TAGUASCO, Cuba, Dec 12 (IPS) – The mixed use of fresh energies permits Finca del Medio, a farm in central Cuba, to apply a novel system of household farming manufacturing that ensures self-sufficiency based mostly on permaculture, agroecology and care of the atmosphere.
For 3 many years, 65-year-old farmer José Antonio Casimiro and his household have been making use of improvements to reap the benefits of the photo voltaic, wind, hydraulic and biomass potential on their 13-hectare farm within the municipality of Taguasco within the central Cuban province of Sancti Spíritus.
Casimiro and his spouse Mileidy Rodríguez, additionally 65, settled in 1993 with their kids Leidy and José Antonio – Chavely was born a 12 months later – on their paternal grandparents’ farm and started working to reverse the deterioration of the infrastructure and soil erosion.
The household, who reside on the farm apart from the eldest daughter, is at present self-sufficient in rice, beans, tubers, greens, milk, eggs, honey, meat, fish and fruit. Of the essential foodstuffs, they solely have to purchase sugar and salt, and the excess they produce is bought in surrounding areas.
Additionally they promote training and awareness-raising on good agricultural and environmental practices, on the social networks.
At Finca del Medio, plenty of each day processes are supported by clear sources akin to electrical energy era, lighting, water provide, irrigation and water heating, in addition to cooking, dehydration and drying of meals, and baking and refrigeration of meals.
The farmer commented that the farm produces the equal of about 20 kilowatt hours (kWh) from a mix of a number of applied sciences and improvements that make the most of the potential of fresh vitality sources.
If solely standard electrical energy had been used for his or her actions, it might price them round 10,000 pesos (83 {dollars}) per 30 days, he mentioned.
Their 28 photo voltaic panels, which produce about 8 kWh, elevated the facility for water assortment, irrigation and provide, whereas three photo voltaic heaters guarantee sizzling water for home wants akin to bathing.
The hydraulic ram makes use of the water strain itself as the one vitality to extract it from a dam with a capability of 55,000 cubic meters, pipe it to a tank on the highest a part of the farm, and from there the slope is used for irrigation by gravity, or to fill the animals’ water troughs.
Subsequent to the kitchen, two fixed-dome biodigesters present biogas, obtained from the anaerobic decomposition of animal manure, crop waste and even family sewage.
As a result of a lower within the quantity of manure, solely one of many biodigesters is working, which gives about seven meters of biogas per day, sufficient for cooking, baking and dehydrating meals.
The progressive household devised a mechanism to extract – with out emptying the pond of water or stopping biogas manufacturing – from the underside the solids used as biofertilizers, in addition to tons of of liters of effluent for fertigation (a mix of natural fertilizers and water) of the crops, by gravity.
The set up of the biodigesters, the photo voltaic panels and one of many photo voltaic heaters was supported by the Swiss Company for Improvement and Cooperation (Cosude) and the Indio Hatuey Experimental Station of Pastures and Forages via its Biomass-Cuba venture, Casimiro mentioned.
The agro-ecological innovator additionally highlighted the hyperlink with different scientific establishments such because the Built-in Heart for Applicable Applied sciences, within the central province of Camagüey, which is targeted on providing options to the wants of water provide and environmental sanitation, and performed a vital function within the set up of the hydraulic ram.
The household additionally has two windmills and an environment friendly range that makes use of firewood, coconut shells and different waste to cook dinner meals, dehydrate fruits and spices, warmth water and deal with meats for preservation.
Casimiro is in favor of incorporating renewable vitality sources into agricultural processes. However in his opinion, “Extra incentives, higher insurance policies and monetary help are wanted in order that farming households have adequate vitality for his or her work and might enhance the consolation of their houses and high quality of life.”
Clear sources account for under 5 p.c of electrical energy era on this Caribbean archipelago of 11 million inhabitants.
The federal government considers it a matter of nationwide safety to switch the nationwide vitality combine, which is extremely depending on fossil gasoline imports and hit by cyclical vitality deficits.
© Inter Press Service (2023) — All Rights ReservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service
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