WEEK ONE POSTINGS

WEEK ONE POSTINGS ON 'MICROHYDRO'

1. Date: Mon, 19 Nov 2001 08:57:42 +0530
Author: "Girish Kharel" <girish@mail.com.np>
Subject: [RETs] Moderator's Welcome and Introduction to Week One

Dear Participants,

Welcome to the first week of the electronic conference on 'Renewable Energy Technologies (RETs) for Mountain Areas of the Asia-Pacific Region.'

This is the first week of the conference and it is devoted to microhydro. Microhydro has been a reliable and abundant source of power in mountain areas. Mountainous areas almost invariably means fast flowing rivers suitable for hydropower generation.

However, microhydros, especially those that generate electricity, are not cheap. Combine this with difficult access due to lack of roads and a poor economy (typical characteristic of mountain areas everywhere, except perhaps Europe) and the prospects of using an abundant, renewable resource close to the point of use becomes less likely.

Despite the difficulties microhydros have been widely used in mountain areas. In some places, like Nepal, they have been relatively successful. In other places, not so successful.

There are many issues and questions related to microhydro.

*Where does microhydro fit in the different technologies available for providing electricity and power to mountain areas?
*Does it improve peoples lives or does it make it worse?
*Should microhydro be more aggressively promoted?
*What is the best way to promote it?
*How can costs be reduced?
*What policies need to be in place to give the benefits of microhydro to people?

There are many questions and issues related to microhydro. Perhaps more questions than answers.

I hope you will all contribute to this discussion. Internet technology makes it so easy to communicate to a vast audience. Let us make the most of it. We hope that you will share with us your experience, comments, knowledge and insight on microhydro as an energy technology for mountain areas.

Regards,

Girish Kharel
Moderator for Week 1

2. Date: Tue, 20 Nov 2001 12:00:28 +0530
Author: Peter Schachenmann <pschachenmann@vitelcom.mg>
Subject: [RETs] Week 1: In Praise of Old-Fashioned "Hydro Rampump"

When we talk of hydropower, we think of water-generated electric power. It may be useful to be reminded of an old-fashioned but excellent, simple, durable, low-cost, low-maintenance hydro technology called a hydro rampump, based on a delivery head to drive head ratio of about 10 (optimum) and running at a year round efficiency of between 60 - 66 %. This technology is still used in Africa for pumping water without electricity or fuel for irrigation purposes from small to large (including tea estates). I presume this very old-fashioned but robust hydro technology is also known in the Asia Pacific region and I am curious to hear about its application and constraints.

This concept is usually for small- to medium-scale projects (single or double drive pipe), but in the Swiss Alps, I have seen a bigger modified version of the
principle, where the weight of water filled into the upper cable car (corresponding to the drive head) transported tourists in the lower cable car (corresponding to the delivery head) up the mountain. If someone wants to know more about it, I can provide details.

To me this technology is simple, low-cost, improves people's lives through improved/expanded agriculture and could be "rediscovered" and aggressively promoted, where objectives are specific and constraints for turbine-based microhydro large.

Dr. Peter Schachenmann,
Madagascar Mountain Association

3. Date: Tue, 20 Nov 2001 12:39:23 +0530
Author: David Irvine-Halliday <halliday@enel.ucalgary.ca>
Subject: [RETs] Week 1: Pico Power & White LED Lighting for Mountain Areas

Light Up The World's reason for being is to introduce to the developing world the truly wonderful benefits of Solid State Lighting, i.e. White Light Emitting Diodes (WLED), and to do all in our power to accelerate the use of such safe, healthy, reliable, rugged, energy frugal and 'everlasting' lighting systems through the use of humanitarian means and local Entrepreneurship. Please believe me when I say that WLEDs are a gift from God to the developing world and that they are the home lighting technology for the third millennium.

One of the wonderful benefits of WLED lighting is that one can start to plan the lighting of an entire village using 100's of Watts instead of 1000's of Watts and this means an enormous reduction in the cost, physical size, complexity and maintenance of the installed power plant.

