|
| |
Back to Sectoral Activities
Environment & Natural Resource
Management
|
Environmental degradation is a chronic and
expensive problem for the rural poor, most of whom depend directly on
agriculture, livestock, horticulture and orchard management for their
livelihood. Whether it occurs na turally
or as a result of human intervention, environmental degradation
threatens the livelihoods of the rural poor. Similarly, poverty has
negative environmental effects when the poor must resort to
unsustainable practices - cutting down trees and polluting water
supplies, for example - in order to survive. In many parts of the
country environmental degradation has created a new class of poor
people - those whose resource-based livelihoods have been destroyed.
All of NRSP's Environment and Natural Resource Management (ENRM)
activities are focused on improving soil quality, reducing farmers'
losses, adding value to inputs and increasing productivity and
profitability. Many CO members have learned new techniques for
planting, harvesting and processing, all aimed at improving crop
yields. Many farmers have learned how to grow new crops which increase
the profitability of their land and labour. Many others have been able
to retain control of their assets and resources, as a result of
increased profitability. A valuable activity is improving the inputs
used by farmers. For example, seed banks have been established in a
number of NRSP Regions: these allow farmers to plant high-yielding
crops. Learning how to optimise the use of chemical fertilizers, and
to use organic fertilisers when appropriate, also saves farmers money
and contributes to improving the soil. Preventing soil erosion,
especially important in areas such as Rawalakot, also makes a
significant contribution.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Renewable
Energy for a Clean & Green Future| |
 |
|
|
Renewable Energy for a Clean &
Green Future
Renewable energy from the wind, sun and biomass reduces
pollution and global warming. NRSP is committe d
to helping farmers harness freely-available renewable sources of energy,
thus helping to reduce fuel costs, increase productivity and halt the
depletion of natural resources. The Pakistan Council for Renewable Energy
Technology has collaborated with NRSP and with COs for the transfer of
renewable energy technologies, including the installation of a wind
generator, solar LED lighting and a solar pump in Fateh Jang.
A solar pump equipped with a tracking panel has been installed in Fateh
Jang, with the active co-operation of the CO activist. Approximately 20-25
households benefit directly from the solar pump. The pump is installed 15
feet below the water level. Its daily output is close to 1500 gallons.
NRSP's ENRM section constructed an adjacent water reservoir to store the
water, which is used for irrigation. Local women tell us that their
workload is reduced, and the water in the reservoir is cleaner than is
otherwise available.
 |
The solar powered
low-intensity Light Emitting Diode bulbs installed at NRSP's Head
office and at CO Hattar (Fateh Jang Tehsil, Attock district) are an
excellent, energy-efficient means of converting daylight into usable
energy. This is particularly useful where there is no electricity
supply. An efficient 2 Watt LED bulb provides the light equivalent of
a 20 W bulb, from a 15W solar panel. The system illuminates three 1.2
W LED bulbs for 5-6 hours. |
NRSP installed 3 wind chargers imported from the UK. Two
were installed in COs in the Rawalpindi region, the other in Gwader, in
June 2002.
Three Effective Micro-organism Fermenters,
which function to speed the decomposition of manure used as fertiliser and
reduce urea fertiliser requirement by almost 50%, have been installed
close to a tube well. Before the fields are irrigated, the fermenter is
filled with water, manure and organic waste. The EM medium, a liquid, is
added to the fermenter to speed the decomposition process. NRSP
contributed Rs 56,000 to the cost of 3 EM fermenters for use by COs in
Hyderabad. Two more were installed in Lodhran.
The Rawalpindi office arranged information and demonstration sessions on
solar cookers, which cook food quickly and
safely, thus freeing busy women for other tasks. Two COs purchased a
cooker after the demonstrations, paying 60% of the cost of Rs 2,000 per
unit. We expect that demand for these environmentally friendly stoves will
increase and the price will come down.
Unsafe drinking water causes an enormous number of diseases, many leading
to death, in Pakistan. A solar distilling
unit, a safe and cost-effective means of
purifying drinking water, produces 10 litres of distilled water per day.
The still is technologically simple but very effective. The residue
contains salts, minerals, metals and most other impurities, including
biological organisms. The end result is water cleaner than the purest
rainwater.
The small biogas plants, constructed on the
farms of CO members in Jabbi Niazi and Korak (Fateh Jang, Punjab), are an
efficient means of disposing of organic waste and providing fuel and
fertiliser. Both households found that the plants generated enough gas
meet their cooking requirements. Each paid 50% of the Rs 20,000 cost of
the plants. The two households found that the gas was enough to meet their
domestic cooking requirements. The efficiency of effluents from the
plants, which is said to be better than traditional natural fertilisers,
will be tested in the next growing season. Many biogas plants in NRSP's
project areas in Punjab are being constructed in collaboration with the
Pakistan Council of Renewable Energy Technology.
More than 700 fuel-efficient chulas (stoves)
have now been installed in the Turbat and Rawalpindi regions. These are
much more efficient than regular stoves and they reduce air pollution.
Learning how to manufacture and use these chulas is very popular with CO
members: In 2001-02, 111 men and 824 women learned how to either make or
use them. In 2002-03, 1,542 CO members (408 men and 1,134 women) learned
the necessary procedures. |
|
BACK
TO TOP |
|
|
|
|
|
|