There are probably many people today, around the world, that wish they were in Timbuktu.It is good place to be. There are no insurance companies, no investment banks, no mortgage and loan companies. No Paulson. Here when people want a home they make it out of mud.
However I was startled to find out that earlier this year a gentleman called Andy Pag drove from south of England, across Europe, across the Sahara and to Timbuktu.With a co-driver John Grimshaw, they drove a Ford Iveco Cargo lorry powered with chocolate fuel. I am not making this up.
Their intention was to highlight bio-fuel benefits. They also wanted to point out that Timbuktu was on the "edge of climate change", It used to be a river town. Now the river Niger is 20km away. The sand dunes are taking over.
Imagine this was once called "The City of Gold". At it peak around the 14th Century, the University of Timbuktu had over 25,000 students pouring over 700,000 ancient manuscripts on science, mathematics, astronomy, law, philosophy and Islamic Studies.
What happenned? I guess some wise guys speculated on mud houses mortages and cornered the mud market. As you know mud is mud. It crashed.There was no bailout. It has been downhill ever since.Sand dunes are taking over.
To get his fuel Pag approached Ecotec that produces fuel from waste. They decided to create the fuel Pag wanted with wasted or rejected chocolate. Imagine fuel being processed from hazel nut dragees, almond whirls and mis-shapen milk bars!
Eventually Pag got 1,500 litre of chocolate fuel from 3000 kg of chocolate, about 1,200 family sized chocolate bars.
Pag said that they got 15km per litre of chocolate fuel. That about eight family sized chocolate bars. When they got slightly low on food in they unfortunately couldn't eat or drink the chocolate.The fuel bears no resemblance to chocolate. It becomes a golden liquid and looks like normal diesel.The exhaust does not smell of chocolate.
Pag's next ambition is to fly to China on a powered para glider with fuel made out of banana skins. Or something like that. We in Indonesia will be looking up hopefully to see him fly past, if he gets a little blown out of the way.
"Slowly across the desert sand
Trekked the dusty caravan.
Men on camels, two by two,
Destination-Timbuktu."
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment