August 20th  2002

Green dream is closer than you think, say defenders

Source:Agence France Presse               

               Mrs. Green takes a power shower which has an air jet that cuts water use by half, while Mr.
               Green readies the breakfast for their children, looking in the ultra-efficient fridge for the food
               bought at the neighbourhood supermarket. 

               The weather looks chill, and the kids will have to dress up warmly before they head for
               school. 

               But inside, no one is cold -- even though there is no heating.

               The Greens' house has triple glazing, thickly insulated walls inside and out and a clever
               thermal exchange unit in which fresh air is brought into the home via a pipe buried five metres
               (18 feet) underground. That means the air is warmed by the ground before it enters the
               house. 

               When the weather gets close to freezing, the Greens turn on a little electrical heater, but that's
               usually only for 10 days or so a year. 

               Outside, their roof has solar panels to supplement electricity from Greentown's wind farm and
               geothermal plant, and the outside of the house has black plastic pipes where, on bright days,
               water is heated by the Sun. 

               The children walk off to school while Mr. Green unlocks his bike to cycle to his office, 15
               minutes away. Mrs. Green normally works nearby, but today she has a business trip 150
               kilometers (95 miles) away, so she is heading for Greentown railway station. 

               The Greens have no car but they have never wanted one. 

               If they need a vehicle to visit a relative, go on holiday, buy a sofa or go on vacation, they
               simply rent one. 

               The Greens turn to a rental company that has 200 cars parked around Greentown, located
               next to small, Internet-connected terminals. A swipe of the credit card and a confidential
               password, and the box hands over the keys and car documents. 

               The cars are mostly powered by fuel cell or battery, except for a couple of older "hybrids" that
               still use fossil fuels as an alternative source. 

               Use is billed per kilometer, and the rate is quite expensive. But it includes the car's
               maintenance, insurance, fuel and other fees, and overall the bill is hugely cheaper than
               owning one. 

               Greentown does not exist, and the Green family too is fictional. 

               But environmentalists say that, except for the fuel cells, all the technology is available right
               now to build this vision whereby a Western household retains its standard of living without
               sacrificing the environment or its own bank balance. 

               "The idea that we are all going to be wearing horsehair shirts and sit in a cave while a windmill
               turns around in the vegetable plot outside is a myth that has to be exploded," says Paul
               Horsman of Greenpeace. 

               Emulated across the continent, Greentown would help cut Western Europe's energy use by
               some 50-60 percent compared with today's levels and slash the carbon pollution that
               scientists say is driving the planet towards irreversible climate change. 

               To realise this dream, though, "poses big technical, legal and social challenges," says Friends
               of the Earth's European director, Martin Rocholl. 

               It would need a huge shift in political will, for it would require fiscal changes that would
               discourage the use of fossil fuels. 

               And it would need a seismic change in urban planning, away from the sprawling megacities of
               today to community clusters where places of work, schools and shops are all close by,
               cutting out the need to commute, drop off kids or travel to the hypermarket. 

               That doesn't necessarily mean a return to the village, says WWF's Jennifer Morgan. 

               "Big cities can also be sustainable, but provided you have good public transport systems and
               shops that are centrally located in smaller communities where you can buy your groceries
               without having to drive some place for 45 minutes." 

               Greentown is purely a vision for rich countries. 

               In poorer countries, the emphasis would be on the quest for prosperity rather than energy
               conservation. Sustainable development would mean such things as providing solar power for
               rural villages or clean water from a durable source. 

               Even small things such as simple hoods over wood cookers in huts, to prevent smoke from
               endangering family health, would be part of a sustainable initiative, says Morgan.