Green with rage!

Yesterday's events where motorists complained that their cars had malfunctioned when they had filled up with petrol at Tesco or Morrisons is unfortunate for a number of reasons.

Greenergy who supplied their fuel is one of a new breed of biofuel manufacturers. Morrisons and Tesco have been blending bioethanol with their petrol for some time now as part of their commitment to greener fuels and carbon reductions. Indeed - the blending of biofuels into the mix is an EC commitment set to increase over the next few years.

It is highly unlikely that these fuels would cause engine damage, but it seems that the vehicles affected are ones fitted with Lambda sensors which measure the oxygen content of the exhaust. Ethanol molecules do contain a certain amount of oxygen and so the fuel/air ratio when using ethanol from any source will be slightly different.

What is more likely in my view is that the ethanol in the fuel has dissolved some pre-existing contamination from the fuel system which the petrol on its own would not remove. For example gum deposits which can build up over a period of time - they won't dissolve in petrol, but are loosened by the ethanol and then cause a blockage somewhere else in the fuel system.

The worrying aspect of all this is the number of motorists who take their vehicles to independent garages who will see the opportunity to make a quick buck by changing a perfectly good Lambda sensor and then encourag the hapless motorist to make a claim. Their claims are unlikely to be successful and the risk is that the episode will get biofuels a bad name that they do not deserve.

Ode to Saddam

It was predictable if nothing else to hear George Bush proclaiming that Saddam's execution was another milestone on the road to democracy for Iraq. But - and this hardly ever seems to get a mention - who says that democracy in Iraq is the right answer?

As far as I know there are no Muslim democracies - maybe that tells us something? Possibly that democracy and self determination are basically Christian concepts and that maybe Islam has different views on how to run things which should be respected.

What we are actually seeing is a re-run of the Crusades in all but name, orchestrated by a couple of fanatical Christian fuckwits. One of whom seems to think that the way to save God's earth is to open up protected arctic regions for oil exploration, the other presides over a government whose idea of a green budget is to raise the tax on biofuels.

That's what democracy delivers. Stop the world I need to get off!

Road Pricing and carbon emissions

Road pricing has hit the news again - and I have to say I have some sympathy for the idea. But in the debate about taxation of vehicles according to their carbon emissions, or taxation of fuel there's a key issue that never seems to get a look in - alternative fuels.

Alternative fuels - biofuels, biodiesel are available right now. Existing diesel engines can run on them without modification. They are carbon neutral and engines running on them have incredibly low emissions. What's more they totally eliminate dependence on oil imported from places it's better not to be dependent on.

So, if the government were as keen to be green as they say they are why aren't they promoting biofuels and giving generous tax breaks to encourage their use. Come to that why not scrap the idea of road fuel taxes altogether and just replace them with a carbon tax on fossil fuels based purely on their fossil carbon content whether it's to be used as road fuel or any other purpose.

Could the reason be something called Shell, or BP, or Exxon...? Or could it be an old friend of mine Malcolm Wickes - the Energy Minister - who's probably right at this moment licking Tony Blair's backside and saying "Yes Sir, nuclear power, sir. Anything you say, sir." Or, as another old friend of mine - the late and very well respected Earl Conrad Russell once confided in me: "Malcolm Wickes isn't as clever as he likes to think he is."