1997-11-19 Tour of Wave Rock (by bus)
Bus trip a bit boring so far. Ch. asleep. Lunch better than
Pinacles. Saw rock, hum. A un arrêt boisson, j'ai
acheté un schiken roll et depuis mon estomac est
dérangé. Le soir on a mangé dehors pour moi de
la viande avec une sauce bolognaise et pour Erik des Lamb
shops.
Tech stuff:
- given the cost of water in the outback, is water almost as valuable as diesel oil? If so, steam systems must be loss-less.
- 1984 report mentioned that thermal ponds might still be worthy
- possible use for salt-sand: ready-mix base for solar-fused bricks. Problems: uneven (?) salt concentration. Chlorine gas formation.
- in wheat-growing area, water is caugth with holes in the ground
- if you run out of water, it costs $200 for a 4000 gallon tanker to deliver it.
- in W.A. around Perth everyone is on the grid.
- can easily order in diesel replacement parts, but not much call.
- they've heard of Lister
- diesel fuel is $.89/litre in the outback and only $.65 in the city.
- electricity connections costed $15,0000 each at the beginning, now only $8,000 for 3-4km from the road.
- radio-telephon hookup is $30/month, $3 for 4 hours after 7pm
- some people (e.g. schools) have Internet
- watertank of 5600 gallons costs $1800 installed