With the media currently dominated by stories related to the the global credit crisis and economic recession, impacting on everything from mortgage rates to the price of basic foodstuffs, we have probably all by now had more than enough exposure to doom-ridden projections and statistics.

However, there is one interesting side effect of all this price-hiking that might not be so bad after all - from an environmental perspective that is. It is no secret that nothing quite motivates us to change our lifestyles as quickly as financial factors. In theory I’m sure there are millions of us in the UK who wish to reduce our carbon footprints. In practice though, work, families, and social lives tend to come higher in our list of priorities than changing light-bulbs, insulating the attic, or organising car-pooling to work.

This state of affairs may not be the case for much longer though if the costs of living continue to soar as they are currently doing…

It seems pretty logical that the rapidly decreasing affordability of the average Western  lifestyle will force us to implement many more ‘green’ changes in the near future, - not necessarily because we suddenly care more, but simply because we can no longer afford not to.

Let’s take the obvious starting point as an example; petrol. We are aware of the impact of our CO2 emissions on the environment, - perhaps understandably though this tends to be trumped when we consider the logistical challenge of getting to work on time, picking kids up, doing the shopping etc. The short term demands of our daily lives tend to take priority over acting on long term global issues.

The question is this: how long can we afford to consider petrol/diesel as a necessity? With diesel currently averaging £1.25 a litre, and some analysts predicting the inevitability of the $200 barrel of oil, some in the UK are already turning to alternative fuel sources, such as home-brew biodiesel. Here’s why:

Home brew bio-diesel costs 15p a litre to produce if you have free access to waste cooking oil. If you are purchasing waste oil (at the average price of 30p a litre) then the bio-diesel is still costing only 45p a litre - nearly 1/3 of the petrol forecourt price for diesel.

Not only this, but it also produces 90% fewer greenhouse emissions AND with new government legislation permitting the produce of up to 2,500 litres annually of home-made bio-diesel for personal use, it is all perfectly legal.

It is no surprise that companies such as Ecotec Resources, which sell equipment for producing the bio-diesel are reporting record demand. Ecotec for example has sold roughly 800 machines in the past year - to taxi firms, haulage companies, restaurants and chip shops.

Other companies such as Envirogroup are collecting, refining, and selling up to 7,500 litres of bio-diesel a week. Meanwhile the borough of Richmond is spending £3.5m to switch its 300 vehicles to recycled oil fuels within the next three years.

This week a new company called E-Fuel Corp unveiled its ‘Microfueller’ product - a portable unit that manufacturers ethanol for fuel purposes, resembling a petrol station pump - and allowing for direct input into a vehicle’s tank.

The unit will retail at a rather pricey $10,000, though with it depending on the price of sugar for its ethanol production, you can be pretty sure of low long term costs. The company’s estimates predict that an average US family, would begin to see a saving on fuel after only two years of using the Microfueller.

Whether this particular enterprise is successful if not really the point though. What is fairly clear is that the rapidly increasing fuel prices are leaving many of us with no option but to seek alternatives. Current prices are such that traditional fuels are no longer considered a necessity in today’s economic climate. This is going to prove massively beneficial (once the numbers of people turning to such fuels becomes really significant) in reducing CO2 emissions from road vehicles. It might be a shame that the bottom line must be the significant motivating factor - but ultimately anything which contributes to reduced CO2 levels will surely be more than welcomed.

Dejan Levi