As an organization that has used Pico Hydro (200 Watt-low and high head), Solar PV (300 Watt) and person powered Pedal Generators for entire villages and we have a Pico Wind turbine under development, it is very gratifying to come across a working pico power system that we ourselves have not tried in earnest. We came across such a system in July 2001 when we were introducing our WLED home lighting systems to the villages of Upper and Middle Mamring in West Bengal, India (30 km south of Darjeeling). The system was most definitely Pico Hydro in that it consisted of a simple 12 Volt, 6 Watt bicycle dynamo made in China and costing only 200 Rupees, a hand-made turbine wheel, a hand-made nozzle and a few meters of approximately 1 inch diameter plastic pipe - and two bricks and a piece of wooden board on to which the dynamo was nailed!

As a professional electrical engineer I do not generally believe what I hear without a fair amount of independent verification. That said, I was very impressed by the independent conversations that I had with a number of the villagers who stated that "the Chinese dynamos had been working for three years in one case and more than two years in another few cases - and that is 24 hours a day non-stop".

If this life span is in fact anywhere near what we might expect on average then for Solid State Lighting it represents another wonderful opportunity to get lighting to the rural villages at a very low cost.

I realize fully that this form of Pico Hydro would only apply to a certain percentage of situations, but it could be so cost-effective that we surely have to include it in our list of alternative power plants. I would be extremely grateful for feedback of any sort on this particular Pico Hydro system.

I wish the "RETs for Mountain Areas of the Asia-Pacific Region" e-conference all the success in the world.

Dr. Dave Irvine-Halliday
Director, Light Up The World
http://www.lightuptheworld.org

4. From: "ishara mahat" <ishara_m@hotmail.com>
Subject: [RETs] Week 1: Implications of Microhydro at the Village Level
Date sent: Wed, 21 Nov 2001 01:13:00 +0545

Among the different other technologies for power generation, micro hydro has been considered as one of the environmentally friendly and cost-effective technologies. And it is indeed. Micro hydro plant actually has some positive implications for rural livelihoods in terms of providing access to electricity and power for processing mills. This, in turn, has a possibility of reducing human drudgery, particularly of women and children apart from creating small income opportunities at the village level.

Like many other technologies, micro hydro plant is not free of problems, however. The high initial cost of installation hinders the poorer households from gaining access to electricity. In this case, subsidies are only effective to those who can afford to pay for initial installment. On the other hand, there are households that can not pay even the minimum for electricity and for power mills. Hence, only the richer among the poor can be benefit from such plants. The problem lies not with the plant itself but with the process of diffusion of such technologies. The socio-economic conditions of rural households (the possible beneficiaries) have to be studied in detail in advance.

There should be enough research to explore the priority for, and adaptability of such plants. For instance, there are cases where rural people still prefer to use the traditional 'jantos' in their houses instead of carrying the grains to power mills. Sometimes, the waiting time in the mill discourages many from using the power mill. Micro hydro plants which have a potential should be examined in terms of time saved and human drudgery reduced.

The point is not to discourage promotion of micro hydro plants, but to encourage their promotion with an integrated effort. Electricity and power is a basic infrastructure, but it should also be integrated with small credit schemes so that small cottage industries could be promoted to create income opportunities at the village level. At the same time, the possibility of marketing of village products has to be ensured. Therefore, an integrated effort from the different sectors, different levels of government, and donors is highly desired.

Ishara Mahat

5. From:"'UCS'" <ucs@mail.com.np>
Subject :[RETs] Week 1: Development of Micro-hydro in Nepal
Date: Wed, 21 Nov 2001 12:48:17 +0530

In Nepal, micro-hydro technology has been disseminated and power has been generated so far in about 60 districts with a total of about 1200 plants.

However, quite a large number of the plants have not been functioning well due to various reasons. Rural Energy Development Programme has installed about 100 of such plants in the last 3 to 4 years. Similarly Energy Sector Assistance Programme in co-operation with Alternative Energy promotion Centre has already involved itself in the dissemination of the technology. On top of this Agriculture Development Bank, several companies, NGOs/INGOs such as ICIMOD, and ITDG have been actively involved in the promotion of micro-hydro in the country.

Government has revised the subsidy policy. With this present policy, the subsidy amount of Rs 55,000 per kW for peltric, Rs 70,000 per kW for micro-hydro upto 100kW and Rs 27000 per kW for rehabilitation is being provided. However, the qualitative progress made so far is not encouraging as it
should be. So I feel that it is now the time to find out the reasons by analysing the strengths and weaknesses. This can be done by organising a review meeting between the stakeholders.

