• Sargassum

    From JAB@21:1/5 to All on Wed Nov 27 21:20:16 2024
    From eyesore to asset: How a smelly seaweed could fuel cars

    When large swathes of invasive seaweed started washing up on Caribbean
    beaches in 2011, local residents were perplexed.

    Soon, mounds of unsightly sargassum - carried by currents from the
    Sargasso Sea and linked to climate change - were carpeting the
    region's prized coastlines, repelling holidaymakers with the pungent
    stench emitted as it rots.

    Precisely how to tackle it was a dilemma of unprecedented proportions
    for the tiny tourism-reliant islands with limited resources.

    In 2018, Barbados' Prime Minister Mia Mottley declared sargassum a
    national emergency.

    Now, a pioneering group of Caribbean scientists and environmentalists
    hope to turn the tide on the problem by transforming the troublesome
    algae into a lucrative biofuel.

    https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czr71vpz4ypo

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)
  • From Mike Spencer@21:1/5 to JAB on Fri Nov 29 00:49:07 2024
    JAB <here@is.invalid> writes:

    In 2018, Barbados' Prime Minister Mia Mottley declared sargassum a
    national emergency.

    Now, a pioneering group of Caribbean scientists and environmentalists
    hope to turn the tide on the problem by transforming the troublesome
    algae into a lucrative biofuel.

    Or soil amendment, retrieving nutrients sequestered and carried ashore
    for agriculture. Alleged arsenic content (Wikipedia) might be a
    problem when dealing with kiloton quantities.

    https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czr71vpz4ypo

    --
    Mike Spencer Nova Scotia, Canada

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)
  • From JAB@21:1/5 to mds@bogus.nodomain.nowhere on Sun Dec 1 21:17:18 2024
    On 29 Nov 2024 00:49:07 -0400, Mike Spencer
    <mds@bogus.nodomain.nowhere> wrote:

    Alleged arsenic content (Wikipedia) might be a
    problem when dealing with kiloton quantities.

    AI Overview

    Animal feed
    Sargassum's high arsenic content limits its use as an animal feed
    ingredient. However, low-cost processes using hot water and/or citric
    acid can remove arsenic from sargassum

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)