Saving the planet by the pound

Soon we will be off on hols.

After a few years camping and a bit of relly duty, it has to be admitted that we are going somewhere sunny (actually also in the vicinity of terrorist bombing, and outbreak of hemorrhagic fever, a 2,000 sqm forst fire and small war) as the kids want to swim, the missus wants sun and I want to eat fun food.

So, what to do?

Well, reading this, in the absence of outright bans (yet), maybe an interim advocacy would be that airlines charge by the pound/kg.

However, there is slight self-interest at work here. Other than the missus' unmentionables and unneccesaries (actually very little compared to some of the fairer sex), other than Speedos* and toothbrushes for me and the boys we are struggling to fill one 20kg suitcase. Oh, and other than yours truly, the rest of the family swings in at about another me.

*There is a limit to what I will bare, and the planet could bear

Red flag!

Petrolheads take to life in the slow lane

Just noticing a few comments in the main piece and thread that seem to suggest that the solution to getting back up to speed is just to go 'alternative', such as electric/hybrid.

How are these 'free' sources of non-polluting, carbon-neutral energy generated again?

I do believe it's what it takes to get the wheels turning that matters for pocket and planet; not what goes in the tank.

Chip & Dim

What seems to me another idiotic source of waste is highlighted.

Chipping away at high fuel costs

If cars can have their fuel economy and performance improved, however, why are the manufacturers not performing the operation at the factory gates? The answer is that like any product that is sold worldwide, car makers must produce performance figures that are consistent whether the car is driven in Abu Dhabi or Aylesbury. Because of this, and in order to get past the Single Vehicle Approval test (which forces cars to conform to British safety standards), car makers set the engine parameters to the lowest common denominator so it will perform equally well with low-grade fuel or bad servicing in, for example, eastern Europe, as it will in Britain.

At risk of sounding daft, if there is more mileage to be had by these methods, why on earth would it not be incorporated as a matter of course, and hence an immediate campaign launched to change the daft law/requirement that has created this wasteful situation? Lots more is done for much less.