Hi, I vaguely recall reading that a lot of the nutrients for the Amazon are carried by wind from the Sahara. Although a lot of the desert is 'just' sand, most of it has plenty of soil. If given a bit of water it blooms. It is amazing what all pops up once there is a bit of rain.
I think we basically agree on the best way to grow food, etc. But, I don't think Brian's suggestion of investing in desert land and adapting it to future energy production is without merit either. Certainly I don't think it should be discounted out of hand as a worthless idea. Regards, Derek > Derek, > > All the energy fuss doesn't cut ice. If it isn't sustainable, what is it? > An > experiment? > > How much of your wheat is grown using water produced by reverse osmosis? > Would > this be possible if the Saudi Arabian economy were not sustained by the sales > of > oil to the rest of the world? Try the energy experience in the Sudan economy > perhaps or Yeman and see how far it goes. > > The biggest places that are exporting food today have natural water and soil. > > These has been the traditional basis for food production since the beginning > of > time. Not energy alone. Energy helps but if you have nothing to eat, all > the > energy in the world doesn't do you a bit of good. > > You don't farm in a desert because there is insufficient water or organic > matter > in the sand to make the system work. Hydroponics does not compare with soil > produced food in quality or cost. As an experiment, it might work fine but > to > produce food for 4 billion people it quickly fails. > > The problem with viewing the problem from only an energy standpoint is the > saying, "to a man with a hammer, the whole world looks like a nail". > Sustainability should be the watchword. > > Art > ----- Original Message ----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > To: biofuel@yahoogroups.com > Sent: Thursday, April 22, 2004 8:23 AM > Subject: Re: [biofuel] Re: OT: Worldwide Publicly Traded Sustainable > Technology or Conservation Investments > > > Hi, > > Unlimited energy leads to all other needs. The most essential raw product > is > energy. Once one has energy they can recycle water, make water, grow food in > all > sorts of ways, etc. I've lived in the desert for ten years. It was an eye > opener > to realize how dependent life in the desert is on energy, and how everything > else pales. I live in Saudi...number one in the world at making potable water > from the sea. They grow enough wheat to meet their own needs, and export the > excess. Life is dependent on energy like nowhere else. > > Please don't misunderstand me. I am not advocating this. I don't consider > much > this to be sustainable. But, I don't think it is wise to minimize the > importance > of energy as the fundamental building block under everything else. > > In the desert, it would be easily possible to harvest 50% of the incident > light for electricity production and to farm with the remaining light. Brian > is > right on. The future energy production for the world could well come from > worthless deserts, with a top layer of Photovoltaics and vast farms under the > light collectors. The energy could possibly be exported by either microwaves > or > hydrogen pipelines. > > Regards, > > Derek > > > > Brian, > > > > Before you invest in "worthless" desert islands, you better make sure you > can > > raise food on that island. Energy alone, whether hydrogen or > electricity, > makes > > a poor meal even for an energy guru. > > > > Art Krenzel, P.E. > > PHOENIX TECHNOLOGIES > > 10505 NE 285TH Street > > Battle Ground, WA 98604 > > 360-666-1883 voice > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Biofuels list archives: http://infoarchive.net/sgroup/biofuel/ Please do NOT send Unsubscribe messages to the list address. To unsubscribe, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/biofuel/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
