Good: There are bacteria which can clean up the tailings from gold mines. They concentrate the gold inside their cells. These bacteria can then be harvested (at least in theory) for economic benefit. This is so cool. If I was a young man about to get married then that’s the source of the gold I would want the future Mrs Clark to wear. She would feel so special.
Bad: Copper mines are usually in areas where water is scarce. Irrespective of this, the copper is extracted by squirting acidic water at the mine face and dissolving the metal. This seems like madness to me (but what do I know). The copper is then extracted from this ‘Pregnant’ leach solution, until it is Barren (these are the terms used). This barren solution is sometimes re-squirted at the mine face, and when this happens it is called a Lixiviant, which sounds more like a Dr Who baddie or an STD to me. Best not to get me started on the Technologically Enhanced Radiation levels in the Lixiviant…., suffice to say it is BAD.
Ugly: Bras-Chem is not, sadly, a business selling new form of ladies underwear. It is the name of a Brazilian company that takes waste from the ethanol industry and turns it into bioplastic. They are the biggest bioplastic producer in the world. I have a dream that wastewater utilities will one day copy this model. With some clever fermentation we can turn sewage sludge into volatile fatty acids (VFAs), and then VFAs to PHAs, and PHAs to bioplastics. One day Mrs Jones will be able to bring her groceries home from the supermarket in a bag that has been made out of her own faeces.
The facts above come from the (ever brilliant) Amane Consulting. The miss-interpretation and miss-quoting is all my own work.
No comments:
Post a Comment