NASCAR Goes Green

NASCAR Goes Green

It appears that NASCAR has started to increase its efforts in becoming more environment-friendly as teams have started to use a 15 percent ethanol blend for its cars.

The fuel used on the cars of the racing organization contains fifty percent more ethanol compared to the E10 blends that are normally found in service stations.

Although it is not the E85, which uses an 85 percent ethanol blend, the efforts of the racing organization show its increasing concern for ecology. Ethanol is denatured alcohol that is mainly made using corn.

All three of the national racing series of NASCAR will use E15. It also appears that the organization is aiming at promoting its efforts in becoming more environment-friendly. The NASCAR Green emblem in the backstretch wall and infield grass at the Kansas Speedway are some examples of its efforts in promoting its current move. The pace car for the race will be a Toyota Camry hybrid while green paint will be used at the start and finish lines.

In addition to these promotional efforts, the racing organization has also set a goal of planting a suitable number of trees that will compensate for the carbon emissions from all of the races. According to the organization, the goal is not impossible since one tree has the capability of absorbing one metric ton of carbon dioxide throughout its lifetime. This is basically the same volume of CO2 that a Spring Cup racing car produces when it drives for 500 miles.

Ford is planning to plant one tree for each lap that its driver will lead in any of the two racing series for the month of April. UPS will also plant at least 8,000 trees with the help of the Arbor Day Foundation.

The CEO of NASCAR, Brian France, indicated that its Green activities for the month will include its most elaborate effort in minimizing the impact of the sport on the environment.

Posted by Andre Monohan on Monday April 08 2013, 10:09 AM EST. Ref: USA Today. Link. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0