On bio fuels

Biofuel as wikipedia mentions :" Biofuels are a wide range of fuels which are in some way derived from biomass. The term coverssolid biomass, liquid fuels and various bio-gases. Biofuels are gaining increased public and scientific attention, driven by factors such as oil price spikes, the need for increased energy security, and concern over greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels." 
It has won many critics ..No fuel source is completely positive or completely negative. Consumers need to weigh the pros and cons of biofuels to determine whether they feel comfortable with this emerging resource as an alternative to traditional fuels.

Advantages

Biofuel advocates frequently point out the advantages of these plant- and animal-based fuels, such as:

• Cost: Once the technology is widely available, biofuels can be significantly less expensive than gasoline and other fossil fuels, particularly as worldwide demand for oil increases, therefore increasing oil and gasoline prices to unheard of levels.
• Source Material: Whereas oil is a limited resource that comes from specific materials, biofuels can be manufactured from a wide range of materials including crop waste, manure, and other byproducts, making it a efficient step in recycling.
• Renewability: It takes thousands of years for fossil fuels to be produced, but biofuels are much more easily renewable as new crops are grown and waste material is collected.
• Security: By reducing dependence on foreign fuel sources, countries can protect the integrity of their energy resources and make them safe from outside influences.
• Economic Stimulation: Because biofuels are produced locally, biofuel manufacturing plants can employ hundreds or thousands of workers, creating new jobs in rural areas. Biofuel production will also increase the demand for suitable biofuel crops, providing economic stimulation to the agriculture industry.
• Biodegradability: Biofuels are easily biodegradable and far safer to handle than traditional fuels, making spills less hazardous and much easier and less expensive to clean up.
• Lower Carbon Emissions: When biofuels are burned, they produce significantly less carbon output and fewer toxins, making them a safer alternative to preserve atmospheric quality and lower air pollution.

Disadvantages

Despite the many positive characteristics of biofuels, there are also many disadvantages to these energy sources.

• Energy Output: Biofuels have a lower energy output than traditional fuels and therefore require greater quantities to be consumed in order to produce the same energy level.

• Production Carbon Emissions: Several studies have been conducted to analyze the carbon footprint of biofuels, and while they may be cleaner to burn, there are strong indications that the process to produce the fuel - including the machinery necessary to cultivate the crops and the plants to produce the fuel - has hefty carbon emissions.
• High Cost: To refine biofuels to more efficient energy outputs and to build the necessary manufacturing plants to increase biofuel quantities will require a high initial investment.
• Food Prices: As demand for food crops such as corn grows for biofuel production, it could also raise prices for necessary staple food crops.
• Water Use: Massive quantities of water are required for proper irrigation of biofuel crops as well as to manufacture the fuel, which could strain local and regional water resources.
• Availability: Biofuels are not widely available for consumer purchase and most vehicles are not equipped to run on biofuel products. Limited availability reduces the desirability of biofuels as alternative energy sources.
• Smell: Biofuel production produces heavy smells depending on the type of materials used, and those smells are generally undesirable near large communities. While manufacturing plants can be isolated, this will add to the carbon emissions necessary to bring fuel to population centers
  .

Despite all these disadvantages of bio-fuel and the need for higher oil needs, bio-fuel has a future and a long way to go with the 2nd, 3rd and future generations proving better over each ones..


I came across a website of Cleanstar who deal into Sustainable BioFuel Production System.


CleanStar produces Diesel substitutes from oilseed-bearing trees as shown below.

The company focuses on promoting the planting of trees like Pongamia pinnata and Jatropha curcas, which can grow well on land that is unsuitable for food crop production. The oil and seedcake produced from these trees is inedible and therefore also not usable as food.
Although these trees grow naturally in harsh semi-arid tropical regions of the world, significant technical development and management is required to ensure that cultivating these trees for energy is economically productive and environmentally sustainable.


Advantages of CleanStar's System
This approach is significantly more sustainable than current biodiesel feedstock systems:
1. The hardy inedible oilseed trees grow on idle land, meaning no Food vs. Fuel competition.


