How Solar Power Has Already Helped Recovery in Haiti
The outpouring of global support and compassion since the disastrous Haiti earthquake has been colossal. Aid from governments and individuals has reached into the billions of dollars, including some $375 million from the U.S. government and $470 million from U.S. charities. Most of that aid does not reach Haiti as cash; it is spent on products and services like food, emergency relief systems and bodies on the ground helping to clear rubble, search for survivors and aid in recovery efforts.
Solar technology companies from around the world are doing their part to aid relief efforts as well, offering evidence of the easy aid solar power can provide to disaster relief, an unpleasant but increasingly likely prospect in the face of climate change and rising seas. In Haiti, some obstacles to relief and recovery have been lack of food, water, lighting and communication, four tasks perfectly within the range of solar power.
What Has Solar Done for Haiti?
- German solar giant SolarWorld, which also manufactures solar panels in the U.S., has donated and shipped enough solar power modules and components to power 10 water pumping stations in Haiti’s most desperate regions.
- Sol, a solar equipment manufacturer, has already donated 15 solar-powered streetlights to the cause, enabling rescue workers to continue their seemingly endless task after dark. The company plans to send 100 more as soon as it can find someone to ship them.
- Dutch-based green tech company, Intivation, has offered to give away 1,000 solar-powered cell phones to help relief organizations and workers communicate and coordinate.
- Solar Ovens International is accepting donations to buy solar ovens for Haitians and the relief effort. The company has already partnered with Feed My Starving Children to deliver 270,000 meals to the country, along with a number of solar cookers.
As much as we all wish disasters like the earthquake in Haiti, Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans or the ruinous tsunami that resulted from the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake wouldn’t happen, they do provide evidence of the usefulness of solar power products. One of the first things to go in the aftermath of disaster is infrastructure – power lines, communication lines, housing, transportation, etc. – and solar power offers a fast, modular, wireless solution to those problems, as evidenced by the generous donations of SolarWorld, Sol, Intivation and Solar Ovens International.
Photo Credit: Parlour Magazine
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Posted on February 1st in Solar News by Dan.
February 1st, 2010 at 3:48 pm
It’s good to see that the solar industry is getting involved in Haiti’s emergency response and recovery. Solar is definitely making a difference in this disaster!
February 1st, 2010 at 8:06 pm
Such an inspiring and hopeful post. Of course we hope that these disasters would not occur, but living in central Florida and living through many hurricanes, I can see how solar power can really become invaluable.
February 24th, 2010 at 3:22 pm
[...] Solar cookers and other technology are useful especially in areas with limited or unreliable electricity. A [...]