Biofules – Impact of Jatropha
Jatropha is a genus of succulent plants, shrubs and trees belonging to family Euphorbiaceae. It is a very important plant of economic importance as it is resistant to drought and pests, and produces seeds containing 27-40% oil, averaging 34.4%. The remaining press cake of jatropha seeds after oil extraction could also be considered for energy production
Recently these plants were in news for the biofuel obtained from the seeds of jatropha plant was used for fueling the jets in New Zealand and USA. Another important stury about these plants published in last issue of Nature outlook , which features many interesting articles on biofuels.
One interesting story from those articles talks about Garalo, a small town in southern Mali comprising of 10,000 or so inhabitants. This town used to be pitch black as sun sets as had no electricity and so used kerosene to light their homes and places of work, and battery-powered torches to find their way around.
The locals tried hard for the extension of national grid but couldn’t materialize because of lack of funds. Later the farmers wanted to solve the problem by taking into their own hands. They decided to grow jatropha (Jatropha curcas) in their fields, whose seeds produce oil that can be burned to produce electricity. The efforts of the farmers were well supported by a non-governmental organization called Fuels from Agriculture in Communal Technology (FACT). This Netherlands-based foundation assists developing countries to produce and use biofuels.
Today, local farmers cultivate around 600 hectares of land with jatropha, which is sufficient to provide electricity to 350 homes (which accounts of half of the population of that town) — and businesses, and also powers streets lights.
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