After years of burning in the background - used for domestic heating and cooking, industrial production of fertilizers, firing commercial boilers for steam and running turbines for electricity - it is finally coming to the US transportation market in a big way.
Ladies and Gentlemen please welcome to the main stage- Natural Gas!
Found abundantly - priced nicely- requiring little or no more processing than filtration- easily transportable in pipes - the solution we always knew existed is finally being taken seriously!
Ironically Natural gas used to be flared as waste at most oil rigs and refineries! Now it is being promoted by a business tycoon Pickens and many energy companies who have bet heavily on this fuel - there is traction now in the chambers of powers that matter!
The solution has been proven successful despite much criticism in India, Argentina and even Iran. After all if something can fire a turbine to create 1MW of electricity why cant it run a passenger car?
Honda is offering the Civic Natural gas already and many mid and large size commercial vehicles are already available. In fact school busses and taxis have adopted it since over 5 years. Unknown to most - there are already over 1100 fueling stations in America. In Los Angeles alone there are over a 2000 CNG busses.
UPS has been using CNG since late 90s, Waste Management has used it since 2009, AT&T has newly made the switch, Ryder is testing it with trucks, Chesapeake energy has switched 800 of its fleet already and many more smaller operators and airport fleets have been quietly getting off their diesel/gasoline gluttony and moving to a frugal CNG diet.
The advantages are too obvious to miss: local production and abundance, no need for expensive sea transportation and refining, 50- 705% lower emissions and very little change required to the traditional IC engines.
So get ready - you might be soon seeing three new letters next to the gas pumps - "CNG"
I must caution that challenges always arise and technology must be used to conquer- for example for the safe drilling and early leak detection of natural gas. But truly these are not insurmountable and no different to those we face with any fossil fuel or combustible gasses.
Ready to make the switch?
PLEASE go to NGVC.org for more information!
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Water Reuse - a second life for a sparse, precious resource!
About 1 billion people lack the access to clean water! More children and adults die of water borne diseases than HIV or Cancer!. These are just some of the heartbreaking facts associated with the lack of clean water!
Yet we take this resource for granted- Everyday in the developed parts of the world!
While the gas prices soar and catch everyone’s eyes, water being relatively economical and "readily" available goes unnoticed as a key resource. Yet water is as much a back bone of any nation as energy! Wars have been fought on this very subject in the past, kingdoms have been wiped out by water shortages, tribes have been consumed borne diseases and lest we be careful, history will repeat itself!
Respect this natural resource! Soon summer will arrive and people will dump water on their lawns to keep them green. While I am certainly one who appreciates green lawns, manicured gardens and golf courses- I also believe in balance. Do we really need ultra- purified drinking water for irrigation? Certainly not! A new wave of technology and thinking can help re-use domestic gray water for such purposes. Some nations have taken the lead on this subject- Singapore being the model. Others lag behind. The acceptance of water reuse lies in educating people on the advantages and dispelling the key stigmas in their minds.
It is for this reason that I will take up this issue in depth and coordinate with various agencies and not for profit organizations to spread better understanding of water, filtration and water use .
I hope you will join in and help me in my campaigns
Yet we take this resource for granted- Everyday in the developed parts of the world!
While the gas prices soar and catch everyone’s eyes, water being relatively economical and "readily" available goes unnoticed as a key resource. Yet water is as much a back bone of any nation as energy! Wars have been fought on this very subject in the past, kingdoms have been wiped out by water shortages, tribes have been consumed borne diseases and lest we be careful, history will repeat itself!
Respect this natural resource! Soon summer will arrive and people will dump water on their lawns to keep them green. While I am certainly one who appreciates green lawns, manicured gardens and golf courses- I also believe in balance. Do we really need ultra- purified drinking water for irrigation? Certainly not! A new wave of technology and thinking can help re-use domestic gray water for such purposes. Some nations have taken the lead on this subject- Singapore being the model. Others lag behind. The acceptance of water reuse lies in educating people on the advantages and dispelling the key stigmas in their minds.
It is for this reason that I will take up this issue in depth and coordinate with various agencies and not for profit organizations to spread better understanding of water, filtration and water use .
I hope you will join in and help me in my campaigns
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
... and the winner is...
This month the Indian Cricket Team won the ICC Cricket World Cup - and the real winner is the Indian masses- and specially our cultural diversity, tolerance and unity! How?
