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Energy Co-operative
Despite electrification, coal is still her main source of energy and a highly unhealthy one for both Caroline and the larger community of Ivory Park. Once the sun starts to set on a winter’s evening, the smoke from the thousands of open fires starts to snake its way through the streets of the settlement. It obscures all views, but besides being a blight on the horizon, the health impact is even more serious. Coal use generates a temperature inversion and this means that in winter smoke stays close to its source instead of rising and dispersing. This effect is deadly to local inhabitants who breathe in particulate matter 250 percent higher than World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendations. The rate of upper respiratory tract infection is almost endemic. But associated with the high proportional cost of energy, are the health implications of the sources of energy used by poor people. In an urban area like Ivory Park the main sources of energy are coal, paraffin and wood. The cheapest coal has the most noxious impurities like sulphur, and paraffin is both smelly and poisonous. The incidence of upper respiratory illness in Ivory Park is six times that of the suburbs. This is why EcoCity’s work focuses on cleaner, cheaper sources of energy as a key part of its poverty-fighting mission. While six in 10 residents are connected to Eskom’s grid electricity, very few can use it for anything except lighting as it is too expensive. To combat this bind, an innovative People’s Energy Centre has been established to market and educate the community about such forms of energy. In partnership with the Department of Minerals and Energy, this institutional structure will be the fulcrum around which the energy programmes of the area will develop. The People’s Energy Centre (PEC) is located in a terraced building at the EcoVillage. The building itself is a unique design that demonstrates thermal efficiency and is driven by solar power. The PEC is run by a co-operative made up of the Ivory Park Advisory Board members. It has three staff members that oversee the day-to-day management of the business. At the PEC, people can purchase gas (notably LPG gas in canisters), solar energy, paraffin and recharge their batteries at the sales outlet. Repairs and maintenance of solar and traditional heating and cooking appliances are also offered. The storage section lies to the northern end of the EcoVillage immediately below the agricultural plots. This is done deliberately in the unlikely event that there is any ground water pollution resulting from the site as it is downhill from the EcoVillage. The Energy Centre has attracted co-operation from Sasol, the Paraffin Association of South Africa, as well as the Central Energy Fund (CEF). The SEED programme (Sustainable Energy Environment and Development) is also involved through the City of Johannesburg SEED advisor. Caroline is already benefiting. One of the programmes of the centre is a plan to promote the “smokeless umbhawula”, an innovative coal fire which radically reduces the amount of smoke generated and uses less coal. Umbhawulas are the dominant form of energy for cooking and other energy in areas like Ivory Park. The initial cost of the the apparatus at R150, was high for Caroline, but she now spends one third of what she used to on coal. Caroline also suffers from asthma, probably also the result of coal usage. “My symptoms are much better now that I use the smokeless umbhawula,” she says. The energy centre also has an education and demonstration section showing technologies such as solar panels, energy efficient devices and appliances, and some basic insulation materials. The staff will soon be running energy workshops within the community so that everyone knows the facts about energy and how to make new choices for their lives. Energy is one of the greatest poverty deepeners in a community. Poor people spend as much as 25 percent of their proportional income on energy — in contrast to the one to two percent which middle-class households spend. Consequently, the poor have less to spend on education, on improving their lifestyle or on capital investment for business development. Another exciting innovation that is developing with EcoCity’s renewable energy provider, Solar Fabrik, is the prepaid solar power system for the EcoVillage. The energy for the entire village and its surrounding streets will be based on a prepaid button system that will be managed through the energy centre. Users will pay a flat monthly rate (R60), which will be loaded onto the button providing access to the solar energy source. A panel is installed at each house. Users have a pin number to protect their investment. This system is a first in South Africa and will need to be developed organically as the community uses it. Supply is not limitless like grid electricity so the users have to co-operate and work together on a daily basis. The system is also labour intensive, and even solar street lighting is possible. Training is therefore an essential component of the system, says Solar Fabrik's managing director Henning Holm. Although the system is designed, only a part of it has been implemented though lack of funds. EcoCity is looking for investors for this programme. Solar energy is initially expensive, though costs come down if installed at critical mass. “And in a global sense, it is cheaper,” says Holm.
EcoCity sees energy as a key performance area in the fight against poverty and environmental degradation. The slogan, “clean energy for all forever” is fundamentally supported through the Initiative. The focus is on the following areas:
EcoCity’s concrete programmes are:
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