Power to the People: Micro Hydro Power Plants

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Ifugao power plant finalist in Global Environment Awards
First posted 02:47am (Mla time) June 20, 2005
By Gobleth Moulic, Inquirer News Service

A micro-hydro power plant that helps sustain the world-renowned Ifugao rice terraces is among this year's seven finalists for the Global Environmental Awards.

On June 29, Prince Charles will present the Ashden Awards for Sustainable Energy to the Save the Ifugao Terraces Movement (Sitmo) in a reception at the Royal Geographical Society in London for its "outstanding, inspirational and innovative local sustainable energy scheme that protects the environment and [improves] the people's quality of life."

Picked from 80 other projects worldwide, the Sitmo initiative will share the 200,000-euro prize with other finalists from Bangladesh, Honduras, India, Nepal, Nigeria and Rwanda.
Louis Cabbigat, an Ifugao farmer with no formal training in engineering, designed the micro-hydro system for Sitmo. It diverts the water flow through a channel on the terraces in Barangay Gode in Hungduan town to a small turbine on the riverbank.

Gode villagers helped build the 3-kilowatt plant.

Other Ifugao villagers have developed various designs for micro-hydro plants. One is called the "firefly," which is used to charge 12-volt batteries to power lights and recharge small household appliances such as transistor radios.

Another is the "dragonfly," which provides electricity to more than 30 families in the village of Bokiawan in Kiangan town.

Established in 2000, Sitmo is a nongovernment organization staffed mainly by Ifugao volunteers. It was created through the initiative of the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement in Ifugao province.

For the Ifugao people, the award is the fruit of their hard work to save the centuries-old terraces amid scant resources from the national government.

Positive recognition
"This is the most positive recognition of the efforts of civil society groups in Ifugao who have been in the sidelines too long in the development arena," said former Ifugao Governor Teodoro Baguilat Jr., now Sitmo president.

"The award and the fund it carries will provide us the impetus to continue our work since we are the only agency, government or nongovernment, that is doing something constructive for the rice terraces," he told the Inquirer in an e-mail message.

Baguilat said the micro-hydro project was "exclusively the brainchild of Ifugaos."

Environment-friendly
"It helps us realize that we don't always have to run to the government to sort out our problems; we can do it ourselves," he said.

He said the prize money would be used to train local associations to maintain the project.
The micro-hydro project is a cheap, renewable and environment-friendly power system developed by Ifugao's "barefoot engineers" with assistance from foreign volunteers, Baguilat said.

The project was conceived after villagers realized that their precious heritage, the rice terraces, was being abandoned by Ifugao youth who preferred to seek greener pastures in other towns or abroad.

Baguilat said once farms were neglected, the owners were tempted to either sell the timber or were unable to prevent it from being stolen.

With the forest gone to logging, Ifugao villagers noted that the supply of water in the terraces had dwindled. Rains that hit the bare hills had triggered landslides and floods that destroyed properties in lowland areas.

"The micro-hydro project galvanizes the community to enhance its watersheds, thus providing water to the terraces. It is anticipated that power can spur economic development in the rural areas," Baguilat said.

"With the development of more livelihood opportunities, Ifugaos will be convinced to stay in the terrace areas," he said.

National pride
Appealing to national leaders for funding, he said the Ifugao terraces had become a symbol of national pride. They are also among the prime tourist destinations in the country.
Baguilat also urged Ifugao families to make a "collective choice" to have at least one member of the family stay in the province to take care of the terraces.

He said with this commitment from Ifugaos, the agriculture cycle and the accompanying traditions and customs tied to the rice terraces would continue.

In return, those who have gone abroad or are living well in the cities and other urban areas should subsidize the needs of those who have stayed behind so they will continue to safeguard the Ifugao heritage, he said.

Baguilat said the people who started Sitmo in 2000 have remained with the group because they believed in the vision of tapping community support and resources to preserve their heritage.

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