The Wheels on the bus

Hello,

My name is bwings and I don't have a license.

But billions of others do and I'd be willing to bet more than 80% of license holders drive cars and maybe another 15% of those without licenses do as well ;) Every vehicle is different but every vehicle is the same. Or at least every vehicle has the same concept, a device straddling tires/wheels propelled by an engine to get you from one point to another presumably faster than walking when grandma's not at the wheel. So ignoring the obvious question about gas and mileage what else can we think about when going green. Our tires! Of course, these tires that are manufactured using petroleum and then burnt into the pavement when drag racing rushing to work!

About one billion tires are produced annually made mostly of 4lbs of rubber (8 types), 5 lbs of carbon black, 1 lb of steel cord, 1lb nylon, 1lb steel bead wire, 3lbs of chemicals (including petroleum), 6lbs of synthetic rubber.

There is hope yet, there has been production started on various naturally sourced tires. For instance Yokohama has come out with their dB super E-spec. This tire is made using oil from orange peels and natural rubber. Thus reducing the need for petroleum based materials and is replacing it with a sustainable resource. In addition this tire promises a 20% reduction in rolling resistance which will save you in gas. Which is nothing to shake a stick at, for every gallon of gas saved is approximately equivalent to 20lbs of CO2 reduction.

In case you're questioning my math on this one it's as simple as chemistry. Take a look at your periodic table of elements and you'll find Carbon to weigh 12, Oxygen 16 that lovely "2" after the O means 2 oxygen atoms. Therefore 16+16+12 = 44 as the atomic weight CO2. To determine the amount of CO2 in the gallon of gas we multiple the weight of carbon in gas by 44/12 (3.7)  Gas is typically 87% Carbon and 13% hydrogen so where gas typically weighs around 6.3 pounds  the equation looks something like this:
(6.3 x .87) x (44/12) = 20.097 or reduced  5.5 x 3.7 = 20.35

Did you need to read that or did you just trust my math? I'm not just a hippie you know, I once studied math, physics and chemistry in my major at university....BAZINGA! Alright, nerd talk aside, that's a lovely reduction. I actually went as far as calculating my estimated reduction this past year. Starting September 2009 I have been without a car. When I had a car it was a gas guzzling beast of a car. We paid roughly $50 a week to gas up and at about $1 a gallon that's 50 gallons a week, 200 a month, 2400 a year! By no longer having a car I have reduced my carbon footprint by 48,000 lbs! If you need a visual for that take a person you know who weighs roughly 130 lbs, now clone that person 369 times!

According to a study done by TireRack the tires wouldn't save you huge with standard driving, only $50 and some change per year in milage. But that is $50 you wouldn't otherwise have and it is a better tire for the environment. If it is something you are interested in, it's the tire for you. Keep in mind though that it is still a new product and has yet to be taken through the wringer by consumers.

But when shopping for Christmas a tire might be a bit difficult to wrap so perhaps, *aahh aahhh ahhhem* on the 9th day of Christmas a hippie gave to me a Truck Tire Bentley Bag. Another item on Hippie Santa's list that is an upcycle. It is a leather in appearance hand bag made with reclaimed truck tire rubber. Truck stops in Colorado supply the company with used inner tubes and they are then created into something new. The company only uses cruelty free, recycled and vegan materials.

As much as I know what they mean and I adore them for saying it, I did snicker at the idea of a truck tire being cruelty free....how many squashed ... oh never mind. Just take it the way they mean it and don't think about the rest.

That's all for now, your friendly neighborhood hippie mom.