A significant start was engineered by destiny when India and Pakistan played in the Semi-Final at Mohali , Punjab. Remember Punjab was at the center stage of discord at the time of partition in 1947 and again in the terrorism era in the 80s. The Wagah border post remains one of the most heavily manned border posts in the world and unfortunately there is still the theatrical flag hoisting and un-hoisting ceremony everyday! For the sake of two nations with very large populations and enough issues to tackle, settling the border dispute and moving on to purposeful nation building would be extremely welcome and productive. Every dollar spent less on border protection and diverted to basic issues such as sanitation, education and infrastructure will help improve the living conditions of millions. I firmly believe that a well educated and employed population is less likely to develop frustrations. Frustration in the masses is the key manipulation point for evil forces that are at the very root of this unnecessary conflict.
I am an offshoot of dislodged refugees from the 1947 division, yet I feel strongly that the time has come to bury the hatchet and move on!
Path breaking was the unity shown in the team by players from different regions. This should blow away the Raj Thackeray agenda and make everyone think about what matters most- how we are one nation and stand united. The players united to dedicate this victory to Sachin Tendulkar- perhaps one of the greatest sportsmen to grace the sport. His class oozing style, humble nature and inspiring attitude have made him the favorite of not just Indians but cricket lovers all over the world! Those who have followed the recent chants by Raj Thackeray, will know that this will go a long way in countering the man’s incessant and potentially inciting talk fueling regional separatism. India is a sovereign nation and any regional division is a threat to its prosperity and growth.
What I also believe is a winner, is the self belief in the nation- this sporting glory will bring self confidence to a billion people- after all this was a world stage!
Ok, Cricket is limited to a dozen plus countries - and yes we are the most populous out of these. It is still a well recognized team sport and needs all the tough physical and mental attributes to win - athleticism, tenacity, patience, drive, courage, self belief, selflessness, focus on the larger picture and the team goal to name a few important ones!
India overcame multiple teams and adversity- including a poor start in the balling and fielding department to be triumphant. To me the most heartening was the way they fielded in the final – as if they really wanted to get this win! It should sheer determination and grit, which are the hallmarks of true achievers!
You go India - you go!
A significant start was engineered by destiny when India and Pakistan played in the Semi-Final at Mohali , Punjab. Remember Punjab was at the center stage of discord at the time of partition in 1947 and again in the terrorism era in the 80s. The Wagah border post remains one of the most heavily manned border posts in the world and unfortunately there is still the theatrical flag hoisting and un-hoisting ceremony everyday! For the sake of two nations with very large populations and enough issues to tackle, settling the border dispute and moving on to purposeful nation building would be extremely welcome and productive. Every dollar spent less on border protection and diverted to basic issues such as sanitation, education and infrastructure will help improve the living conditions of millions. I firmly believe that a well educated and employed population is less likely to develop frustrations. Frustration in the masses is the key manipulation point for evil forces that are at the very root of this unnecessary conflict.
I am an offshoot of dislodged refugees from the 1947 division, yet I feel strongly that the time has come to bury the hatchet and move on!
Path breaking was the unity shown in the team by players from different regions. This should blow away the Raj Thackeray agenda and make everyone think about what matters most- how we are one nation and stand united. The players united to dedicate this victory to Sachin Tendulkar- perhaps one of the greatest sportsmen to grace the sport. His class oozing style, humble nature and inspiring attitude have made him the favorite of not just Indians but cricket lovers all over the world! Those who have followed the recent chants by Raj Thackeray, will know that this will go a long way in countering the man’s incessant and potentially inciting talk fueling regional separatism. India is a sovereign nation and any regional division is a threat to its prosperity and growth.
What I also believe is a winner, is the self belief in the nation- this sporting glory will bring self confidence to a billion people- after all this was a world stage!
Ok, Cricket is limited to a dozen plus countries - and yes we are the most populous out of these. It is still a well recognized team sport and needs all the tough physical and mental attributes to win - athleticism, tenacity, patience, drive, courage, self belief, selflessness, focus on the larger picture and the team goal to name a few important ones!
India overcame multiple teams and adversity- including a poor start in the balling and fielding department to be triumphant. To me the most heartening was the way they fielded in the final – as if they really wanted to get this win! It should sheer determination and grit, which are the hallmarks of true achievers!
You go India - you go!
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