The Island School and Cape Eleuthera Institute (CEI) are eager to celebrate the implementation of an innovative technology with the potential to revolutionize regional waste management, while enhancing energy independence and agricultural development. Last week, members of the facilities department teamed up with Island School students to install the first bio-gas burning stove in The Bahamas

Bio-gas is the usable energy created during the process of biodigestion, which processes organic waste into usable gas and nutrient rich fertilizer, uniquely addressing a number of local issues. With deep thanks to Derek Francis General Manager and Daron Lloyd, Sales Manager at Master Technicians in Nassau who donated the stove, Founder Chris Maxey proudly declared “Now we will literally be taking human waste and processing it into a safe and inexpensive form of energy that we can use to cook our food. And, we will be doing it all on-site, on our campus. What is more energy-independent than that?”

The organization’s renewable energy portfolio also features wind, solar and biodiesel technologies which were developed out of a dedication to “design spaces that reflect our values and help inspire creative thinking, while reducing the immediate and long-term impacts on the surrounding ecology” (ceibahamas.org). The addition of a biodigestion system was a clear next step.

“Do you ever wonder where wastes go when they are pumped from your septic tank?” asks CEI’s Sustainable Systems Manager Sam Kenworthy, in describing the question that motivated CEI to establish the first biodigester in the region. He hopes that communities across The Bahamas will be inspired to also think about the final destination of their wastes.

At present, there is no municipal scale waste treatment facility on Eleuthera or any of the other islands in the country. Most homes and businesses rely on septic tanks, which require solids to be periodically pumped and removed. Most often this cesspit material ends up in local dumps. Leaching of wastes into the fresh water lens or the sea is a common problem which is dangerous and harmful to both humans and the natural environment. Biodigestion eliminates this problem by containing waste in a sealed chamber and transforming it into a biologically productive output.

Biodigestion not only solves a national problem, it additionally creates other new solutions. While the gas produced by the biodigestion process can used as energy, the solid output is a nutrient-rich fertilizer which is easily applied to agricultural food crops. Because of the low-nutrient levels of local limestone soils, agriculture is difficult without added fertilizers. “Traditional chemical fertilizers pollute the natural environment and are dangerous for human consumption;” said Josh Shultz, CEI Permiculture Manager, adding that “biodigestion generates vast quantities of environmentally friendly fertilizers at negligible cost.”

Biodigestion systems were first developed in the 1950’s but have gained popularity over the last twenty years because of their many benefits. “Biodigestion systems are not only very cheap, they increase food production, while minimizing imports, creating better social, economic and environmental health,” encourages Sam Kenworthy.

The Island School and CEI are proud to be pioneering regional development of sustainable systems. “We hope to lead the way in inspiring our Bahamian friends and neighbors to spread biodigestion technology throughout The Bahamas,” said Chris Maxey.

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This project’s startup was subsidized by the government and encourages farmers in this semi- rural community to transport their waste straw to the plant instead of burning it by offering them bio- gas at production cost. This production cost is very low because the system only requires two people to run it. On the other hand customers who do not contribute straw to the system must purchase Bio-Gas from this plant at a price slightly less than what they would pay for Natural Gas. Customers access the biogas they purchase through a distribution grid for use as cooking fuel etc.

Another note about this community is that it is near the airport and farmers used to burn their straw, which could be considered a post-harvest crop residue, instead of trucking it away. Another option they had was to truck the straw to a paper mill that would purchase it at a relatively low price. The competition between the biogas plant and the paper mill has increased the price of straw in the three years since the plant began gas production. The result is far less air pollution from burning straw and farmers can earn more money for their crops. The digested straw also serves as a good fertilizer and farmers can pick it up at a lower cost.

As countries develop and industrialize people tend to leave rural areas for urban ones in search of a better quality of life. Sadly these first generations of urbanites are often subjected to discrimination when the reach the city due them speaking a different dialect or lacking the quality or level of education a city dweller may have. They may lack the social support network they need in this new home as they search for work and raise children, and many are forced to leave their children behind. Considering this I can truly appreciate the benefits of Bio-Gas production and any other means of improving the quality of life of the rural population. Visiting rural areas has been one of the highlights of this trip for me, the air is fresh, the roads aren’t as hectic, and the people take the time to smile and try to get to know you if you make the first step.

Much Love,

Bradley