www.chechurubiera.info - an online magazine for fans of Chechu Rubiera
WE NEED TO TALK
A love of cycle racing unites us but the environment binds us. We depend on each other, we can't sustain a life of dog-walking by car.
We can ALL do something to minimise our contribution to climate change. What are you doing at home and at work?
We looked at this website, contributing to carbon offset, changing power supply and looking at how we source content.
See how we are green
GOOD RESOURCES
GIVEAWAY
We've a set of Friends of the Earth Bike Stickers, made from PVC-free plastic to give away. A gentle reminder that cycling helps promote sustainable living.
All you have to do is send a great green link for us to share with Chechu fans.
WE SUPPORT
RECYCLABLE BIKE
Made from industrial strength cardboard, a new bike design costs just £15 and can be used in most weathers.
Driven by the motivation to make a recyclable vehicle that can be produced cheap, Phil Bridge, a student at Sheffield Hallam University, said his new bike would even withstand the odd shower.
“The lightweight quality of the cardboard, combined with its low cost, means it is possible to create a bargain-bike that is also less susceptible to thieves. At the moment low-cost bikes are usually very heavy, which can also put people off.”
The prototype is made almost entirely from recyclable and recycled materials, using interchangeable mechanical parts. On the downside, it has a life expectancy of just six months.
Source : The Green Parent
BUYER'S GUIDE TO THE MOST ETHICAL BICYCLES
You could probably assert with confidence that cycling contributes zero to green house gas emissions (it does). Did you know though, that the energy efficiency of cycling is estimated to be the equivalent of a car doing 1600 miles on a gallon of petrol?
So if bicycles are one of the greenest forms of transport, what about how they're made? What's the impact on the environment and on people of manufacturing bikes?
Ethical Consumer first investigated in 2007, and scored bicycle manufacturers on a number of ethical criteria, including environment, people and product sustainability. They also look at ethical commitments and reporting.
Scored out of 20, Moulton and Pashley bicycles topped the list with 14 points, with Schwinn bottom. Trek scored well generally, but fell down on environmental reporting and supply chain policy, failing to offer information.
If you're about to buy a shiny new bike, you need to think about how it and its components are made. We have the original report, get in touch.
CHAIN LUBE
WHAT CYCLISTS NEED TO KNOW
Photograph © iStockPhotos
Next time you're doing a bit of bike maintenance, check the label on your chain lube. In its October issue, Ecologist magazine discovers that most labels carry a warning that the lube is "hazardous" or and "irritant", sometimes it "may cause lung damage".
Of the three different types of chain lube, spray and wet lubes often contain Teflon (also labelled as PTFE/polytetrafluoroethylene) and petroleum distillates. Dry lubes are usually petrochemical based, the solvent can be anything from kerosene to paraffin. These can be irritants and cause damage to your lungs.
Teflon is the big worry though. It's a plastic-like substance made up of a complex mixture of perfluorinated chemicals (PFCs). PFCs do not biodegrade, they accumulate in people, animals and the environment, and they have been shown in laboratory tests to be toxic to mammals.
In 2005, the US Environmental Protections Agency classified PFOA, one of Teflon's breakdown products, as a "likely human carcinogen".
Lubricant oils are used worldwide in manufacturing and mechanical maintenance. It is estimated that 40 per cent of all lubricants are released into the environment.
The alternative to toxic chain lube are few. In Britain, Green Oil produces a biodegradable lube made from plant-based ingredients, and is not an irritant, dangerous for the environment or hazardous.
Since we featured the this story two months ago, we've been testing Green Oil. So far, it's getting the thumbs up and we've bought in some Green Oil to let you try it at reduced cost.
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Source: The Ecologist
ECO-UNDERPANTS FOR CYCLISTS
ECOutlet has a cool range of green cycling products. Of course, the recycled panniers are super, but it was the padded cycling underpants which caught our attention, made from 30% organic cotton and 70% natural bamboo.
Bamboo is incredibly soft and naturally organic. As a performance fabric, it's ultra absorbent and breathable as well as antibacterial. These underpants are 100% biodegradable and the padding is removable.
At £25, they're not cheap but for those days when you can't wear your kit, these boxers or briefs might just offer a comfier ride.
DID YOU KNOW?
ORGANIC FEED COMES FROM KAZAKHSTAN
Organic poultry producers in the UK rely on feed ingredients from Kazakhstan.
Demand for organic chicken and poultry is so high in Britain that arable farmers simply can't supply enough grain. So the feed is transported from Kazakhstan via Latvia.
BRITAIN'S FIRST CYCLING CITY
Twelve English towns and cities will receive £100m under a government scheme intended to increase the number of people cycling.
Bristol has been named as the UK's first "cycling city" after pledging to double the number of people biking on its streets over three years.
The city will receive £11.4m, rising to £23m after three years, to create the UK's first on-street bike rental network, modelled on the successful Paris scheme.
Go to BRISTOL CITY COUNCIL