San Francisco powers its Red & White sightseeing fleet with biodiesel. Seattle’s King County Water Taxi uses biodiesel to move people across Puget Sound.
On the Eastern Seaboard, the Atlantic Cup, which bills itself as the most environmentally responsible sailboat race in the United States, has fueled the event’s Class 40 fleet (for powering to and from the dock) with biodiesel since 2012, and plans to do so again in 2018. In 2015, the Volvo Ocean Race filled boats with bio-diesel during the stopover in Newport, Rhode Island, and used the fuel for the shoreside Race Village’s diesel generators. Sailors for the Sea endorses biodiesel’s use as a best practice in the group’s Clean Regattas certification program.
In 2008, skipper and conservationist Pete Bethune used biodiesel to power his wave-piercing power trimaran Earth race during a 60-day circumnavigation. This year, the tall ship and floating classroom Oliver Hazard Perry filled up with it for a voyage from New England to Cuba.
And yet despite the trend of biodiesel becoming more publicly accepted — and despite eco-minded boaters of all stripes seeking alternatives to petroleum diesel — the renewable fuel still isn’t widely available at yacht club and marina fuel docks.
“It’s a chicken-and-egg situation,” says Robert Morton, a retired marine geologist, offshore ocean racer and a founder of the alternative energy company Newport Biodiesel. “Marinas don’t want to put a tank in because they’re afraid people won’t buy it. Boaters who want to buy it can’t find a marina where they can buy it.”
Pros And Cons For Boaters
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Denne historien er fra July 2017-utgaven av Soundings.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Will Biodiesel Ever Work For Boaters?
San Francisco powers its Red & White sightseeing fleet with biodiesel. Seattle’s King County Water Taxi uses biodiesel to move people across Puget Sound.
Jess Wurzbacher
Jess Wurzbacher holds a master’s degree in tropical coastal management from Newcastle University (U.K.) and a 200-ton Master license. She sailed all over the world as chief scientist and program manager for Seamester and is a PADI scuba instructor with more than 1,000 research and training dives to her credit.
3 Takes On Classic Maine Style
The looks may be classic, but many craftsmen in Maine are giving their Down East builds something extra nowadays, whether working in wood or fiberglass.
Lady Luck
An epic voyage immortalized Felicity Ann and her intrepid skipper. Now this pint-sized yacht is getting another lease on life.
Superlative St. Augustine
St. Augustine, Florida, is one of my favorite cruising destinations. (And I’ve been to quite a few.) It’s pretty, historic, has a timeless ambience and celebrates with festivals year-round. And it has beaches and golf.
The Great Ship WaverTree Returns
A ship saved by a city, a museum saved by a ship
Coronet Around Cape Horn, 1888
Cape Horn, looming in the background of this dramatic work by Russ Kramer, is one of the most dangerous places on Earth to sail. In 1888, without electronic navigation equipment or radio communications, it was even more so.
His Bark And His Bite Were Equally Friendly
What is the world coming to? Up is down. Wrong is right.
Doug Zurn
A native of the Great Lakes region, Doug Zurn grew up sailing and boating.
Go Anywhere, Do Everything
Today’s trawlers — and other seafaring boats with passagemaking qualities in their DNA — provide comfort, efficiency and seaworthiness