Shit, when suffocated (anaerobic decomposition), produces methane that can be used as fuel to power engines. The catchall name for this is biogas. Biogas projects have a history in India. As a child, I remember checking out a neighbor's plant in my parents' village. All the cow crap would be fed into a fermentation tank and the resulting methane would be used to power water pumps.
The Hindu reports on a trial run for a biogas project to light streets near Chennai. Instead of cow crap, this time, it's human waste. A remark I found as strange as it was insightful:
A. Mohan of Sundaram Fabricators, to whom the project has been assigned, said the model would be ideal for multi-storied apartments.
In one stroke, Mr Mohan brings a remarkable solution to power hungry highrises in cities like Bombay and Chennai. Namakkal, my hometown, has a few installations.
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Shit, when suffocated...
Pure poetry. :-)
Not really so funny. Did you see this recent story on a family that all died because of methane buildup in a manure pit?
Not only is this a handy source of power, but my five year old is going to love it when I tell him about it tomorrow.
Seriously though, being a huge fan of the notion of arcologies, this is just another wonderful source of alternative energy for them.
Tara, methane poisoning is certainly a risk. I recall cases back in India a few years ago when biogas installations were becoming popular.
Let us hope the project becomes a suceess and extended to other places