Caption: OCCD ED Varigini Badira ready to switch on
the main, to signal the opening of the solar farm at Daroakomana.
Caption: Paramana solar farm installment.
Caption: Signing to begin construction of three solar
farms funded by the Eastern Highlands Provincial Government.
By MATTHEW VARI
Sunday, March 15, 2015 (Sunday Chronicle, PNG)
TUCKED away hidden in the heart of the Rigo Central LLG area, at the foothills of the highlands of the Rigo District Central province- another small village having stood the test of time saw for the first time the benefits of electricity when they switched on their solar farm power plant on last Wednesday (March 5). Thanks to the pilot initiative of the Office of Climate Change and Development (OCCD), Daroakomana, with a total of 30 homes housing over 200 people located 3 hours drive away from Port Moresby- the villagers were in awe of the being lit up via electricity for the first time in their history.
Indeed there are many parts of the country that have not come yet into the fold of the modern 21st century. Such has been the direction of OCCD in filling the void in terms of tangible sustainable development under its climate change mitigating approach that aims to bring in environmentally friendly technology throughout the forgotten isolated corners in the country that are vulnerable to the effects of the changing climate.
With fully funded solar farms being piloted in the Central province- positive stories like the successful running of the Paramama Solar Farm in Abau District of Central have signified the viability of such a bold initiative. With 35 solar panels producing 18 kilovolts-amps electricity for the community the for over a year now with nil running cost- OCCD is positive of the concept being taken on board in various provinces and companies and institutions going into biomass energy generation.
Turning on the main switch to signal the supply of 3,000 watts of sustainable power generation to Daroakomana village, OCCD Executive Director, Varigini Badira, said that climate change was one of the biggest challenges for the rural population in the country.
“We are aware that many of our people live in rural areas, and it takes a lot of effort to bring power to our people,” Mr Badira said.
“One of the ways we can bring power to our people is through clean energy where it being through solar farms, ocean currents, biomass- it is always the clean energy’s perspective of that.”
“We are also known as the children of the sun which we depend on our sun and people from the equator have much of the solarity, so it is fitting that much of the power is done through solar means.”
He said that the advantage of setting up a community solar farm is the communal ownership of solar panels- adding that they were intentionally not set up on individual roofs where maintenance will be difficult.
“If you bring solar panels together to a communal setting like this- the whole community is responsible for the protection of the solar farm.”
“If you break one solar panel it is now a law enforcement issue where the police can be involved- if you put solar on a house and it breaks then it becomes an issue for that individual house, but as a communal setting it is the responsibility of community.”
“In terms of sustainability, the initial cost of setting up a farm whether it be in PNG or globally is the initial capital expenditure to build the solar farm, put in the batteries, and to put in distribution lines which is where the cost comes in,” Badira said.
He compared the sustainability cost of the setup to conventional fossil fuel powered electricity generation at almost nil. Badira explained the limitations from the country’s current power provider PNG Power Limited where everything after 10 kilometers from their main lines are not in their jurisdiction.
An initial cost K39,000 was spent by OCCD on its latest solar farm project, which when sustained over a long period of over two to three years is an economically sound investment considering the cost of burning conventional fossil fuel for energy needs. Current moves by provinces like Eastern Highlands in the highlands and that of oil palm producing provinces using biomass sources for energy generation in impacted communities have raised the standing of the country to an extent that needs a wider approach in cutting the country’s emissions footprint.
The target of the office in developing the concept aims at showing the viability of the concept and in practicality in developing rural remote communities which the director said was a major criteria by his office in rolling out the concept.
“As you were driving in the community (Daroakomana) you would have realized how remote it is- and the remoteness of the community increases the climate vulnerability of our people,” he said.
“When I say that, it means that their ability to respond to the impacts of climate change like heavy flooding, extreme rainfall, drought, those are the vulnerabilities we are talking about.”
The Executive Director pointed out that If you have such system would build the community’s capacity. That will contribute to a dominoes effect to bringing other a vital service to the communities.
“Where other government services can come in to assist and utilize the service in order to progress the community’s development.”
“The technology has always been here that is an important innovation. Communities interested in the concept can contact the office of Climate Change just like the Eastern Highland provincial government, Southern Highlands, Enga has done with feasibility studies taking place in each of these provinces.”
“They all come under what we call a Clean Development Mechanism under the United Nations Convention on Climate Change.”
Currently OCCD has 11 affiliated energy projects- five with New Britain Palm Oil biomass projects in Milne Bay, Oro, and East New Britain which now feed into the PNG Power Limited grid, and another project with Oil Search Limited with a Gas Flare Venting conservation project.
Climate Change Office Mitigation Manager, Danny Kekitel, reiterated that up till a few weeks ago all solar farm pilots have been funded through the OCCD, and with the involvement of provinces such as Eastern Highlands now with K1 million allocated- the initial outcome of involving greater provincial support is finally being realized.
“At this stage Central Provincial Government and districts have not come on board, at this stage we are trying to showcase what can be done,” Mr Nekitel said.
“Most people think that this type of projects may not work and are impossible so we are just trialing it to encourage other places to apply.”
“All these rural communities that we are targeting all have a similar story where they have never see any government presence. The important thing is to maintain it. At this stage we will slowly support the farm in whatever way we can and then maybe train them on how to sustain it in a little way, once they have that knowledge they will maintain it.”
With the increased changes in climatic patterns experienced consistently over the last decade- communities cut off from development by the common geographical constraints in the country now face a greater threat posed by climate change. Making green eco friendly technology paramount in bringing remote communities up to speed with the development trend and not falling back beyond a time and place caused by the ever changing phenomena.
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