2. Rural employment is created initially to plant trees, and annually for maintenance & harvesting.


3. Once established, the trees are self-sufficient and do not require replanting for 30-50 years.


4. Consequently, this forestry-based system is much less energy, water and nutrient intensive than existing crop-based systems for biofuel feedstock production like Corn, Soya, or Oil Palm.

Going ECO-Friendly this Diwali..

Wishing you all a very Happy Diwali and a Prosperous New Year ahead..!!

What's you Happy Planet Index( HPI) - why good lives don't have to cost the Earth

Happy Planet index by NEF ( New economic Foundation) - aims to improve quality of life by promoting innovative solutions that challenge mainstream thinking on economic, environmental and social issues.

The Happy Planet Index (HPI) provides that compass by measuring what truly matters to us – our well-being in terms of long, happy and meaningful lives – and what matters to the planet – our rate of resource consumption.It brings them together in a unique form which captures the ecological efficiency with which we are achieving good lives. This report presents results from the second global HPI. It shows that we are still far from achieving sustainable well-being, and puts forward a vision of what we need to do to get there.

The HPI was launched in July 2006 as a radical departure from our current obsession with GDP.1 Working from first principles, the report identified health and a positive experience of life as universal human goals, and the natural resources that our human systems depend upon as fundamental inputs. A successful society is one that can support good lives that don’t cost the Earth. The HPI measures progress towards this target – the ecological efficiency with which happy and healthy lives are supported.

HPI 2.0 has been calculated with new improved data sets for 143 countries, covering 99 per cent of the world’s population. Scores range from 0 to 100 – with high scores only achievable by meeting all three targets embodied in the index – high life expectancy, high life satisfaction, and a low ecological footprint.
The results turn our idea of progress on its head. Whilst the HPI confirms that the countries where people enjoy the happiest and healthiest lives are mostly richer developed countries, it shows the unsustainable ecological price we pay. It also reveals some notable exceptions – less wealthy countries, with significantly smaller ecological footprints per head, having high levels of life expectancy and life satisfaction. In other words, it shows that a good life is possible without costing the Earth.

HPI charter calls for :
- It is possible to have a good life without costing the Earth.
- Over-consumption in rich countries represents one of the key barriers to sustainable well-being worldwide and that governments should strive to identify economic models that do not rely on constantly growing consumption to achieve stability and prosperity.

Check for the amazing video and TED talk by Nic Marks on happy planet index here:
Nic Marks: The Happy Planet Index | Video on TED.com

Nature is peaceful and not necessarily quiet...

These were the words that I learnt, understood and co-related quite well on Saturday's quintessential morning at Sanjay Gandhi National park..

Nature is peaceful and not necessarily quite...
and
with the stupendous industrial growth, green revolution, IT boom etc - the aiders of the gobal warming, its not the earth that we need to save but we need to save ourselves - the humans.. cos in the history of earth - it has coped with ice ages and many other such devastating events..but humans would not...

so the slogan should be "Save ourselves" and not "Save Earth"

The Story of Stuff

The Story of stuff is a 20-minute video which presents a critical vision of the consumerist American society but can also be extended around the global consumerist society. It purports to expose "the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls us together to create a more sustainable and just world." The video is divided into 7 chapters: Introduction, Extraction, Production, Distribution, Consumption, Disposal, and Another Way.

Its a wonderfully made nice short animated film which shows the grave effects of over consumerism..the film is conceptualized by Annie Leonard who has also written a book on "The story of Stuff" .. All the series are a must watch..

To see the video click the below link:

The Story of Stuff

Timbaktu - where Earth meets the sky..

This is the story of a land that was at one time lying ravaged, drought stricken and forsaken. It was a committed revolution led by a couple, Bablu Ganguly and Mary Vattamattam, which has now transformed this land into an agro forest habitat. The unproductive soil was rejuvenated, rain water was harvested, trees were planted, crops were cultivated and the entire land blossomed.

