Sustainable Development Solutions: Proposed Solutions

The Government of Haiti issued the National Strategy for Improved Stoves in June 2011. The strategy has multiple recommendations and the SDS review team is analyzing which of these alternatives is a priority for support. For more information, look for the report in our online library. 

Significant claims have been made regarding the potential benefit of oil bearing jatropha plants for Haiti. The SDS review team is investigating the claims and background data before developing any position on its benefits and/or disadvantages.

A newly formed NGO and business consortium is commencing trials to introduce bioethanol cooking stoves and large-scale sugarcane ethanol production and/or import. The SDS review team is considering the claims and background data before developing any position on its benefits and/or disadvantages.

Multiple businesses and NGOs are active in the mango sector, with activities ranging from improving stocks and harvesting techniques to processing and exporting. All of these are positive initiatives, and the SDS review team is analysing which of these programs will be prioritized for support.

Households and small businesses throughout Haiti use car and motorbike batteries for short term power in the absence of the grid. These batteries need constant recharging, often at separate locations from their use. As a result, small informal battery charging businesses have sprung up, however its informality and the lack of technical know-how means that the entire supply chain is highly inefficient and expensive in terms of the power supplied per gourde.

In Haiti and elsewhere, NGOs have developed more technically advanced and potentially more sustainable equipment and business models for battery charging. The SDS team is reviewing design and organizational options to determine which is the most appropriate to support.

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), and the Water and Sanitation Authority in Haiti (DINEPA) are undertaking an investment-grade feasibility study for an industrial scale biogas-electricity plant in the Port-au-Prince region. The study is expected to be completed by the end of 2011. 

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the Earth Institute at Columbia University, and BioGen are undertaking a feasibility study to determine the potential for using biomass gasification technology to generate electricity and at the same time transform the economics of reforestation in Haiti. The study is expected to be completed by the end of 2011. 

The Earth Institute at Columbia University, the Solar Electric Light Fund (SELF),the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) are implementing the first advanced photovoltaic micro-grid field trial in Haiti in a rural area within the South Department. The project will use solar power to supply reliable electricity to 40 households. This technology has been successfully tested in 4 countries in Africa in 2011. The purpose of the trial in Haiti is to test new hardware configurations, examine the performance of the prepaid billing system with local telecommunications providers, and test the reaction of Haitian rural clients to this very new service. 

Earthspark International, Digicel, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) are implementing the first ever telecommunications tower-enabled electrical mini-grid in Haiti in the town of Les Anglais, South Department. The project will use spare generation capacity from the Digicel tower and resell it to neighbouring households and businesses. This technology has only been implemented in trials elsewhere, so the work in Haiti is at the leading edge and so needs to be comprehensively tested prior to its potential rollout to other sites.

Biogas is a very well proven and highly economic waste-to-energy solution that addresses both a sanitation and waste management problem while producing methane gas suitable for domestic or industrial energy use. Millions of units are in operation worldwide, but less than of those are 50 in Haiti. The major opportunity in Haiti is to use the process to both safely treat human waste in congested urban areas in the absence of a sewage network and to provide gas for cooking in communal kitchens. It is particularly well suited to schools, offering the opportunity to be integrated into all new Haitian school building and renovation projects.

In 2010, the Government of Haiti and a range of international partners developed a national biogas strategy (found in Publications), which includes ambitions for the large-scale expansion of communal-scale biogas to all cities and towns in Haiti. To date, the Brazilian NGO Viva Rio is leading implementation in this sector, building both facilities and a cadre of trained Haitians to allow for future expansion. Each facility costs between $10,000 and US$30,000 to build and can serve the needs of up to several hundred people. Once built, the units are economically self-sustaining through gas production and toilet fees—far more economic and environmentally friendly than emptying, carting, and dumping septic waste, which is the general solution in Haiti at present.

Expanding communal biogas as a solution at the national level is anticipated to take up to 10 years and cost up to US$10 million. Current needs are in the order of US$1 million, but useful progress can be made with as little as US$10,000.
 

Solar cell-powered torches, lanterns, and home lighting units are now proven technology and in use worldwide. They offer very safe and cost-effective portable lighting compared to kerosene lamps and disposable batteries. Following the January 2010 earthquake, several thousand lanterns were distributed throughout camps and informal settlements. However for most Haitians the only way to obtain these useful items is to buy them. Currently the purchase cost of these items keeps them beyond the reach of many, even though the lifetime cost of a solar lantern is much cheaper than a conventional torch that uses up disposable batteries. Regarding the quality of products, many buyers have been disappointed by problems with some models and poor customer service.

The solution developed by Earthspark International was to establish Enerji Pwop, an NGO-backed retail franchise for household solar products. Consumer credit (rent to buy schemes) has made these items much more accessible and careful product selection and staff training has largely eliminated quality and service problems.

Enerji Pwop is expanding beyond its initial base in the town of Les Anglais in the South Department and aims to spread its social enterprise in a franchise model across most of Haiti. Expanding this solution to the national level is anticipated to take up to five years and require up to US$5 million in seed funding. Current needs are in the order of $0.5 million, but useful progress can be made with as little as US$10,000.

To find more about the products available at Enerji Pwop, click here.