Billy Black
Letter from the Editor: Department of Corrections, and Collections
June 1, 2007
In the "Green Machines" issue (The Robb Report Collection, April 2007), a review of the biodiesel-powered TLC Icon overlooked a few salient points. Jonathan Ward, CEO of TLC, created the Icon with a "cradle-to-cradle" design protocol, therefore the vehicle’s life cycle is meant to be indefinite. The product is not intended to be indestructible, but is devised for continual reuse and easy repair. "We are not adding to the national vehicle fleet because each Icon starts by recycling a vintage 1960 to 1978 Toyota Land Cruiser, from which we literally recycle all the content back into the community—as used parts or for core metals—and keep only the frame," Ward says.
TLC is also the first manufacturer to use powder-coating finishes on its vehicles’ bodies. "Icons use the toughest and most eco-conscious coatings available, including Cardinal powder coating, which emits no harmful CFCs [chlorofluorocarbons] or VOCs [volatile organic compounds], like ordinary automotive paint," Ward explains. "The Icon also uses polyurea on the floors and underside in lieu of traditional petroleum-based undercoatings, which have a bad habit of leaching over time and getting into the groundwater."
Taking the green theme to the extreme, the Icon is equipped with light-emitting diodes (LEDs) wherever possible, instead of traditional lightbulbs, which reduces the amount of fuel expended to power the battery. These systems and processes, Ward maintains, are too expensive and time consuming for major manufacturers to adopt quickly. "One of my goals for the Icon is to incite change and design evolution in the automotive industry," Ward says. "I will never change the world producing only 30 vehicles a year, but if I can create design reactions from the big guys or expose new options to the public, I have done my job."
Green Cruiser
If Jonathan Ward were not an entrepreneurial landlubber, he
might have been an academic seafarer like Linwood Pendleton, who at the end of
this summer will resign from his tenured position at UCLA’s School of Public
Health to study how people use beaches and interact with the ocean. With the
support of the Ocean Foundation (www.oceanfdn.org), Pendleton is currently
developing a three-year exposition called COVE (Coastal Ocean Values Expedition)
that will take a powerboat from the Gulf of Mexico to Maine and conduct this
research, while educating people about the ocean’s economic value at 20 ports of
call.
COVE is also working with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to create a central repository for inputting various economic indicators, which will quantify how our oceans affect the economy. "Just like economists keep track of the GDP, we’re going to do that for the ocean," Pendleton says.
To begin its expedition, COVE is looking for an American boat manufacturer to build a green research vessel. "Most environmental expeditions on the oceans are based on sailboats," Pendleton says, "but we think we can use a powerboat to show that there are things you can do—using off-the-shelf technologies—to make powerboating greener and more environmentally friendly." COVE plans to outfit a 40-foot pleasure craft—such as an S&S Fast Cruiser (www.sparkmanstephens.com) made of fuel-efficient advanced composite construction—with a biodiesel engine, low-energy appliances and LED lights, and onboard sanitation systems for sewage treatment. The boat will also use solar and wind power, two abundant energy sources on the open water, to charge batteries and avoid running its regular power generator.
And unlike regular diesel fuel, "when you spill biodiesel into the water, you don’t have to call the coast guard," Pendleton says. "Biodiesel is basically vegetable oil, which is nontoxic to fish." COVE needs to raise at least a half a million dollars to build the boat. To make a donation to this important work, visit www.oceanfdn.org.
advertisement
