Environment Watch: Solar-powered pump brightens future

Slamet Susanto ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Yogyakarta   |  Fri, 07/04/2008 11:08 AM  |  The Archipelago

Before the solar pump was available, residents in Ploso hamlet in Gunungkidul, Yogyakarta, had to crawl every day into a dark 25-meter-deep cave to fetch potable water.

"We had to crawl into the cave holding a container and torch," recalled Ploso villager Jainem, 47.

The path leading into the cave is treacherous, and it took people two hours to get a 20-liter container of water.

They haven't had to crawl into the cave since 1999, thanks to solar pump technology which is used to pump water from the cave and channel it to four reservoirs around the village.

The solar-powered technology was set up by the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT) in cooperation with the Gunungkidul regency administration. This was a pilot project aimed at mitigating the chronic water shortage affecting Gunungkidul residents every dry season.

The installation comprises a solar panel, a battery and inverter and a pump which draws water from a stream 20 meters down in the Cerme Cave, channeling it to storage reservoirs.

Every morning at 9 a.m., residents can draw water at the reservoirs at a cost of Rp 50 (half a U.S. cent) for a 25-liter container. The fees go toward maintenance costs, used to replace broken pipes, while Rp 100,000 is kept back for the monthly salary of Ponijo, who maintains the equipment.

"It's a lot easier now compared to before, when we had to crawl into the cave," said another villager, Suyitno.

SUNNY SIDE UP: Ponijo, an attendant at a solar-powered pump facility in Ploso, Gunungkidul regency, Central Java, cleans the solar panels daily. (JP/Slamet Susanto)

To maintain the equipment, Ponijo, 87, cleans the solar panel array from dew and leaves. When the suns rays are sufficient at around 8 a.m., he turns on the pump to draw water from the stream running inside the cave.

From then on, the first reservoir, located around 700 meters from the cave, soon fills up and people flock to the facility by 9 a.m.

From there, water flows to the other three reservoirs located in two nearby hamlets. At noon, the water flow is temporarily stopped.

After lunch, at around 2:30 p.m., Ponijo inspects the pipe network and he restores the water flow at 3 p.m.

The installation supplies water to more than 400 families, each family comprising on average of five people, a total of more than 2,000 people.

The area suffers chronic drought. There is a water supply crisis every dry season which affects more than 130,000 people in the regency, spread across 600 hamlets and 11 districts. Compared to most of these residents, the 2,000 people in the hamlets of Ploso and Gading are better off because of the solar pump.

Most Gununkidul residents have to buy water from water sellers to meet their needs, despite abundant underground water sources. They cannot afford to build such facilities without the help of third parties due to the high installation costs.

Copyright © 2008 The Jakarta Post - PT Bina Media Tenggara. All Rights Reserved.