WATER: Solar Pumping 101: the what, why, and the how | The Water Blog – The World Bank/Rothschild

https://blogs.worldbank.org/water/solar-pumping-101-what-why-and-how

Interested in learning about Solar Pumping in French? Let us know in the comments if you’d like to see the toolkit translated!

Solar water pumping system.
Image credit: Energy & Development Group.

Access to a safe, sustainable water supply is a growing concern in every region of the world. In many communities, groundwater is being pumped by diesel fueled systems, which are both expensive and can be difficult to maintain. In communities where electricity is scarce, solar can be a part of the solution.

The highest demand for solar pumps is among rural off-grid areas, currently underserved, or served by costly fuel-driven pumps. Solar pumping is most competitive in regions with high solar insolation, which include most of Africa, South America, South Asia, and Southeast Asia; but the technology can operate successfully in almost any region of the world.

“Things are changing; new technologies are coming up. You can’t resist good technology that offers you cheaper costs for what you need.” said Jackson Mutazamba, assistant director of operational planning in the Ministry of Water and Irrigation in Tanzania, when asked about the use of solar pumps for water supply.

Echoed by Mamun from the Sohagpur village in Dhamrai, Bangladesh, “With the solar pump installed, we are getting sufficient water with lower monthly bills than we spent on buying diesel to run the generator”, he said.

In order for solar to be successful, however, this technology needs to be understood and appreciated by water practitioners around the world.

To provide a clear and concise introduction to solar water pumping, my colleagues and I have developed a handbook – Solar Pumping: The Basics, which offers an overview of the various aspects of solar water pumping.

Let’s take a deeper look.

Over the last 7 years, things have changed dramatically. Solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, which power the pumps, have dropped significantly in price, while the technology has improved and is now able to pump higher volumes of water and reach even deeper sources of groundwater.

While the initial acquisition of equipment is more costly than other pumping alternatives, the operation and maintenance costs are low. Particularly compared with diesel pumping, solar is not only more energy efficient, but with a lifespan of over 20 years, the financial benefits vastly outweigh the costs.

A solar pumping system is simple and includes the solar panel itself, the pump, and a power conditioner. The new systems are flexible and can work in tandem with a back-up generator and the electrical grid.

Considerations for designing a solar pumping system include various parameters including: water demand (volume), water storage, water depth (head), location of PV panels, and solar irradiance among others. Fortunately, modern software provides a free and user-friendly tool that enables engineers to easily design and size solar pumping system.

Finally, once the system is up, running, and secured, long-term maintenance is critical. This includes warrantees on equipment and maintenance contracts to ensure the water keeps flowing clean.

This handbook is part of a larger package on solar pumping produced by the World Bank Water Global Practice, which includes a comprehensive knowledge base, video tutorials, case studies, and more.  While solar pumping may not be the silver bullet for every community, it is important that this technology is made accessible and available as an option for those who wish to benefit from it.

Download the handbook or visit the webpage to learn more about solar water pumping. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me at kwelsien@worldbank.org.

Download the handbook

Options for Increased Private Sector Participation in Resilience Investment Focus on Agriculture

http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/969921521805628254/pdf/INVESTING-IN-RESILIENCE-FOCUS-ON-AGRICULTURE.pdf

Options for Increased Private Sector Participation in Resilience Investment

Acknowledgements
This report is part of an overall effort to identify innovative financing solutions for climate finance. Financial support for this study was provided by the Government of Japan through the Japan-World Bank Program for Mainstreaming DRM in Developing Countries, managed by the World Bank’s DRM Hub in Tokyo. The report was undertaken

READ MORE ABOVE

CHICKEN ALERT: New Strain Of Chinese Bird Flu Linked To ‘Disease X’ Kills 38 Percent Of People Infected | Tech Times

http://www.techtimes.com/articles/230384/20180615/new-strain-of-chinese-bird-flu-linked-to-disease-x-kills-38-percent-of-people-infected.htm

INSIDER COMMENT:
 
Of course, no mention of the worldwide meat transition to lab grown fake meat alternatives . . .

 

New Strain Of Chinese Bird Flu Linked To ‘Disease X’ Kills 38 Percent Of People Infected

Researchers have classified a new strain of the bird flu with a high mortality rate, and some people have suggested that it might be the anonymous Disease X.

What Is The New Bird Flu?

A deadly strain of the bird flu has wreaked havoc in China by killing 38 percent of people who have become infected by it. Known as H7N9, the virus began circulating in poultry before being transmitted to humans in 2013.

As of June 15, 1,625 people in China became infected with the virus and 623 have died. The initial symptoms includecoughing, high fever, pneumonia, and shortness of breath. The virus attacks the lungs and limits the oxygen that a person could receive. This would often lead to organ failure and septic shock.

In its current state, the H7N9 virus is not contagious, but it is only three mutations away from reaching that state. Currently, most of the victims with the advanced form of the virus were pregnant women and the elderly.

Some scientists are comparing it to the H5N1 bird flu virus of 2003. However, this one has the potential to start a bigger global influenza pandemic.

What Is Disease X?

In 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) added an unknown pathogen to its annual list of 10 deadly diseases. The reason it added an anonymous disease to the list was to create awareness about the potential disease.

Similar to the 1918 Spanish Flu, a global pandemic does not need to come from an identified source. Disease X could also be similar to HIV, which was transmitted to humans from animals.

“A serious international epidemic could be caused by a pathogen currently unknown to cause human disease,” WHO said.

By drawing attention to an unknown disease, WHO hopes to encourage people to create a vaccine for it by investing in “platform technologies.”

WHO has not indicated that this new Chinese bird flu could become Disease X, but some people online are already saying that it could happen in the future.

What Should People Know About The New Bird Flu?

Professor Jonathan Van-Tam, deputy chief medical officer in the United Kingdom, told the Telegraph that he is concerned about the rise of the new bird flu in China.

“But it would be wrong to think we could have a pandemic virus in future that could kill 38 percent of people. It would change,” said Van-Tam.

Scientists are currently conducting research into the H7N9 virus, and they are trying to develop a strategy to stop the virus from spreading.

 

Cellular agriculture: The coming revolution in food production: Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists: Vol 74, No 1

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00963402.2017.1413059?journalCode=rbul20

Cellular agriculture: The coming revolution in food production

Cellular agriculture is a nascent technology that allows meat and other agricultural products to be cultured from cells in a bioreactor rather than harvested from livestock on a farm. It is an important, and perhaps revolutionary, technology that presents opportunities to improve animal welfare, enhance human health, and decrease the environmental footprint of meat production. At the same time, it is not without challenges. In particular, because the technology largely replaces biological systems with chemical and mechanical ones, it has the potential to increase industrial energy consumption and, consequently, greenhouse gas emissions. Realizing positive outcomes on all fronts will require technologists, policy makers, and individual consumers to understand this technology and make wise, well-informed decisions as it is developed. If monitored and managed appropriately, cellular agriculture could allow humans to produce more food on less land than ever before while simultaneously mitigating other environmental problems.