Southampton Sustainability Forum

Many people are now offsetting their CO2 emissions by funding projects or companies who reduce CO2 emissions in another part of the country or the world.

Why do we do it?
Climate change has been recognised as an urgent environmental problem for which humans are partially responsible for, and we need to take immediate action to reduce [...]

On 26th August, Andy and Esther arrived in Athens after nine days driving in a car powered by waste cooking oil. “We have arrived in Greece with nothing but grease!”

This exploit was part of the Grease to Greece challenge – the aim was to get all the way from London to Athens without using fossil fuels. Participants used either normal or slightly modified diesel cars that were adapted to using vegetable oil as a fuel.

As the drivers made their way through Germany, Austria, Italy, Croatia and into Greece, they made pit stops at various chip shops and restaurants, convincing the owners to donate their waste cooking oil.

To be used as a fuel, the waste oil must be filtered then put in a centrifuge to remove food particles. The end product is referred to as biodiesel.

“The oil gets very hot and so it gets very thin. And then it goes into the centrifuge where it spins around and because it is very thin, it separates all the water and all the food remains. And all the clean oil comes out the bottom.”

Andy has travelled more than 2,000 miles (3,200km), using about 45 gallons (200 litres) of chip fat. His car has been doing more than 40 miles to the gallon, which he claims is better than normal diesel. And he has also saved more than 350 euros (£300) in petrol station bills.

“Hopefully, it will give people a bit of confidence to try alternative fuels, maybe using bio-diesel or converting their cars to vegetable oil,” he says.

“When I first did it I was really nervous that I was going to wreck my car. But I am now confident that it is a really viable alternative. As far as my driving life is concerned, I really can’t see why I would want to buy any fossil fuel ever again.”

Next year Andy plans to circumnavigate the globe with a mixture of cars, boats and planes.

And the aircraft, he says, will be powered by aviation fuel made from plastic bags.

Using biofuels
Waste cooking oil is an example of second generation biofuel. It is known as biodiesel since it only works in diesel-powered cards. Because it is re-using a waste product, its impact on the environment is greatly diminished. It is also a lot cheaper. Other examples of second generation fuels are bioethanol from waste crop (e.g. corn stalks that are cut down in harvest but not used in agricultural production).

On the other hand, first generation biofuels are controversial because they require a lot of energy to produce them in the first place. So the amount of saved CO2 varies with the type of crop and cultivation method.
First generation biofuels have also been partly responsible for the increase in price for certain foods, as they take up agricultural land that could be used for growing food instead. They may also threaten biodiversity as they are grown in monocultures and encourage the destruction of natural habitats for farmland.

How can I save money on fuel?

Many companies like Greenfuels, smartveg or Oily Bits provide home equipment to convert waste oil into fuel for your car. Although this requires a bit of car mechanics savvy, you can find more information on how biodiesel works here. Also see Future Fuels based in Fareham who offer further advice on converting to biodiesel as well as selling equipment.

Similiar challenges already exist such as the Chocolate-Powered Biotruck Expedition.

You can also buy a hybrid fuel/electric car to decrease your consumption of fossil fuels.

The consumption of fossil fuels in cars is one of the major sources of human CO2 emissions. Cutting down your use of fossil fuels saves you money and helps protect the environment by preventing global warming and climate change.

The SSF are looking for enthusiastic volunteers to be part of our unique group tackling environmental issues in Southampton.

We are in need of:

• Newsletter Editor
• Website Editor (training available)
• Committee Members
• Minutes Secretary
• Funding Officer

The Forum committee meets once a month for 2 hours, and welcomes all who have an interest in their local environment.

For further details and a volunteer pack please contact Claire
Tel: 02380 633009

The SSF is an organisation working to promote sustainable development in Southampton. We currently have a membership of 450+ but are always looking for new members.

Come and get involved!