Image: Tom Sandler
She has been a strong advocate of biofuels since switching her vehicle seven years ago. In 2003, along with country singer Willie Nelson and Bob and Kelly King of Pacific Biodiesel, Hannah set up the Sustainable Biofuels Alliance (SBA). The foundation was in Singapore lobbying for stringent standards for biofuels set in place by September in the United States while tackling rumours that producing green fuels causes more harm than good to the environment.
Hannah introduced the Green Living audience to her biodiesel truck via a clip from her website (www.dhlovelife.com) where she actually drinks the recycled French fry oil she uses as fuel. She has deliberately left her own GM vehicle untouched to demonstrate that almost any diesel engine can use biodiesel with few modifications.
In many ways diesel is an ideal sustainable fuel. It’s inexpensive and burns 78% cleaner than regular gasoline. Diesel is also a technology that’s been with us for awhile--invented in the 1900s by the German engineer Rudolf Diesel. He originally created the engine so farmers could run their tractors on the corn they grew.
Hannah cautioned the audience to make informed choices and demand sustainable sources for biodiesel, one of the current challenges facing the industry. Investors looking for a quick turnaround are backing the use of corn, soy and palm oil with detrimental effects. Rainforests are being cut down or burnt away to plant soy and palm plantations while the price of corn for ethanol fuel is driving food prices up. Malaysia and Indonesia are particularly vulnerable as investors eye the Canadian and US markets. The rising cost of corn has many Mexicans protesting in the streets as they see a staple in their diet suddenly become too expensive. Both Hannah and the SBA supports cellulosic ethanol, made from microbes that break down non-food crops. It’s chemically identical to corn or soybean ethanol but has a net energy three times higher with lower greenhouse gases.
“I want biofuels that are grown and produced in a sustainable manner,” she said. “I would not buy biodiesel made from palm oil... or from a bunch of animals poured in a vat.”
Biodiesel is just one of the many issues Hannah is interested in. Her presentation touched on alternative food choices, the eco-warriors and inventors who inspire her as well as the many choices out there for citizens to go green.
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