[SOC] expensive place

[JMcAulay]

At 08:25 AM 06/04/2004 +0100, Ray, G4FON wrote:
>> When I got home this evening, my wife said she felt like going someplace
>> really expensive.
>>
>> So I took her with me to buy gasoline for my car.
>>
>
>You should be grateful you live that side of the 'pond'. Here we regularly
pay
>80 pence a litre which is currently $1.50 ish. For a US gallon, that
equates to
>around $5.45.
>
>On last night's BBC news it was reported that in some parts of the country
the
>price has risen to 1.09 GBP per litre or $7.35 a US gallon...


Figured at least one or two Brits would mention that.  Yes, I am grateful,
at least from that point of view.  Maybe I should take my wife to the UK.
No, it isn't as costly here as there; but over here, we're not accustomed
to it, you see.  Price of petrol in California (which is dotted throughout
by refineries) has roughly doubled in the last eighteen months or so and is
now among the highest in the US.  If it becomes much worse here, it might
become a cost-saving measure for me to drive to Mexico occasionally to fill
the tank -- if it didn't take four hours for me to get there.  And two or
three for clearing Customs and Immigration to get back into the US.  And
has the dollar really gone down in value so much that £1=$1.80?
Frightening!  Oh, well, this should help US foreign exchange, if we ever
let any buyers into the US.  I understand six to eight weeks is now par for
the course to get a US visa.  Yep, fuel prices are expected to improve a
bit, but I have serious concern that they will thereafter become
increasingly worse.  My only question is how soon.  And I'm really not an
alarmist.  

Last week, an official of a "small fuel company in California" (there are a
few) made the curiously interesting observation that world usage of
petroleum is now about 72,000,000 barrels a day; but when China reaches a
standard of living equal to that which Mexico now enjoys, this alone will
increase world petroleum demand to about 142,000,000 barrels daily --
almost double today's use rate.  Yikes! 

Hey, Canadians:  With petroleum over US$40 a barrel, isn't it now about
time (and sufficiently profitable) to do something with those Athabascan
Tar Sands?  You guys are holding a reserve roughly equivalent to that of
Saudi Arabia, if it's processed properly -- eh?  And despite some
occasional glitches (such as the tricky Meech Lake Accords, and such), your
political system is a lot more stable than theirs.  

As for at least some help in the world of fuels, New Scientist magazine
reported about two months ago that a Biochemist at Purdue University has
developed a fractional separation process for bioesters, so that
economically practical processing can produce a fuel which freezes at -40
degrees, blended 60% Jet A/40% Bioesters, for jet aircraft.  National
Biodiesel Board head shed tells me it is expected to cost about
US$10,000,000 to complete all testing necessary for FAA approval.  Patent
is already in the works.  So not only will this mean 40% of the fuel is
from vegetable oil, regrowing the vegetable sources will reabsorb all the
added CO2 that the earlier vegetable-sourced fuel put into the atmosphere.
So at least something is pretty keen.  

If I don't move within the next few months, I intend to begin home
processing Biodiesel fuel for use in our diesel truck.  Should cost well
under a dollar a gallon at current prices for needed chemicals, if salvage
oil is used (old restaurant frying oil works fine, although the vehicle
exhaust will smell like a fast-food restaurant -- nice, eh?).  Low cost,
less pollution, easier on the engine, and the exhaust CO2 goes back into
the new flora when they're regrown.  

And to keep this on topic for ham radio, look for me on 20M SSB QRP from
the truck, rig powered by renewable energy.  Yay!

73
John WA6QPL  SOC 263