What does this augur for us? This points to the fact that the euphoria and desperation shown by the “developed world” on matters relating to energy needs to be modified. We need to recognize and appreciate that there are enough vegetation matter to take care of all the needs of all Humans on earth. But then, we cannot be complacent and partisan. There is also a need to redefine the “limits” of material and energy usage. Hitherto the “developed world” had continued an extravaganza of energy and materials usage … on a scale of nearly twenty to one. For example, a nation such as India that has nearly four times the population of the United States consumes less than 4% of world’s current fossil based resources, compared to a whopping 23% resources usage by the US!

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A new paradigm for development needs to be defined, on the basis of available Cellulosic Vegetation Renewable Resources (CVRR). The following are the estimated resources in a few nations in the world (Decreasing Population in a total of 20 nations with the higher populations):

NOTE: Australia has a population of 22, 548, 000 (50^th on the above scale), and has a total land area (in Tropical region, with large desert tracts) of 7, 682, 000 sq km. The volumes of Cellulosic Vegetation Renewable Resources (CVRR) at 1/10^th level would be 1, 920, 500, 000. The resultant energy value potentials are 871, 030 MW. This would put Australia at 6^th Rank, after India (but above Congo). Canada has a total population of 34, 337, 000 (36^th on the above scale) and it has a land area of 9, 970, 000 sq km. It lies in Temperate/ Semi-Torrid region, and has a total Biomass (at 1/10^th level) of 1, 495, 500, 000 T. The corresponding energy would be @ 678, 275 MW. This would put Canada above Indonesia.

What are the implications of the results seen in the Table here?

1. On the basis of Renewable Vegetation Resources, Brazil (an equatorial nation) has the largest energy potentials in the world, and Russia (though in the semi-torrid region) is second in view of the largest area covered (over 17 million sq km)
2. Of the twenty nations presented on the basis of largest population, thirteen are Tropical/ Semi-Tropical, and Three are Equatorial (forming eighty percent in these nations tabulated)
3. A presently considered under-developed nation such as Congo/ Zaire has the sixth largest energy potential in the world ahead of all Developed (Western) nations barring the US
4. Bangladesh, an extremely “poor” nation is ahead of all European nations, including Germany, UK and France
5. Ethiopia, which is considered to be disastrously poor and drought prone stands eleventh in the entire world, ahead of all developed European nations
6. The United States is fourth in ranking, followed by India

The question arises: If the above data were to be considered “facts” why is it that no developments are being carried on toward practically implementing those? The answer is complicated on various counts:

1. The entire world is working on the idea that the technologies and developments that catapulted the Western world are the most appropriate for all nations. In the process, we all tend to believe that all tropical nations that have no resemblance in any aspect of Resources and climatic conditions with respect to the “developed” Western Temperate zone nations … should also adopt those technologies and methods
2. In spite of all Tropical nations having enough Renewable Resources, the aforementioned “blind faith” takes each such tropical nation away from following ones own development path, using ones own huge Renewable Resources (RR)
3. A totally unimaginative economics development paradigm is being uniformly followed by all tropical nations … that of wrongly considering that “Export” to the developed Western nations is important for their growth. And almost 100% of those exports are unconnected with their own available local RR. For example, Coffee, Tea, rubber, Vanilla, Flowers, Sugar … and many more. All these are produced by resorting to intensive (chemicals driven) cultivation, relegating their own natural resources such as Coconuts, Jack Fruits, Local Bananas, Palm varieties, Local vegetables and all other such vegetation systems that grow without any intensive cultivation practices

The following statement of an erstwhile Economist, expressed about Fifty years ago, is a telling remark on these aspects:

“Advanced western technology … is by no means ideally suited to the typical under-developed country … Ideally, the under-developed countries would employ neither the western technology of a century ago (which is defective) nor the most modern western technology (which is adopted to a different economics context), but a THIRD technology which consists of an adaptation of modern methods to the special conditions of the under-developed world … but, such a technology does not exist …”

Dr. Richard T. Gill: “ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT – Past and Present” © 1963, Prentice Hall Inc. USA.

It is this THIRD Technology that we at AGRO-BIOGENICS (Clean-Tech) Private Limited (Please see: http://zerowastezerocarbon.wordpress.com/)are aiming to develop and commercialize so that the resultant developments could be spread across the entire Tropical nations, almost all of which are the most under developed nations in the world … Paradoxically, they have the greatest volumes of RR!

