Bobulus wrote:I agree the conditions by Apartheid were terrible. I have black relatives, and many mixed race relatives too. But the benefits of domestically produced energy cannot be overlooked. I'm actually a big left wing softie, but recognise the corporate psychopathy most of us suffer with and endure in various forms. Conservatives are not psychopaths, by the way. Corporations behave more so, but not always. And what's wrong with steam anyway? Please aim your brickbats at me: The more the merrier!Personally I want to see the phasing out of carbon adding fuels. Climate Change is our most serious problem. Coal is not the answer, whether used to power steam locomotives or power stations. I was just explaining that the steam found in South Africa was there for a political reason.
I remember travelling in South Africa in 1970 or 71. I stayed the night in a small hotel in Breyten, near the Swazi border. There was a large steam depot there and the whole town was under a cloud of foul smelling smoke. I hadn't smelled that for many years. It reminded me of the disadvantages of steam power.
No doubt modern steam locomotives - the Swiss have designed one, I believe - could avoid the emissions of sulphur and smoke, but nothing could remove the carbon dioxide.
More interesting are the proposals for hydrogen power, as mentioned in an article in the current issue of Modern Railways. The result would be locos quiter than diesel, smell-free and not needing any overhead equipment or third rail.
