Sarjiyo: Seizing the energy crisis moment

Slamet Susanto ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Kulonprogo, Yogyakarta   |  Wed, 07/09/2008 10:48 AM  |  People

SARJIYO: (JP/Tarko Sudiarno)

The prevailing energy crisis with frequent blackouts is no source of concern for 42-year-old Sarjiyo.

By using energy derived from the gas of cow dung, the resident of Kulonprogo regency in Yogyakarta continues to enjoy lights and television despite the outages.

With a bio-digester in his home since 2006, Sarjiyo has spent no more money to buy kerosene or liquefied natural gas (LNG). The biogas from the solid waste of his two cows is more than enough to fuel his stoves.

The father of one is fully aware the country is rich in energy sources and says that by optimally utilizing them, the power crisis will not be as serious as it is today.

Sarjiyo diligently tours villages in Kulonprogo to visit cattle breeders as part of his campaign to turn cattle waste into energy.

His interest in the technology began four years ago when he was invited by a Yogyakarta-based nongovernmental organization, Satu Nama, to join in a workshop on converting cattle waste to meet daily energy needs.

A farmer and cattle breeder, he joined 300 other participants for several days in learning about the technology.

Sarjiyo said the training motivated him to turn cow dung to his advantage, so he started learning how to construct and manage a bio-digester.

With capital of around Rp 9 million, Sarjiyo in 2004 built a bio-digester installation that channels the biogas produced by cow excrement through pipes to create fuel for stoves.

He also uses the gas for lighting through a power generator. When it's his turn to have a blackout, Sarjiyo will start his biogas-fueled generator and light the whole house.

In the beginning, Sarjiyo's neighbors though he was crazy for having spent millions of rupiah on cow dung processing.

But Sarjiyo was aware that to motivate fellow villagers to use cattle waste, solid proof was needed.

Though he could already fuel his stoves for daily cooking, at the time Sarjiyo was not yet engaged in community campaigning.

For two years, he made a study of his bio-digester from its social, economic and environment aspects. He compared the performance of stoves using biogas and kerosene, find that his bio-gas fuel burned longer than a stove with 0.5 liters of kerosene. The gas derived from a cow every day, he determined, is at least equal to 0.5 liters of kerosene.

The economic value of cow dung is very high for Sarjiyo. In 2006 alone, the province of Yogyakarta had 225,000 cows.

"If all the waste were utilized, Yogyakarta people could save 112,500 liters of kerosene a day," Sarjiyo said.

Socially, the utilization of cow dung does not disturb neighbors as it produces no offensive smell. Environmentally, it creates cleaner surroundings and can also serve as good natural manure.

Sarjiyo started campaigning to popularize the bio-digester in 2006, communicating the uses of waste to rural communities.

He has toured to speak with groups of farmers and cattle breeders about the economic, social and environmental benefits of using biogas from cattle waste to meet daily needs.

From the start, Sarjiyo was aware that a large fund was required to set up a bio-digester, as villagers would find it hard to gather up the Rp 6 to Rp 10 million needed for its construction.

"It's economically profitable. We only need to build it once and no more kerosene is bought for decades, let alone its benefit for lighting. The burden of electricity rate increases will be reduced," he said.

Sarjiyo submitted a financing proposal to the regional administration, which responded by providing soft loans of Rp 20 million for dozens of groups, with the obligation to repay only Rp 11 million.

The Kulonprogo regency administration responded by building a bio-digester in each of its villages.

Sarjiyo also initiated the traditional arisan (rotation savings) system among dozens of farmer groups to fund their installations.

"Many farmers can afford to save Rp 1 to Rp 2 million through this system," he said.

In building bio-digesters, Sarjiyo has empowered jobless youths, who receive intensive training in bio-digester construction.

"Now there are 80 skilled bio-digester builders and their installations prove to be functioning well. They've now become a productive workforce," he said.

Even with the sizable force, Sarjiyo have been overwhelmed by bio-digester orders from individuals as well as government agencies. He and his crew are also often asked to build in areas in Kalimantan and other cities. He says his crew is prepared to handle the jobs as long as local people are involved and local materials are supplied.

"There are many other bio-digester projects but they are built by contractors and some have failed to operate," he said, adding that "communities should participate as this can set local people's economies in motion".

Now after two years of campaigning Sarjiyo and his men have built over 250 bio-digesters in Kulonprogo regencies and several other cities.

They continue to urge people to utilize cattle and even human excrement to overcome the energy crisis and cease their dependence on state electricity, kerosene and LNG.

"We have abundant sources of energy. But sadly, with such abundance we tend to be ignorant, spoiled and uncreative," Sarjiyo said.

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