It is also recommended that a quality control mechanism of micro-hydro system should be developed by establishing norms with specifications for equipment. Similarly, manufacturers, and survey, supply, and installation companies be differentiated in such a way that manufacturers should not be allowed for installations and installers for manufacturing. The monitoring and evaluation be carried out independently by a qualified and experienced research agency for the development and dissemination of micro-hydro in Nepal.

Govinda Prasad Devkota

6. From: "Jiwan Acharya" <Jiwan.Acharya@umn.org.np>
Subject: [RETs] Week 1: Can Microhydro be Connected to the Grid?
Date: Wed, 21 Nov 2001 13:50:37 +0530

Micro-hydro has been generally used/promoted to provide electricity to remote areas and/or where there is no national grid so as to get economic and other benefits. These power plants are either owned by individuals who operates them as a business or are community-owned. There have been enough
studies to argue the pros and cons of these two options and to do so is here is not my intention.

In the case of Nepal, Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) buys the micro-hydro power plants before extending electrification. The obvious reason for this is the higher cost associated with operating and maintaining the micro-hydro for NEA. It is also easy to understand that consumers will choose NEA for electricity over micro-hydro. Therefore, existing micro-hydro power plants (barring a few exceptions) in the nationa grid available area are getting closed and many more potential
sites for micro-hydro in those areas are no longer being used.

The issue that I am trying to bring out here is the possibility, both technically and economically, of connecting micro-hydro to the national grid. If I know it correctly, it needs a minimum of 1 MW to connect to the national grid in Nepal. There might be good reasons to do so but what one of our efforts now should be is to learn from the experiences from other developed countries (such as Norway) and to set successful examples both technically and economically in the country like Nepal (and others as well) and recommend the Government for necessary amendment. This will, I am sure, encourage the private sector to get involved in this environmentally friendly technology and many unused streams and rivers will also be used effectively.

Jiwan S. Acharya
Programme Officer, UMN/EIDD

7. From:"Girish Kharel" <girish@mail.com.np>
Subject: [RETs] Week 1: Micro Hydropower in Remote Areas of Nepal
Date: Wed, 21 Nov 2001 14:15:02 +0530

Micro Hydropower in Remote Areas of Nepal

- by Kamal Jaishi, Engineer, Remote Area Development Committee
[Taken from the 4th issue of Jalashakti, magazine of the Nepal Micro Hydropower Development Association.]

Background

The Remote Area Development Committee (RADC) was established on Magh 11, 2033 (January 1977) by a directive of the Home Ministry. The main work of RADC has been defined as selecting and implementing projects for the economic and social development of places declared to be remote areas by HMG/N.
Currently it functions as part of the Ministry of Local Development (MLD)and has its own projects and its own budget.

RADC has technical and administrative staff in all 22 Remote Area Districts. RADC collaborates directly with the local officials (CDO/LDO) and acts on the demand of the local bodies like District Development Committees (DDC) which canalize the requests of Village Development Committees (VDC).

Since its formation RADC has been involved in different activities- mostly infrastructure building. However with the change in the national political structure the emphasis and demand of the people has been for programmes that have a more direct impact on income generation and quality of life improvements. It is in
response to this demand that RADC has started its "Integrated Rural Community Development through Village Electrification" programme.

Why Microhydro?

The following are the reasons why RADC is involved in this sector.

1. Micro-hydro is a clean, renewable, environment friendly form of energy and for Remote Areas virtually the only practical way to provide electricity.
2. It provides high quality lighting which improves the living condition of the people. It can also provides the motive power to operate small scale industries, labor saving machines, hot water for improved hygiene or cooking.
3. It reduces migration to urban areas by providing opportunities and improved living conditions in the village. It provides an incentive for government officials and other development workers to stay in the village so that the village is served better.
4. Providing a basic infrastructure like electricity to Remote Area villages gives villagers the awareness that the government does care about them despite their physical remoteness. Electricity is a basic input required to operate TV, radio and other mass communication technologies. This will keep the villagers better
informed and increase awareness.
5. It reduces the burden of manual labor, especially of women, by mechanizing activities like grinding, hulling, expelling oil, saw mill etc.
6. It reduces pressure on the forests by providing alternative means of lighting and heating. It also provides motivation for environmental protection since catchment areas have to be protected from deforestation to preserve the water source for micro-hydro.
7. Micro-hydro is a means of mobilizing and organizing the villagers for development work. The experience of working together in building and running the MHP will be useful in implementing other projects.

