This is the second in a series of blog posts about the welfare impact of Kopernik’s solar lantern projects in Indonesia. Last week, using the findings of a Columbia University research team, we looked at how the average family in Central Kalimantan gets their electricity and lighting. This week, we’ll show how solar lanterns can improve household and community livelihood. This is the theory part: it gives us a framework against which we can assess Kopernik’s solar projects (coming next week).
Households in many developing countries predominantly rely on kerosene for lighting, which is a source well adapted to a poor household’s spending patterns. Kerosene lamps require little up-front capital investment and allow households with unstable cash flow to purchase additional fuel as needed. However, such lamps generate extremely low and inefficient lighting and pose significant economic, social, and environmental costs.
IN MANY DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, KEROSENE LAMPS PRODUCE 95% LESS INTENSE LIGHT WHILE COSTING APPROXIMATELY 150 TIMES MORE THAN A 100-WATT INCANDESCENT BULB (MEASURED PER USEFUL LIGHT OUTPUT).
Moreover, rural household recurring expenditures on kerosene can reach up to 25% of household budgets and up to 70% of total energy expenditure.
Kerosene lamps contribute to high indoor air pollution by emitting various pollutants such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, and hydrocarbons (soot). Used 4 hours a day, a single kerosene lantern emits over 100 kg of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year. Nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides (NOx, SOx) cause lung and eye infections, respiratory problems and cancer while volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from kerosene lamps can cause eye, nose and throat infections, as well as kidney and liver afflictions. Kerosene lamps also can lead to hazardous incidents of fire due to spillage, which can cause severe burns, deaths, and loss of properties.
Instead of kerosene, Kopernik advocates the use of small, portable solar LED lanterns. These are one of the most effective options for replacing kerosene lamps, offering multiple benefits. LED-based solar lanterns provide lighting with higher quality and efficiency. According to one estimate, LED lanterns are about four times more efficient than incandescent light bulbs, and can last up to 50,000 hours. Wow!
JUST LOOK AT THE DIFFERENCE THE PORTABLE SOLAR LED LANTERNS MAKE:
Solar lanterns can improve pre-existing livelihood activities by extending working hours beyond sunset and providing better quality illumination. For example, with portable solar lanterns, farmers can go into the fields at night to water crops without fear of snakes.
Health benefits of solar are also well documented.
BY REDUCING THE AMOUNT OF KEROSENE STORED AND BURNED, SOLAR LANTERNS CAN SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCE FIRE AND POISONING HAZARDS ASSOCIATED WITH KEROSENE LAMPS.
They also provide a much clearer, brighter and more dependable light without eye-burning fumes and they create an environment that is more conducive for studying. Because they don’t need costly fuel inputs, solar lanterns allow women and children to spend less time on collecting fuel and more time on social interaction and education. Some solar lanterns are designed to charge cell phones, which can improve communication and social interaction as well.
These are just some of the reasons why Kopernik works hard to disseminate portable solar LED lanterns. Check back with us next week when we quantify the changes that families in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia, found when they started using solar lanterns.
