Lew Hodgett wrote:
WHAT alternative?
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Lew Hodgett wrote:

Surely you jest.

About the only application that isn't up for grabs right now is
airplanes.

After that, it just requires some hard work to develop alternate
energy sources.

Natural gas as a bridge fuel offers a lot of opportunities.
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"Richard" wrote:

No, not joking about this, Lew.

Look around. How much support is there for alternate automotive
fuels?

Infrastructure cost. And no one is going to invest the big bucks it
takes to get an alternative fuel into use - until there are cars and
trucks that use it.
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Look around, it's already happening.

Natural gas offers a "bridge" fuel for the next 40-50 years until
better technology is developed.

It provides lower cost, lower emissions than oil/coal based fuels.

Here in L/A, the entire bus fleet has been converted to CNG.

A billion $ upgrade to the Long Beach/Los Angeles port is underway.

When finished, only CNG fueled trucks or other trucks that meet the
CNG emission standards will be allowed to operate within the port.

The typical CNG fueled 18 wheeler has about the same range (400 miles)
as a diesel fueled truck which allows it to operate in the delivery
fleet market such as supermarkets while lowering both operating costs
as well as emissions.

SFWIW, back in the early '60s, Safeway grocery chain in Philly was
Mack truck's largest customer.

Don't know if they still are but local delivery fleets are a large
market.

As just one example of what is beginning to happen across the country,
Smith Dairy in Orrville, Ohio has installed a CNG refueling station
which in addition to serving there own fleet is open to the general
public.

Electric utilities and manufacturers are beginning to get onboard by
offering at home recharging equipment for the electric vehicle market.

The political battles are just about finished which will allow the
construction of far enough offshore to be out of sight from land wind
farms in areas with sustained winds such as off Cape Cod in the
Atlantic ocean.

Farms and dairies are installing anaerobic digesters to convert waste
(yes, that includes cow poop) into methane which is then used to run
the farm or dairy.

An onion farm here in SoCal, was one of the first to develop a closed
loop system to reduce the cost of getting rid of waste by turning it
into methane to run the farm.

The State Of Ohio, at the Agriculture station in Wooster, Ohio, is
developing anaerobic digester systems for agriculture applications.

Warren Buffet thru his ownership of BNS railroad, is evaluating CNG
for railroad use.

Are we there yet? Of course not.

But inspite of the oil/coal lobbies, progress is being made.

There is no one solution.

This is one fight the KOCH brothers must not be allowed to win.

Lew