This is a worry, with the move to more electric for cars, heat pumps, stocking of data, social media … yes we are getting more wind farms, solar fields to generate, carbon emissions may be down but are we generating a new problem to replace the existing.
So was the mining of bitcoins, which I disliked too.
Cars need fuel, that doesn’t come from pure oil. It has to be refined.
The oil refinery plant needs electricity, much more than you would think
So if we would shut down all oil refinery plants, that would free up so much energy, that could feed all of the electric cars, that would replace gasoline driven vehicles.
But that will not happen soon, because the flight (including the military!) needs the kerosene, producing kerosene also means producing diesel oil, gasoline, and so on…
So as long as the military cannot fly without kerosene, we can be sure the oil refining will be kept working, and we are going to get gasoline/diesel for our cars.
If they stop production of petrol diesel cars as suggested there are other issues in stockage in a car suffisant to do a longer journey and access to charge points. Our closest is 5 km away in a supermarket so you have to shop to charge.
But for holiday islands not practical we are in the canaries and so far have not seen any place to charge but petrol everywhere and super low cost. 30 euros to fill our tank from empty
We use our petrol cars since 1900 maybe? So the infrastructure for it was built since a 125 years…
Electric cars are too new yet, so charging points not much penetrated.
I know a guy, travels the Budapest - Stuttgart distance 3 times a month, he is driving a Tesla. (personally I never would want a Tesla). He has found his optimal points to stop for charging. But according to his statement, the number of real stops are near the double, as his wife has to pee…
So for 1900 out of 2000 years we got by without cars.
Do we really need personal transport?
I would be quite happy with a static life where everything came to me and I interacted with people either online, or within walking distance.
Oh, it’s not just personal transport! It’s also about transporting goods, the harvester harvesting wheat, then transporting it to the mill, then transporting the mill to the bakery, without those you would not have a bread.
And that’s just one easy example.
As a child, goods came to our street, milk, bread, meat etc. But slowly the delivery stopped as supermarket became larger and price cost changed due to bulk. We need either to have a replacement like delivery or a system of products local. Not always practical. We have a shop in our village complex but its summer opening only, plus only one resto remains open all year.
Then comes medical issues, doctors, dentist, examinations, hospital… with an aged population getting to and from is a challenge. Last spring I was going for radiotherapy every day for 34 days with my own transport took a round trip of 1 hour, had I booked hospital taxi transport it would have been all morning as they do a remasage, had I done the bus it would have been 3 busses each way and a full day.
So yes we need our own transport system depending where you live, I would hate to go back to city living just for public transport
Hi Neville,
That´s a valid point. I would be happy with that kind of personal management as well.
However: I still need a car, if only a small one.
During the spring, summer and autumn season I have to take quite an abundance of chopped material from my garden to the municipal chipping area.
Can´t imagine how I would do that otherwise… .
Cheers from Rosika
We had bread, long before we had mechanised transport.
but, yes, transport of goods is important… much more so thsn personsl transport.
although
I fail to see why my local supermarket has frozen peas grown in New Zealand, when we can grow them here.