A Homegrown Model For Renewable Energy
Avani has been working on several clean energy technologies including solar energy for rural homes and charcoal as a clean cooking fuel for rural households. These solutions not only provide clean energy, but also contribute to enhancing biodiversity, a major contributor to reducing carbon emissions.
Harnessing The Energy Of Pine Needles
Avani’s pine needle gasifier project was developed in response to the need to curb forest fires which were increasing during the summer season because of the forest floor being covered in dry pine needles. Monoculture pine forests that have grown in the middle elevations of the Himalayan region are depriving the local population of water, fodder and fuel wood. The pine needles litter the forest floor during dry summer months and form a carpet on the soil, causing the rainwater to run down the slopes before it percolates into the soil. The highly flammable pine needles cause forest fires that inhibit all other species from regenerating. The Bio Energy Programme employs community members to remove pine needles from large areas of forest floor, simultaneously augmenting local incomes and preventing forest fires. The charcoal produced as a byproduct is sold back to the community reducing deforestation, due to the dependence on forest for fuel wood, as well as ensuring better health through a smoke-free environment.Exploring pine needle gasification as a sustainable solution began in 2006.
By 2009 this project had set up a pilot 9 kilowatt-hour pine needle power station on Avani’s campus in Tripuradevi which has been used to meet the energy needs of the entire campus. In 2012, to scale this innovation and bring it to the surrounding communities, Avani Bio Energy was established as an independent power company. In 2013, the first village-level 120 KW commercial power plant was set up in Chachret village. This was followed by the eight other power plants that were set up in different villages. Some of these continue to be operated by Avani, while others are owned and operated by the local village communities themselves.
Avani has also developed an efficient, inexpensive charcoal cook stove made entirely from locally available materials. Local people are being trained to manufacture and repair the stoves, using a training model similar to the successful solar lantern system, generating more livelihoods.
Despite the challenges, this project promises to be an integral part of life here in the Himalayas. Uttarakhand has had a long and fraught history of being forced to rely on the largesse of the plains for the “benefits” of development. For many in the project, the char-dust and the wires of the power plants are a harbinger of a time, soon to come, when the people of the Himalayas come into their own and forge a new, sustainable path of self-reliance.
Electricity And Cooking Charcoal
Avani’s Bio Energy Programme is an innovation in energy supply and sustainable livelihoods for rural communities in the Central Himalayas. The central component of the program is a pine-needle-fueled power station that is supplied with pine needles collected by women and men from the local communities. While the Bio Energy Program helps create a lasting source of clean energy – including low-cost cooking charcoal and energy for light and heat – for 100-150 village households, operation of the power plants and collection of pine needles provides stable livelihoods for approximately 100 families.
Solar
At its inception, Avani brought solar lights to the remote and inaccessible villages of Uttarakhand. The formation of solar committees to enable rural households to purchase solar lanterns was one of the first interventions under this program.
Until about the early nineties, the challenging topography kept this region disconnected from the electric grid. Solar lighting for every home was a sustainable, accessible option. Avani initiated its work by creating community-based systems for development and dissemination of solar lighting and heating technology for rural use. To fabricate, install and maintain these systems, community members were trained as solar technicians. The entire village enthusiastically participated in contributing to the upkeep of these systems.
Avani has trained over forty local youth as solar technicians, about half of whom are young women. They comprise a reliable local maintenance network, which now handles all solar technology repairs.