RADC and Microhydro

Micro-Hydro Power (MHP) is a relatively new activity of RADC. RADC has learnt that MHP demands a totally different strategy to approach the target group. The projects that RADC had been involved in up to now were largely "static" projects like trails, bridges drinking water schemes, irrigation canals. But with MHP it is a "dynamic" system and needs to be kept running if it is to be productive. MHP is also "high technology" compared to RADC's previous projects. This means that it requires suitably trained and skilled manpower to keep it running and to utilise it beneficially.

Currently RADC has 13 projects under construction, 10 projects are in the tender process and a further 17 are under consideration. To date three projects have started electricity generation.

Since 1993 RADC has invested 21.5 million Rupees and will invest 14 million Rupees in the current fiscal year (FY 2053/54).

Experience and Lessons in Implementation of MHP

When RADC started its program to implement MHP the socio-economic aspects were not really considered. After a short time a great number of problems showed up in different areas and RADC began to rethink its policy. With the help of ded, RADC made an agreement of cooperation with ITDG. For many years ITDG has been providing assistance in the technical and socio-economic aspects of MHP in Nepal. A consulting engineer from ITDG has been helping to improve the technical performance of RADC. An ITDG team carried out a social and economic evaluation of the Nargaun MHP project in Manang and has come up with specific recommendation (Nar Report). It is hoped that the Nar experience and model will be applicable to other communities in their effort to use MHP as an instrument for development. A summary of the approach is listed below.

1. Concentrate on developing the human resources as the key resource.
2. Improve education: The key to development is education- appropriate education.
3. Train locals.
4. Explore the possibilities of Exploiting existing resources and opportunities e.g. tourism, raising exotic animals and plants, herb harvesting, oilseed production and processing, leather, potato, seeds, etc.
5. Introduce appropriate labour saving devices. This benefit largely goes to women as they are the ones who generally spend a lot of time and effort in labour intensive chores like food processing and preparation, churning butter, spinning etc.
6. Make a proper market assessment for any products that might be made.
7. Take an integrated approach.
8. Involve technical staff more closely with the community.
9. Assess post installation activities at the beginning and not after the hydro-plant is put in.

RADC and Human Resource Development

As mentioned before RADC is convinced that the only way to make sure that MHP is used effectively as a tool for development is to make sure that the human resources are made capable of utilising the MHP. The basic philosophy of RADC with regard to Human resource development at the community level can be summed up thus: " The general capability of the human resource will determine how other available resources are utilized. Therefore, of all the resources in the village the human resource is the most important." RADC therefore aims to put people at the center with MHP as the tool to achieve development. RADC has come to this conclusion from it MHP activities and also its experience of working with CARE/Nepal in a Basic Needs programme in 4 selected districts.
These experiences have been incorporated in RADC's Integrated Rural Community Development Program.

Selected and specially trained Village Trainers will be sent to communities where RADC MHP plants will be installed. The trainers start their work with the community by helping it to create a User Committee (UC). The main task of the village trainer will be to motivate the villagers through the UC to participate in their
project, helping them to mobilize their own efforts to handle their future in order to make significant changes in their own living conditions.

The strategy for this program is based upon the collaboration between several organizations. The village trainers complement RADC field staff by working directly with the respective communities over a sustained period by helping them organize an effective User Committee(UC), liaise with the local government officials and train village people in maintenance and operation of their MHP. The Village Trainers help to evaluate and establish post-installation activities, such as micro-enterprises and other income generating activities, establishing small local industries to exploit local markets and resources. Important areas of work for the trainer are the improvement of the labour situation of women, literacy and other necessary measures which may be necessary in order to enable the community to make full use of their resources.

Taking advantage of RADC's network of MHP sites, the German Development Service (ded) continues to provide the technical assistance of engineers and development workers in developing RADC's own human resources in order that they may provide a better service to the people of Remote Areas.

RADC hopes that this mode of approaching community development will be copied by local bodies such as DDCs in their approach to community development.

The resources which are at the moment available to RADC is insufficient to serve all the communities where RADC has installed or is planning to install MHPs. Therefore RADC is looking for new partners to strengthen and expand the Integrated Rural Community Development Program.

