Lawrence: ...has everyone noticed that Brazil will
become energy independent this year? They have
kicked their oil addiction and have substituted
ethanol...
My Brazilian friends tell me that the Brazilians
have had a robust ethanol program since the 1980s.
But they are not yet energy independent. They have
a tremendous amount of hydroelectric power and
also lack the house heating systems of North
America. Most vehicles are diesel. That makes
energy independence easier.
However, one unintended consequence of their
ethanol program is something they call, "vinhoto."
Vinhoto (vin-yo-to) is a highly toxic consequence
of making ethanol from sugar cane.
[
http://www.rossetti.eti.br/dicuser/detalhe.asp?vini=22&vfim=22&vcodigo=673
VINHOTO : cada litro de álcool obtido na
destilação produz cerca de 12 litros de resíduos
da substância não fermentada, os quais recebem o
nome de VINHOTO.]
Making 1 liter of ethanol produces 12 liters of
this highly toxic waste, which kills fish,
consumes all the oxygen in bodies of water, causes
eutrophication of lakes. They have attempted to
make fertilizer out of the waste but that involves
fractionating, which leaves an even more toxic
concentrated residue...in short, it is what my
friends call, "a permanent major mess."
------------------------------------------------------------------ To change your Lit-Ideas settings (subscribe/unsub, vacation on/off, digest on/off), visit www.andreas.com/faq-lit-ideas.html
