Woman goes green in odyssey to Oz

A BRIDESMAID-to-be is leaving on an overland odyssey to Australia in a bid to celebrate a friend’s wedding without ruining the environment.

Green activist Barbara Hadrill, 28, is a biology expert at the Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT), Machynlleth, mid-Wales.

After being invited to a wedding in Brisbane she decided to ensure she journeyed to Oz without compromising her environmental beliefs.

Instead of stepping on a wide-bodied jet, which she claims would produce 5.2 tonnes of carbon dioxide, she came up with a green alternative.

On September 1 she leaves on a breath-taking overland trek which starts with a simple bus ride to Russian capital, Moscow.

There she will board the Trans Siberian Express and take a 3,608-mile rail journey which will see her pass into Beijing in China and from there she will take a train to Singapore (another 2,769 miles) a total of four weeks’ journey time. She will eventually continue by boat directly to Brisbane in time for the wedding. This leg of the journey will cover 3,836 miles and takes around 12 days.

“The carbon dioxide from air travel is one of the biggest single contributors to climate change,” she told CAT’s official website.

“It’s been a challenging trip to organise, but definitely worth it to know I’m not having a harmful impact on the planet.

“I can’t wait to be on my way, looking out the window of the Trans Siberian Railway which traverses 3,608 miles through remarkably varied landscapes.

“If I had just jumped on a jumbo at Cardiff International I could be there in 22 hours but imagine the adventure I would be missing out on.”

The website goes on to claim: “Trains, boats and buses all have less impact on the environment than planes.

One single flight to Australia uses the same amount of energy as would heat five houses for an entire year

* To follow the trip visit babs2brisbane.blogspot.com.