RADC and NGOs

It is clear that RADC is not in a position to do all the things necessary to enable remote communities to successfully use MHP as a tool for development. It has therefore adopted a strategy of concentrating on providing the "hardware" while NGOs and grassroots organisations provide the "software".

This strategy was worked out by RADC with the help of a development worker from the German Development Service, Mr. Alfred Kusel-Finck and a microhydro consultant, Mr. Girish Kharel. As part of the strategy an agreement was made with the Intermediate Technology Development Group (ITDG) to provide support to improve the technical services of RADC and also to help in developing a plan for the "software" aspects of MHP.

As part of this agreement ITDG has made a detailed assessment of the Nar MHP and made recommendations on the approach that RADC should take. It is also working with United Nations Volunteers (UNV) on a training package for future village trainers. It is envisaged that these village trainers will work closely with the community to help them with the social and economic aspects of their MHP.

RADC hopes to expand its collaboration with NGOs so that more communities are served. RADC does not have the money, manpower or organisational structure to carry out the "software" aspects effectively. By working together and pooling the resources and skills of Government and non government organisations the communities of the Remote Areas will get a better service.

8. From: "Bikash Pandey" <bpandey@winrock.org.np>
Subject: [RETs] Week 1: Re: Pico Power & White LED Lighting for Mountain Areas
Date: Wed, 21 Nov 2001 14:55:32 +0545

Dear Prof Halliday,

I very much like the idea of LEDs lighting up the world with a few Watts per household. My question is regarding the source of power. You have given the example of the village in West Bengal that has used a 6 Watt Chinese bicycle dynamo with a hand made turbine as an inspiring example of a pico-hydro set up that could power a system of WLEDs. I have always understood that mechanical turbines and generators do not scale down as economically as do solar PV panels. I.e. small turbines and generators cost more per Watt as they go smaller in size if they are to be reliable whereas solar panels can be manufactured down to a few Watts size at more or less the same cost per Watt. We will talk more about solar energy one of the following weeks so I would not like to start a discussion on the merits and demerits of solar energy now. I would, however, be interested in your experiences with small mechanical devices to produce pico-power - cost and reliability.

Best regards,

Bikash Pandey,
Winrock International

9. From: "Amreeta Regmi" <alcreg@del2.vsnl.net.in>
Subject: [RETs] Week 1: Community-Oriented Hydro Systems As Sociotechnical Design Systems
Date: Wed, 21 Nov 2001 15:29:55 +0530

Despite the fact that community oriented hydro systems have been introduced for the past few decades in Nepal, the adaptation of this technology has not been fully understood. Today, only about 14 percent of Nepal’s population (mostly urban) have access to electricity. It is also quoted in various reports that over 60 percent of micro hydro schemes in Nepal have failed due to various reasons. One particular reason for such skewed statistics, I believe, is really our failure in understanding the interface between the technology and the operating environment.

Micro hydro schemes have been promoted in many instances either in the form of supply driven models or through R and D approaches. For the past few years, Nepal has been witnessing certain policy shifts that encourages a focus on community oriented systems through diverse sector involvement. While I do agree with some of the points made in the previous posting (Mahat), that more research is required to fully understand the processes in which the technology is installed, I also
believe that the framework requires to address the broader sociotechnical processes in which the technology is embedded. Socio-economic conditions of the community as a parameter for exclusion or inclusion a quite a simplistic why of rationalizing why certain groups in a community benefit or at times don’t benefit from a given technology. There seem to be other issues emerging from various case studies as to why the technology gets contested thus bifurcating benefits.

There is one specific point that I would like to raise: the design processes either in the form of R and D or other ongoing models in Nepal require a refocus in terms of the design in its entirety. Design in this context implies that the technology is not just a hydraulic artifact but rather an evolutionary and transformative unit. The technology operates within certain given conditions in a society, cognizance of the agro-ecological, political, economic and social conditions lead to better sustainability of the system.

"Lighting up the entire village" may sound quite altruistic in terms of an engineering feat or through the use of Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) bulbs, however engineering feat alone cannot integrate the society in which the technology has to operate. If we look at the case study of Kusha Devi Pico hydro, it is quite apparent that the technology has been politicized right from the implementation phase – is manifested as a tool for control by certain political groups in the community to exclude or include certain community members. It is not the socio-economic condition that excludes some, but political motives does. Political motives, further encourage socio-economic situations to either thrive or stagnate.