CLICK ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS TO ENLARGE

The estimated non-forest and non-oceanic Biomass (Renewable) resources in the world are about 500 billion T. These are annually renewable “green weight” that include about 77% moisture. Nearly 75% of these biomass are generated in the Tropics. Thus, the Tropics account for a total of not less than 375 billion Tons (“green weight”) of non-forest (non-oceanic) biomass generation. If we were to convert just 33% of all of these Tropical biomass into Bio-petrochemicals, the total Bio-petrochemicals produced in the Tropics alone would be a whopping 3 billion T. This is about 70% of the entire world productions/ consumptions, at present! Of the total 4.2 billion T petrochemicals used up in the world the United States alone consumes nearly 24% (= 1 billion T). A country like India would be able to produce not less than 250 million tons of bio-petrochemicals (when India now consumes about 45 million T of fossil based petrochemicals, which is about 18% of India’s Bio-petrochemicals potentials!)

What do we infer from the analyses above? Essentially, we arrive at the fact that Biomass based Bio-petrochemicals are the answer to the world’s petrochemicals needs … all of which could be produced through Alternate CLEANTECH.

This is the time when the world is trying to debate on the so-called “WikiLeaks” and are aghast at some of the startling revelations! Now, let us look at another possible “shocker” of a scientific observation on PV Solar Cells.

Much noise and hoopla are made to propagate the High-Cost PV Solar-Cells, as the best Cleantech energy system. But, the scientific TRUTH is that each Kilogram of PV Cell grade Silicon manufacture would need enormous volumes of deadly Chemicals, processed at very high temperatures, and producing huge quantities of CO2, Carbon monoxide, Chlorine, Silicon tetrachloride, and more … apart from many other pollutants and dangerous chemicals! Thus, when the “Cleantech” advocates bet on PV Solar cells, would they be able to give us a truthful presentation of the balance between the Pollution + Energy consumption + Carbon Footprint created (in manufacturing each Kg of PV Cell) and ultimate Energy conversion efficiency? Added to this dreaded phenomena, we also need to think about the Life-Cycle Analyses (LCA) of these PV cells. Would there be further pollution due to these? What about the long-term environmental effects due to these “used up” Cells? This writer wishes to ask all the votaries of PV Solar Cells to come clean on these! Are they listening?

There is the more hybrid Solar Cell based on heavy Metals: Cadmium and Tellurium. Some votaries coax us and try to portray the “propagandist” idea that the pollutions from thees are far lower than those generated by the Collieries and Coke productions; and they further vouch and tell us … “Use these! These pollutions are far lower with respect to Fossil based systems!” But we need to ask: “What about the dreaded pollutions due to residual lead, cadmium and mercury and many other processing waste chemicals?” And, almost all of these are being encouraged to be manufactured in “zero safety” managed systems in China!

And this writer would like to ask all of these people: How long are we to be taken for a ride by such “pseudo cleantechies”? Would any of the world’s renowned scientists come forward with ZERO BIAS and tell the world about the TRUTH?

[Note: It is interesting to note that almost all of the Western world's “retired” Presidents, Vice Presidents, PM's (their spouse/ or other family members) and other such dignitaries seem to work over time to propagate these so-called Cleantech material businesses the world over! And almost all these “businesses” are trying to “push” Solar PV Cells into the entire developing world (tropical nations), where the locally available huge Renewable Resources (RR) in the form of vegetation and animal resources are yet to be tapped. Is there any special “long-term” agenda in these “arrangements”? Please see this writer's other blogs here: http://www.cleantech.org/magazine/read/how-renewable-plants-vegetation-resources-would-help-tropical-countries-to-become-self-sustainable-rich-nations_73.html and http://www.cleantech.org/magazine/read/defining-conceptualizing-and-commercializing-clean-tech_116.html ]

Are the Front-runner Venture Capitalists and “cleantech” votaries Kleiner-Perkins, Khosla’s, Al Gore’s, Clinton’s and many more listening?

