Finally some good news for enviromentalists

The Mail has some news that should have enviromentalists evrywhere leaping for joy. It seems that:

'Artificial petrol that costs 19p per litre could be on forecourts in as little as three years.

British scientists are refining the recipe for a hydrogen-based fuel that will run in existing cars and engines at the fraction of the cost of conventional petrol.

With hydrogen at its heart rather than carbon, it will not produce any harmful emissions when burnt, making it better for the environment, as well as easier on the wallet.

The first road tests are due next year and, if all goes well, the cut-price ‘petrol’ could be on sale in three to five years.

Professor Stephen Bennington, the project’s lead scientist, said: ‘In some senses, hydrogen is the perfect fuel. It has three times more energy than petrol per unit of weight, and when it burns, it produces nothing but water.

‘Our new hydrogen storage materials offer real potential for running cars, planes and other vehicles that currently use hydrocarbons.’

The fuel is expected to cost around $1.50 a gallon, or 19p a litre. Even with fuel taxes, the forecourt price is likely to be around 60p a litre – less than half the current cost.

That would bring the price of filling a 70-litre Ford Mondeo down to around £42.'

If this story has more than a smigeon of truth then why aren't enviromentalists hailing the good news on, the 'all important' CO2 emissions? It is almost as though enviromentalists hate motoring more than they love the planet. Of course the flaw in the cheap fuel story is that once this fuel became widely available the governmnet would find a way of taxing it as heavily as oil; they will find a reason, they always do.