Timbaktu Today

Timbaktu in 1990

Twenty years ago, Bablu and Mary set their foot on this barren land in the district of Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh. People had given up on this land, of which Bablu and Mary decided to buy 32 acres; probably the last thing one would expect from a young couple.
The spark that triggered this initiative was a book – ‘The One-Straw Revolution’, by a Japanese author Masanobu Fukuoka. The book carried a very special message on how humanity can live an enriching life hand in hand with the nature. Bablu and Mary carried this spirit and conceived their vision for this land that they called ‘Timbaktu’, meaning ‘Where the earth meets the sky’. Their aspiration was humble and they wanted to keep everything simple – get closer to the land and help it regenerate itself.
They knew there was potential in the land of Timbaktu which was once part of the rich and powerful Vijayanagara Kingdom. Its forests were considered to be the finest, its fruits were savored across the country and various armies fought to keep control of this once fertile land. But everything was destroyed by ruthless deforestation and use of environmentally damaging pesticides and fertilizers.
Over the years, villages in this region have been tormented by chronic drought, unproductive land, unemployment and poor infrastructural facilities. Bablu and Mary decided to build the Timbaktu land by engaging with the villages around and formed an NGO called The Timbaktu Collective. “Our vision is to stop the degradation of the land in Anantapur district and to find ways to reverse it. We want to green the hills and the land. We want to develop alternative lifestyles. Lifestyles that are sustainable and provide more liberty and happiness, than those based on exploitation. The small farmers see their land degrade and the wells drying up, but they don’t know what to do, so they just continue their patterns of self-destruction. We want to find a path that leads out of this vicious circle, not without but together with them” – they say.

In 1991, the couple decided to put their first crop in the land of Timbaktu and as everyone around them said, the crop failed. That became even more instigating – Bablu went ahead and bought 7000 saplings. He and Mary brought farmers from the villages to build creative water harvesting structures ensuring that every drop of water was judiciously used. Seed dibbling and such traditional farming methods were practiced – and the colour of the land started changing. Timbaktu was transformed from a barren earth to a lush green forest. It’s heartening to see that birds, snakes and butterflies have come back to Timbaktu and a lost glory is reinstated. This is a true success story of eco-restoration and the experiment is being replicated with community support in a 10,000 acre waste land named as Kalpavalli.
The Timbaktu Collective grew to become a 105 member strong team who serve over 140 villages in Chennekothapalli, Roddam and Ramagiri mandals of Anantapur district. The organization runs two schools, one of which is a residential school for children disadvantaged families. There is also a thrift credit system for the women which has now grown into a well established alternative banking system. Farmers in the villages are given training in organic farming methods and the Collective supports a Cooperative Society that assists the farmers in marketing their organic produce. With youth development, child rights activities, helping the disabled, cultural activities and many such programmes, the Timbaktu Collective has changed the face of humanity here.
Bablu and Mary stay in Timbaktu, in a house that is built with mud, built by them and built using things available in the land of Timbaktu. Their children studied in the school run by the NGO for the villagers. Their organization has made a difference to the lives of over 12,500 marginalized families. How much more purposeful can their lives get? How much bigger role models do we need to start doing our bit for the world around us?

What is Timbaktu collective ?

Timbaktu Collective is a collective of activists, who had been working in different voluntary organisations for one to two decades. During this involvement, individual members of the Collective had been variously involved in participatory training, cultural action, people's theatre, education, documentation, organising rural poor, campaigns, networking and support services. As a group of activists, they had been meeting at various fora, and had, over a period of time shared a critique of modern developments in the global and local context, as well as their own work

Various Community Based Initiatives run by Timbaktu Collective:

Community Based Organisations (CBOs) of the rural poor, to work in the areas of:
- Regeneration of forests in common lands (Revenue waste lands and Reserve Forests)
- Revitalisation of agricultural lands belonging to small and marginal farmers
- Rejuvenation of traditional water-harvesting structures (tanks, kuntas, wells & other water bodies)
- Developing a relevant banking system with rural women from marginalized families
- Relevant education for the rural deprived children
- Education and organisation of youth and Dalits.
- Awareness building on local self governance (panchayats)
- Awareness building and empowerment of disabled people
- Networking with other voluntary, civil society, community based and mass organisations at district, state and national levels.

