Scotland approves Europe’s largest land-based windfarm; Ford readies for smaller vehicles; and green fireworks grace the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Europe’s Largest Single Onshore Windfarm to be Built in Scotland: Scotland has upped the ante when it comes to gargantuan windfarms. With 152 turbines producing 456 megawatts, the Clyde Wind Farm near Abington will be Europe’s largest when it becomes operational. The £600 million project is expected to be online in 2011. (Treehugger)

Ford seen shifting focus to small cars: This should be the week Ford firms up its plans to shift its production to smaller vehicles. Reuters reports that the company will show its hand Thursday, when it releases quarterly earnings. It’s expected that Ford will flip three U.S. truck-producing plants to car production. The company has chosen to push Mercury as its marquee small car brand, and will build at least six of its European models for North American drivers. (Reuters)

A Cheap, Natural Way of Cutting Greenhouse Gas: One of the most cost-effective ways of keeping greenhouse emissions under control may be the simplest: reducing deforestation. A paper published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and cited by Wired suggests that a 10 percent reduction in deforestation would cost mp more than $1.7 billion and save about half a gigaton of CO2 annually. A 50 percent cut in deforestation would cost up to $30 billion, but would also save the net equivalent of a third the United States’ annual carbon dioxide production. The funds would allow landowners to leave forest fallow, rather than exploiting it for development. (Wired)

Giant’s Electric-Assist Bicycle: A Review: It’s not often you see a cycling article in Scientific American. But the current online edition features a review of Giant’s electric-assist Twist Freedom DX commuter bike. Giant has made a significant commitment to urban cycling in its recent product lines, and the Twist DX attempts to extend the accessibility of commuter cycling to those in hilly or sprawling environments. The company’s hybrid technology combines Shimano’s proven Nexus gearing with an electric boost primarily controlled by pedal pressure. The 50-pound bicycle has traditional lines, opts for reliability over advanced features, and retails for about $2000. (Scientific American)

Beijing Olympics: ‘Green Fireworks’ to set the opening ceremony ablaze: When China’s Olympic ceremonies open in a few weeks, they’ll be heralded by a new breed of greener fireworks. China is generally credited with inventing fireworks, which remain one of the nation’s most important exports. So officials are eager to show off new varieties of pyrotechnics featuring much cooler burn temperatures and sharply reduced airborne pollutants. Standard fireworks produce temporary levels of potentially carcinogenic pollution near their display sites. (EcoFriend)

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