Table 1 Proposed methodology applied to a settlement in Lebanon
Cooking | Electric power | Food preservation |
|---|---|---|
Phase 1—Priorities | ||
Type of settlement: Informal settlement Housing structures: (i) Multiple floors uncompleted cement building (ii) Tents surrounding the cement building | ||
Need: To decrease the costs for cooking and improve comfort and safety of cookers | Need: (i) To have a reliable source of lighting for households (ii) To guarantee the utilization of basic appliances such as mobiles (iii) To guarantee safety in common spaces | Need: To preserve fresh food and leftovers in a safe way |
Phase 2—Diagnosis | ||
Solutions in place: Gas burners coupled to bottled gas to cook dry and fresh food Constraints and opportunities: (i) Community and shared solutions are accepted among relatives+ (ii) Cooking is performed independently by each family at different times (iii) People cook both outdoor and indoor (iv) Gas stove components available in the local market+ Estimated firepower: 4–6 kW per stove per family | Solutions in place: (i) Illegal grid connection for few hours every day for the tents (ii) Legal connection for few hours every day for people living in the building Constraints and opportunities: (i) Community and shared solutions, such as plugs in common spaces, are accepted by people who live in the building and in some tents+ (ii) No measure available of the actual electricity consumption (iii) Wide range of electric technologies available in the local market+ (iv) Presence of local technicians having experience with renewable energy systems+ Estimated electric load: (i) 0.2 kWh/day per family with 2 LED bulb lamps and 2 security lights (ii) 0.5 kWh/day per family with 2 LED bulb lamps, 2 security lights, and a thermoelectric refrigerator (iii) 2 kWh/day in case of community refrigerator | Solutions in place: None Constraints and opportunities: (i) Sharing of same technology in common space is considered acceptable+ (ii) Sharing of the same space for food storage (e.g., same compartment of same refrigerator) is not acceptable (iii) Fresh food is available in the market+ (iv) Refugees have already used food preservation technologies in the past (refrigerators) + Estimated quantity of food to be preserved: Few kilograms per family |
Phase 3—Strategy | ||
The adopted strategy aims at improving the situation considering all the three identified dimensions (food cooking, food preservation, and electric power for basic needs), trying to propose an integrated response. The strategy includes the following actions: (i) Provision of a technical solution to improve the efficiency, usability and safety of gas burners (ii) Provision of an alternative power system to ensure the reliability of the electric service (iii) Provision of a reliable and simple solution to preserve fresh food, based on refrigeration | ||
Phase 4—Technology | ||
Locally made pot skirts for gas burners made with metal sheets and provided with external insulation | Hybrid PV/wind micro-grid assembled starting from locally available devices, able to manage primary loads (refrigerators) and auxiliary loads (other loads) separately | Locally assembled community refrigerators (700 l), with additional thermal storage and multiple individual compartments |