It is also evident from the case studies from the central region of Nepal that when hydro technology is designed to interface with agriculture needs, the design system itself becomes a coalescing factor in bringing the community together. In addition, most of the smaller hydro systems in the mid-hills use the existing irrigation canals or modify the canals to meet both the energy and water requirements (for example: Khopasi power plant, Pinthali in Managaltar and Katunje Bensi microplants). It is also evident that the water measurement during the design processes has not coherently addressed agriculture or irrigation water requirements, the amount of water is primarily calculated to fulfill the turbine need and the wattage generated. In such cases, the turbines operate below capacity and low efficiency, for the community irrigation requirements take precedence over electricity use, the former directly impacts their livelihood. Other social, economic, ecological or political factors may lead to increase in negotiation or conflict, however, hydro systems as controlled water mechanisms is more adaptable if combined as a local livelihood support system right from the initial stages of design.

To conclude, this is not an attempt to re-engineer the engineer but rather bring to the attention that development initiatives cannot isolate community oriented hydro-system as mere technological artifact that light up the village, rather as socio-technical design systems that has to function in a broader operating environment.

Amreeta Regmi

10. From: "Nienhuys" <s.nienhuys@chello.nl>
Subject: [RETs] Week 1: RETs - 10 General Points
Date: Wed, 21 Nov 2001 13:25:35 +0100

Although several RETs (like micro-hydros) have different technical and social details with regard to their implementation at village level, a number of similarities do exist. The moderators of the current forum should be able to refine and organise the following ten issues:

1. Most RETs are not (large) quantity energy producers. They generate energy at a rather low, but often constant, level. This is still faster than a tree grows to produce firewood. If RETs are expected to produce massive amounts of energy in one location, we end up with big mega projects that do extensive harm to the environment, culture, ecosystems, village economy and other aspects already discussed in-depth in former forums.

2. The installations need to be located at multiple locations because the transport of energy is costly and causes large percentage of energy to be lost in the transmission process. The location and distribution of the many systems depends on the technology; e.g. while micro-hydros are located at streams and canals, passive solar energy is attached to housing (windows, collectors).

3. Because the RETs have small-scale production of energy, they need to be very durable so they can outlive their minimal economic return period. This means that the RETs must be of very good quality. This will increase their cost and their economic return period will be lengthened.

4. Making RETs with "Appropriate Technology" is needed (meaning a technology that is appropriate for its purpose and user), but this does not mean that low-cost manufacturing technologies with low-cost local materials are adequate. In those rural environments where we look for the application of RETs, no skills, materials, or manufacturing and testing plants are available that can possibly manufacture very durable and fail-proof RET equipment. The AT movement of
several decennia ago had the right intentions and initiatives, but produced too many poor functioning, non-durable stick-tin-and-rope ("star") domestic-type fabrications requiring constant fixing up by dedicated and knowledgeable handymen (e.g. windmills). Economically successful RETs in rural areas will be those systems that are of high quality, very durable, factory guaranteed and periodically serviced.

5. Most (rural) consumers will be unable to distinguish between one make or another. Decision making will therefore depend on what the neighbour has, the status of the product, the skill of the sales person and the actual price of the product. (For example, with solar lamps many price and quality differences exist, but the customer only sees the lamp when it is new and tends to choose the lowest price. The low price often does not provide the best economic return.) An independent consumer organisation must be able to advise the customer on price-quality-service aspects. It may be worthwhile to make such an organisation obligatory for RETs that are supposed to last more than 5 years.

6. The need for high quality and very durable equipment is directly linked to durable (10 years or more considering PV units or micro-hydros) credit systems with the final users or customers. In micro-hydros the financing is based on the electricity tariff. Credit models cannot be monitored from distant industrial towns where the RETs are manufactured, but must be community-based where local control exists on the selection of the customer and where intelligent monitoring of the return payments can be realised.

7. The village-based credit models are uneconomical when only a small number of customers are participating in the credit schemes (including the RET's scheme). This means that village-based credit schemes must be already operational and expand their business with RET's. Alternatively the introduction of village credit schemes with the RET's must be combined with other viable credit activities and be large enough to become sustainable (as a banking operation). Although subsidies may be considered by local governments or industries, a ten year subsidy plan cannot always be promised or is affordable. Subsidising purchase expenses may be an option, but subsidising consumers seldom leads to sustainable finance models. When it is assumed that prices of certain RET's will drop in the future (e.g. PV), a temporary subsidy may be justified.