Would the honorable and knowledgeable Members of this CLEAN-TECH community come out with the Truth? Otherwise, the immediate generation (that may be involved in bearing the brunt of these eventualities) may have to pay a Double heavy prize: One … high PV Solar cell costs for conversions; Two … Future Environmental disasters due to the impending Pollution and various aftereffects … Finally leading to a possible “resources/ money” crash from which the world may find it difficult to recover! Would that be a bigger disaster than the dreaded “Al Queda Terrorist” Atom Bomb!!!

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Let us look at some facts:

1. CFL CONVERSION:

This writer lives in a major metro … Bangalore, which has a population of about 6.5 million, India. If, as is the plan of the Government (under its drive to “green” the city toward reducing so-called Carbon footprint), and goes ahead with the plan to switch over to CFL system in every household, Bangalore would need not less than 5.5 million lamps per annum. This would mean that Bangalore city would scrap not less than 5.5 million CFL, that would result in a whopping 8.25 T of Mercury pollution per annum!

The Question that this writer wishes to ask every big cleantech-entrepreneur and advocate of Cleantech is this: IS MERCURY POLLUTION BETTER THAN CARBON DIOXIDE IN THE ATMOSPHERE?

2. ATOMIC POWER AGAINST BIOMASS POWER:

The Government of India had recently entered into a greatly publicized (and highly controversial) agreement/ arrangement with the US Government so as to generate Atomic Power to an extent of less than 15,000 MW by the year 2020. The argument in favor of Atomic Power is that it is Clean and that it is “unlimited”! While this writer does not wish to go into the Politics and other “lobbying” involved in the deal, let us look at an unanswered TRUTH

India has a sea coast of over 6,000 Km and the entire strip (about 210,000 sq Km) is dotted with naturally growing Coconut trees. The estimated tonnage of these Renewable Resources (annually “falling” tree materials and trees that “fall” approximately at sixty years intervals) would be not less than 87.5 million Tons of annually replenished resources. If we were to convert just 25% of these into CHP based energy system, India’s Power generation would increase by about 30,000 MW. This is more than double the value of the so-called cleantech power planned to be generated through atomic power. More over, while the entire Atomic power systems are based on US supplies and other alien materials and technology etc, the annually renewable Coconut tree resources are as good as FREE and totally CARBON neutral. Further, if these renewable resource based systems were to be developed, the entire sea coast regions would develop as the farm community would earn continual income from these resources

See the blog: Tropical Renewable Resources are our Future

Here again, the big Question is: HOW DOES ATOMIC POWER THAT REQUIRES ALIEN MATERIALS AND TECHNOLOGY SUPPORT BECOME MORE USEFUL IN REDUCING CARBON FOOTPRINT, AGAINST local COCONUT TREE RENEWABLE RESOURCES?

3. ANIMAL POWER:

India has more than 400 million cattle and other farm animals. The annual Organic wastes generated by these animals work out to an estimated 720,000,000 Tons of “green wastes”. The estimated CHP when these were to be converted into biogas are of the order of 50,000 MW

The big QUESTION is: Why is it that the Government, under pressure from various Cleantech lobbyists, pay a heavy price in terms of alien Technology, alien materials and alien systems to set up not even one-third of this Power through Windmills, Solar Power and other extremely costly and lesser “green” and cleantech energy systems?

The aforementioned three examples show that there is an ALTERNATE CLEANTECH that is waiting to happen; and that in fact is the REAL CLEANTECH and present day need … not the lobbyist driven Ethanols, Solars, Windmills, Solid Oxide and what not

A WORD ON INDIA’S RENEWABLE VEGETATION RESOURCE BASED POTENTIAL:

India’s total estimated non-forest vegetation resources are a whopping 10,057,887,000 T in green weight. If we were to convert only a third of these into Energy, the total Power generation potential (CHP) in India would be not less than 500,000 MW. India currently limps with a production of less than 100,000 MWe (deficit of 30,000 MWe).

It is high time that the world re-looks at the current euphoria of so-called Cleantech through Solar, Windmills, Atomic Power, Hybrids and so on. Nothing seems to have been done or thought of in taking advantage of the greatest and readily available REAL Cleantech … the Alternate and more Sustainable CLEANTECH THROUGH BIOMASS! Are the world’s scientists, entrepreneurs, academicians, environmentalists, and all those involved in this huge lobbying listening?