This very interesting, but too short article talks about the use of sailing ships to reduce carbon emissions.
An excerpt:
French vineyard owners are returning to a slower pace of life by starting to export their wine by sailing boat – a method last used in the 1800s – to reduce their carbon footprint.
Later this month 60,000 bottles from Languedoc will be shipped to Ireland in a 19th-century barque, saving 18,375lb of carbon. Further voyages to Bristol, Manchester and even Canada are planned soon afterwards.
The three-mast barque Belem, which was launched in 1896, the last French merchant sailing vessel to be built, will sail into Dublin following a voyage from Bordeaux that should last about four days. The wines will be delivered to Bordeaux by barge using the Canal du Midi and Canal du Garonne, which run across southern France from Sète in the east, via Béziers in Languedoc. Each bottle will be labelled: ‘Carried by sailing ship, a better deal for the planet.’ Although the whole process will end up taking up to a week longer than a flight, it is estimated it will save 4.9oz of carbon per bottle.
Does anyone else feel a story possibility sitting here?
Future piracy! Wine! Hmm…
I need to:
a) Learn French.
b) Learn how to sail.
I believe I have a new calling.
Drink up me hearties yo ho!
I, personally, am holding out hopes for the return of the zeppelin as a (very) leisure mode of travel. Various articles peg the carbon footprint of a rigid airship to be somewhere between 80% to 90% less than a modern jet. The tradeoff is flight time, of course, but why not enjoy the amenities longer with an unsurpassed view and little noise?
A fanciful take on a futuristic zeppelin hotel:
http://www.dezeen.com/2008/01/10/manned-cloud-by-jean-marie-massaud/
Something more tangible… touring San Francisco soon by zeppelin: http://www.airshipventures.com/
Drifting over the Golden Gate, would you prefer white, red, or zinfandel?