8. RETs in rural areas always requires a change in customer behaviour - daily organisation of activities, times for use of energy, method of finance, etc. For women this often implies adaptations to general household chores, such as cooking behaviour, collecting water, use of passive solar energy, etc. The RETs must therefore be tested and assessed on gender issues to assure that there are no negative effects on women. For example, the exclusion of women becomes practice if RETs leads to a business adventure or implies technology (trading and technology in several cultures are assumed to be the territory of men).

9. RETs should not require frequent intervention of service (men). Women, being the users of many RETs, must be educated in their use and management, including the running of the credit schemes. It is a wrong assumption to think that low maintenance also means no maintenance. In the education and briefing processes this distinction must be made very clear. Maintenance-free does not exist, not for buildings and even less for technology equipment (plenty examples on water pumps). Even if equipment is fool-proof and very durable, local installation support and maintenance is required. Several persons (women included) should be trained locally and have close relations with the distribution centres and factories to be able to provide the best client services. This means that village people must be trained to provide client services. In addition all users of the RETs should be well aware where information, spare parts and services can be obtained. The same credit organisation can serve as the contact points. (A PV system that was started near Lake Titicaca failed because it was first adopted by a donor agent and subsequently sub-contracted and sub-subcontracted again to local handymen doing lousy fittings and providing no service.)

10. To make any RET project successful, continuous education on the subject and the physics of the technology should be provided. This education is not only needed at the time of promotion and installation, but requires a constant flow of information at the domestic and professional levels. Domestic science education must include RETs and the principles about energy conservation. Conservation of energy and its proper use are equally important as the generation of new energy.
A school curriculum about these aspects must be developed and introduced.

RETs will become an integral part of the local mountain economy and a sustainable operation only when all of the above ten points are covered.

I think that on each of these points the conference can provide sufficient supporting examples.

Sjoerd Nienhuys
Consultant EPA

11. From: "csvaidya" <csvaidya@satyam.net.in> | Block Address | Add to Address Book
Subject: [RETs] Week 1: Re: In Praise of Old-Fashioned Hydro Ram pump
Date: Wed, 21 Nov 2001 18:23:16 +0530

Dear Dr. Peter Schachenmann,

The technology of Hydram you have mentioned is in fact a very old technology. This simple device utilizes the kinetic energy of the water falling from a moderate height to raise a part of it to a much greater height. The device can be used wherever a stream of water flows with a minimum of one-meter fall in the altitude. The first working model of the hydraulic ram was developed by Montgolfier in the year about 1876 or so. Like the windmills, the hydram technology experienced a period of popularity in industrialized countries, followed by decline due to large-scale development in generation and distribution of economical electrical energy. In developing countries, however, the difficulty in conveying the electrical energy to remote hilly areas and the shortage of petroleum fuels have imparted the importance to hydraulic ram for small scale lift irrigation and rural water supply.

In Himachal Pradesh, a mountaneous state in extreme northwest of India, there are numerous sites where hydraulic ram can be installed successfully and thereby reducing the drudgery in carrying head-loads of drinking water along the hills, or enhancing the productivity of un-irrigated fields. In Himachal Pradesh as many as 230 places have been identified for the installation of the Hydram units to provide the irrigation facilities for the benefit of the off-season vegetable growers of the state. The state government has also chalked out the plan for the establishment of 500 units in different parts of the state of which about 100 will be in district Shimla only at cost of about Rs.2.82 crores (about 600,000 US$). The Himurja, a state agency for popularizing the non-conventional sources of energy in the
state, is implementing the scheme for installing the Hydrams. So far, 72 hydrams have been installed in different parts of districts Shimla, Mandi, Kullu, and Lahaul-Spiti, providing the irrigation facilities for about 225 hectares. Out of these 12 hydrams are in tribal area of Spiti and 29 in Shimla. Each hydram costs about Rs. 2.20 lakhs (US$ 4,600) and irrigates about 3-4 hectares.

With regards,

CS Vaidya
csvaidya@satyam.net.in

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