Find information about them on their website http://www.timbaktu.org/. Also, watch this video where Bablu and Mary take you through the 20 years of Timbaktu. You can also write to them at timbaktu.info@gmail.com

Essence : If we take inputs from this story and work up similarly for greening the earth back from the unproductive land we left due to industrilization, it will not only help earth recuerate the consequences of climate change but also create meaning employment like how Bably and Mary created.. Nature has the capability to heal and rebuild itself if we support..(Lest our governments/politicians/citizens/self awaken to the cause)

(Inputs taken from thebetterindia.com and timbaktu.org)

Human threat to ocean glory, power of images and more..

Photographer Brian Skerry shoots life above and below the waves -- as he puts it, both the horror and the magic of the ocean. Sharing amazing, intimate shots of undersea creatures, he shows how powerful images can help make change. These images are not only celebrate the mystery and beauty of the sea but also bring attention to the pressing issue which endanger our oceans - the human interference, the menace of over fishing.


He ends the session with a positive note about hope, about abundance, diversity and resilience. About how if we be good protectors, good custodians the endangered life will return..

To see video, click here

Organic Waste Composting

With monsoons just round the corner and the problem of exponential increase in the solid waste created by the city, what should be the approach to handle such waste?

TOI on May 22 2010, came up with an ineresting article regarding to Organic waste Composting .

Why the need for composting?

Every day, the Mumbai city generates around 6,500 tonnes of organic, recyclable and non-degradable waste, a large amount of which is dumped into the drainage network. The fallout is .

1) Choked nallahs and water logging during the monsoon is the outcome

2) The community bins & dumping sites become eye sore, cause foul smell, become breeding places for harmful bacteria & attracts diseases carrying vectors such as flies, mosquitoes, birds, rats, dogs etc.

3)Also one of the major reasons being cost of using space in Mumbai for garbage dumping is very high.

4)The prime concern arising out of present waste disposal system is its impact on community health & environment. No matter who owns the responsibility of garbage disposal, reality is that resident communities are the victim of their own apathy towards sustainable solution to the problem.

Why compost is effectively explained by organisation called Dailydump here

Benefits of OWC :

1) With the induction of the OWC, the problem of foul smell is resolved, thereby creating hygienic conditions in the garbage disposal area.

2)The converter helps to cut down on various costs. It gives full value of dry recyclable waste and reduces transportation cost (wet waste).

3)There is reduction in the usage of plastic and garbage bags.

4) Compost thus created can be sold to agriculturists at an average of Rs 8 per kg or can be used as manure in your own garden.

How the OWC works ?

A single OWC unit can turn wet waste into compost in just 20 minutes. The end product, which can be used for gardening and landscaping purposes, is often sold in the market.

A basic unit of 4hp power is capable of processing 400 kg of waste every day and converting it into odour-free compost powder In a separate process raw compost can be converted into rich compost

This method of waste disposal has already been adopted by temples like the Siddhivinayak and Parleshwar trusts, private clubs and commercial complexes and industries. Though OWCs do not come cheap—the more inexpensive converters are priced at around Rs 3 lakh—they have found buyers in housing societies and new constructions.

The BMC has understandably welcomed the move. Every year, the municipal body spends Rs 800 crore on centralised management of waste, which includes storage, collection, transportation and disposal of garbage. MGCM has come up with few initiatives like

1) Vermi-Composting
2) BARC Model ~ Nisergruna Biogas Plant
3) Excel Model ~ Organic Waste Converter (OWC)

More details here .

Clean up starts from home. Easy to use and daily use solution for the Organic waste Composting from organisation called Dailydump and its product range here.

Lets compost..!!