – without further moaning and wasting further words – that they are in tune with our times. SOLARIMPULSE 2, an aeroplane weighing 2.3 tonnes and equipped with four electric motors and 17,248 solar cells, is on its way to circumnavigate the globe for the first time. But the first airport after crossing the Atlantic is FARO and not Seville. So, why isn’t SOLARIMPULSE 2 landing in Faro?
It would be impressive for ALL OF US to be able to welcome the solar-powered “perpetuum mobile” aeroplane and set a new trend to counter the madness of commercial civil aviation, which pumps millions of tonnes of aviation fuel in the form of CO² into the atmosphere every day. SOLARIMPULSE 2 is the solar-powered future and, during these days, it represents the beginning of the end of dirty, civil aviation. Civil air transport is responsible for 12% of transportation emissions worldwide, and for 2.4% of all global emissions.
The oil industry managers have some reason to smile when they face criticisms from the opponents of the drilling, accept their petitions and then enquire discreetly whether they are now charging their vehicles with electricity or are still filling up with petrol (diesel) at their own petrol stations…
Moaning and criticising is only ok if you don’t just look for and demand change from others but start with yourself. That’s why I’m starting the CLEAN MOBILITY blog at www.eco123.info and reveal that I am the first person in the Algarve to have bought an electric car from a French manufacturer.
It’s called a ZOE ZEN – a truly seductive name – and I will be telling you here if the car really lives up to the manufacturer’s promises or whether this is just another case of GREEN WASHING. Write to me here about your experiences with electric vehicles in the first few days of this new age. By train, bus, car etc. How the technical side works, charging etc. Write in Portuguese, or in English, or in German, and no more than 150 words per entry. We will do the translating and reserve the right to shorten texts. Then we’ll put them up here on the net for discussion.
