Neil Young is retrofitting his 1959 Lincoln Continental Mark IV with a battery-powered engine and biodiesel backup. He’s planning to drive it to Detroit to raise awareness about the potential of electric vehicles. I really admire his creativity in adapting such a beautiful car in an environmentally friendly way.

Unfortunately, it’s too expensive for most of us to afford a set-up like Neil Young’s. But I hope it becomes less expensive soon. As much as I love public transportation, I can’t see it overtaking the car in the United States, especially, since our living areas are so spread-out. Engineering cost-effective clean transportation seems to be the answer.

Photo by Robert Blane (I hope I have the spelling right)

Quoted from the New York Times article, “Vintage Neil Young, Still Working for the Muse“: Mr. Young’s grizzled face lit up as he described his Linc-Volt. The car is a 1959 Lincoln Continental Mark IV, a 19-foot, two-ton behemoth. It was a commercial flop in the year of the massive tail fin, and in its original configuration the car is an ecological disaster, guzzling gas and leaving giant black exhaust spots on the ground as it starts up. That’s the Linc part. Volt is because Mr. Young is converting the car to battery power, with a biodiesel engine for backup, and he plans to drive it to its birthplace in Detroit to demonstrate the viability of electric cars. He’s making a movie about the trip.

Beddington Zero Energy Development (BedZED) is a successful “eco-community” built on reclaimed land in Surrey, England. It is mentioned in a World Resources Institute article on environmentally sustainable housing developments, titled Green Acres: Communities Reduce Ecological Footprints.

Quoted: The Beddington Zero Energy Development (BedZED) is the UK’s largest carbon-neutral eco-community – the first of its kind in this country. BedZED was developed by the Peabody Trust in partnership with Bill Dunster Architects and BioRegional Development Group, environmental consultants.

The Merton Rule website provides a thorough description of the rule (see below) and how it is influencing the move toward low-carbon planning in the United Kingdom. It includes a list of boroughs that have adopted Merton Rule policies, as well as resources (e.g., documents, case studies, and events) for other communities interested in following suit. The site is a great source of information on environmental planning, which fits in well with Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s call for all new houses to be carbon neutral by 2016.

Quoted: The ‘Merton Rule’ is the groundbreaking planning policy, pioneered by the London Borough of Merton, which requires the use of renewable energy onsite to reduce annual carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the built environment.