| Jatropha is an oilseed crop that grows | | | | - it is frost hardy (does not like hard |
| well where food crops will not grow. | | | | freezes) |
| This article is about using Jatropha | | | | - it does not exhaust the nutrients in |
| seed oil for biodiesel production. | | | | the land |
| I know all of you are wondering why I am | | | | - it does not require expensive crop |
| writing about a little known plant | | | | rotation |
| called "Jatropha Curcas". Well... it all | | | | - it does not require fertilizers |
| has to do with making biodiesel and the | | | | - it grows quickly and establishes |
| production of electricity using | | | | itself easily |
| biodiesel as a fuel. This is to inform | | | | - it has a high yield (Jatropha can |
| you of a source of vegetable oil that is | | | | yield about 1,000 barrels of oil per |
| relatively unknown in the United States | | | | year per square mile - oil content of |
| and North America. The European | | | | the seed is 55-60%) |
| community has already seen the light as | | | | - no displacement of food crops is |
| have some Asian, African, Indian, and | | | | necessary |
| South American countries. Running | | | | - it is great for developing countries |
| engines on vegetable oil is nothing | | | | in terms of energy and jobs |
| new... did you know that Rudolf Diesel | | | | - the biodiesel byproduct, glycerine, is |
| originally designed his engine to run on | | | | profitable in itself |
| peanut oil? Maybe the US has not seen | | | | - the waste plant mass after oil |
| the light yet because we are mostly | | | | extraction can be used as a fertilizer |
| engaged in the growing of food crops and | | | | - the plant itself recycles 100% of the |
| oils like soybean oil, rapeseed oil, | | | | CO2 emissions produced by burning the |
| sunflower oil, and peanut oil. All these | | | | biodiesel |
| oils are edible and thus fetch high | | | | That's a whole lot of benefit with |
| prices. After all, why should US farmers | | | | little or no disadvantages! |
| grow a completely inedible plant!? Used | | | | The European Union biofuels directive |
| cooking oil is great for the "do it | | | | requires a minimum level of biofuels as |
| yourself" biodiesel enthusiast, but | | | | a proportion of fuels sold in the |
| there is not enough supply of used | | | | European Union of 2% by 2005, 5.75% by |
| cooking oil to supply a whole nation. | | | | 2010 and 20% by 2020. Of course, as the |
| This is where Jatropha comes in... | | | | President stated recently on TV, we |
| Jatropha has the following benefits when | | | | don't have any such energy program yet. |
| looked at from the fuel production | | | | And I doubt we will anytime soon. The |
| angle: | | | | main green fuels will be ethanol and |
| - it costs almost nothing to grow | | | | biodiesel, and demand for biodiesel is |
| - it is drought resistant | | | | expected to be up to 10.5 billion litres |
| - it can be grown almost anywhere - even | | | | just in European countries by 2010. |
| in sandy, saline, or otherwise infertile | | | | Folks... this "biodiesel" thing is going |
| soil | | | | to happen whether you like it or not! I |
| - it is easy to propagate (a cutting | | | | know there are a lot of farmers, |
| simply pushed into the ground will take | | | | entrepreneurs, and investors reading |
| root) | | | | this who can cash in on this biodiesl |
| - it is not invasive, or spreading, or | | | | craze. They are already doing it big |
| damaging like kudzu | | | | time in Europe so it's just a matter of |
| - it is capable of stabilizing sand | | | | time before it happens here. And by |
| dunes, acting as a windbreak, and | | | | "it", I mean using Jatropha to make |
| combating desertification | | | | biodiesel. This industry will grow very |
| - it naturally repels both animals and | | | | quickly - start planting Jatropha TODAY |
| insects | | | | and then start making biodiesel to |
| - it lives for over 50 years producing | | | | generate your own electricity! |
| seeds all the time | | | | |