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Safe disposal of contaminated fuel in a rural area

RedR TSS
RedR TSS

Hi there, I hope all at RedR are good. I am currently in a remote, rural area of South Sudan and need to dispose of some contaminated fuels currently in our possession. We have approximately 300 litres of both petrol and diesel that are both contaminated with water. We cannot donate these to the community as this will inevitably destroy any engine they are used on. I am reluctant to dump the fuel as I am unsure what effect this quantity might have on the surrounding area. Any advise on this would be great. Many thanks, Alec.


2 Answers

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RedR TSS
RedR TSS

Hi

Both diesel and petrol are lighter than water. Both fuel liquids can be syphoned off leaving water at the bottom of the drum.

Water contamination in fuels is a very common occurrence in Africa. Most experienced drivers would be than capable of solving this.

Jim c

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Hi Alec,

Are oil lamps and paraffin cook stoves common in the area? Because if that's the case, you could use the water contaminated oil and diesel as fuel for illumination and cooking. Otherwise, if any clinic or other medical facility is present, this could be donated to be used as a fire accelerant to be used in their medical waste incinerator.