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electric
jeepneys to its cooperatives.
Fueled by biogas, the e-jeepneys can also be
powered by energy from the sun and organic
wastes and will be extensively promoted in
neighboring cities.
A pilot fleet of six e-jeepneys will be
commissioned for the technical and commercial
pilot testing.
SolarCo, the company that oversaw the technical
specifications, construction and importation of
the e-jeepneys from the manufacturer in China,
is a pioneer in solar energy and one of the
leading commercial providers of solar, wind and
micro-hydropower system in the Philippines.
Greenpeace Southeast Asia Campaign Director Von
Hernandez commended Makati City for leading and
taking on the test phase of the project. He also
challenged other cities to implement similar
projects that would lead to implementation of
other solutions in areas of energy use and
efficiency.
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Fast Facts |
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The bulk of
the power of the electric jeepneys will be
supplied by biogas from a High Solid Anaerobic
Digester (HSAD) that will biologically break
down organic waste from wet markets and
commercial food establishments of the pilot
areas.
The e-jeepney in development can run for 80 to
100 kilometers on a single charge, and is
charged over a period of 8 to 10 hours.
Greenpeace said this would normally cover the
requirements of the contemplated routes. The
fleet operations will be planned to ensure that
the maximum number of e-jeepneys will be
available during peak travel hours. At the end
of each day or as required, the jeepneys will be
driven to the depot for repairs and maintenance.
GRIPP said because the cost of biopower is both
lower and more stable than diesel, the earnings
of e-jeepney drivers will be more than what is
being earned by those driving regular diesel
ones.
The project aims to provide measurable
environmental benefits in terms of mitigating
urban pollution and carbon production. |
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Yeah, I Know. You Won’t
Believe It, But Just Read On.
I swear It’s All True. |
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I THOUGHT I HAD SEEN IT ALL.
Or most of it anyway, but I am still
scratching my head over Coffee
Alamid. No one loves a good cup of
Java in the morning more than I do,
but I have to say that I have a lot
of questions about this unusual
blend. If you really want to get to
the bottom of it (pun intended), you
will discover that Coffee Alamid is
coffee made (squeezed?) from the
droppings (and you know exactly what
kind of droppings I mean, so don’t
play coy with me) from a wild civet,
a cute little Philippine mountain
animal which belongs to the Mongoose
family. Here’s how it goes. The
civet is a nocturnal animal which
uses its nose to choose the ripest
and sweetest coffee cherries and
relentlessly eats them during the
coffee season. Then, shortly
afterward, the civet does what we
all do. He eliminates the coffee
beans when he has a call of nature
and leaves the droppings on the
forest floor. Then in early morning,
mountain dwellers climb the mountain
and scoop the poop. They pop the
drop into a bag and keep on
scooping. On a good day, these
collectors of civet waste can gather
as much as one kilo of civet poop. |
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NEXT STEP is to blend the poop (I
have to stop saying that) with other
exotic coffee beans and the result
is what the sellers say is a great
cup of coffee. They refer to
it as having a “dark chocolatey
taste, perfect for a morning kick or
high power meetings.” (You can
be sure of the “kick” part of
it.) “Definitely a clean cup,” they
advertise. Hmmm! Not
sure how they clean civet droppings
but until I figure it out, I will
stick to my favorite Batangas barako
brew. I have an open mind, you
understand, but I am agnostic enough
to want it proved to me. Then and
only then, will I slurp a cup of
civet droppings or whatever the hell
you call it. But not everyone
poop-poops, oops, sorry, I
mean pooh-poohs the idea.
Coffee Alamid seems to be quite
popular and growing more so on a
daily basis. Expat Travel &
Lifestyle Editor Jude Defensor loves
it. But don’t take my word for it.
Call the company, Bote Central, Inc.
in Las Pinas and see what they say.
Geez. Glad they wisely didn’t call
it “Crappy Coffee.”
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TWO NIGHTS AT EL NIDO IN PALAWAN
proved to be a successful stress
breaker. After hearing about El Nido
for so many years, I decided to take
advantage of some free time and give
it a try. Nice atmosphere, beautiful
mountainous/jungle background,
lovely lagoons and typical Palawan
landscape. Unbeknowst to me, El Nido
has two resorts. One is called
Miniloc and the other, a bit newer,
is called Lagen. The main difference
is that Miniloc is more for families
since it has a small beach area
which really pops up at high tide
and most of the daily activities
start from there. Staff at both
resorts are super friendly
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and helpful. Food at both resorts is
good, all served buffet-style. Miniloc
is older than Lagen. The rooms, some
over the water on stilts and others in
small buildings stratetically placed
around the resort, are all pretty
similar, I’m told.
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MINILOC IS DEFINITELY MORE BASIC than Lagen and some describe it as being
native, but surely not the bahay kubo
type. I had a bit of bad luck in my room
when I sat on a very loose toilet seat
that had me sliding around like a
merry-go-round during critical moments.
The toilet did not flush correctly until
I stuck my hand down the back of the
tank and pulled up the flap or whatever
it’s called. The next problem was a
clogged shower drain which quickly
filled up with soapy water during my
shower. The room boy, pleasant as he
seemed to be, insisted that all the
toilet seats were sliding at the resort
and that’s the way they were supposed to
be. After a little prodding I finally
convinced him that, as much fun as I
would be missing, I preferred my sliding
seat not to slide so he managed to
tighten the bolts under the seat. To be
fair, it’s very likely he did not
understand my brand of English and
probably wondered what I was talking
about. Since I’m a city slicker-type of
guy, rather than a family man, I would
rather stay at Lagen where the rooms are
very well-appointed with lovely
balconies overlooking the resort or the
sea. Lagen has no beach so it is more of
the resort hotel type with a huge and
very nice swimming pool. For those
wanting to participate in the daily
activities, Miniloc is only a pleasant
30 minute trip away. There are more than
enough activities at El Nido to keep
anyone as busy as they want to be and
most of them are first class. All in
all, I would have to give a thumbs up to
El Nido and I surely would go back, but
I do think an occasional room check for
room 36 at Miniloc is in order. Although
transfers are included in the package,
if you are a passenger on Seair, I
strongly suggest you make arrangements
in advance with the resort about what
time the boat for the airport leaves or
you just might find yourself sitting at
the outdoor El Nido airport for many
hours sweating it out waiting for your
plane. |
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ODDS
AND THE END: If you heard that Playboy
Magazine is coming to Manila with a
local version, then you heard the same
story I did. The scuttlebutt says it’s a
local tobacco company who will handle
it. Seems there are more men’s magazines
around than men to read them these
days…I went to the press preview of the
hit movie, The Transformers the other
night and in spite of the fact that it
was a huge success and the bagets (kids,
some with acne) went nuts and almost
lost their alleged minds with excitement
at this 100% winner kid flick. I found
it as exciting as watching paint dry
(forgive me, Selina). But that just
tells you how old and decrepit I really
am. Until now, I thought a transformer
was what you use to change an appliance
from 100 to 220. Duh!
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MURRAY’S COLUMN CAN ALSO BE READ ON
THE INTERNET AT
www.whatson-expat.com.ph |
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