Jatropha

Chiapas state capital Tuxtla Gutierrez has become Mexico’s first city to implement public transportation run on biodiesel, local media and the Chiapas state government have announced.  In early January 2010, the city’s mass transit system introduced two bus routes served by 71 new vehicles running on biodiesel produced in the state.  The buses will run initially on a 20/80 mixture of biodiesel and conventional diesel, but are planned to switch to a 50/50 mix mid-month and ultimately to 100% biodiesel by March.  The new technology will replace 143 vehicles that previously ran on fossil fuels.

The biodiesel to supply the Tuxtla buses is produced from jatropha grown in Chiapas under a government program designed to offer local farmers a profitable alternative to subsistence agriculture.  The state currently has 10,000 hectares under jatropha production, and a biodiesel plant with capacity to produce up to 20,000 liters per day, according to information provided by the Governor’s public affairs office.  Chiapas is also producing oil palm and castor oil plants for future use in biodiesel production.