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Environmental Action: Positive example for environmental protection,..
Bonaire Talk: Environmental Action: Archives 2008-2009: Positive example for environmental protection,..
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Detlef SCHWAGER (BonaireTalker - Post #26) on Sunday, August 17, 2008 - 2:51 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Subject: One positive EU example of usefulness for society, environmental protection, peripheral development, local acceptance, economic sustainability, and publicity

Floating autonomous ecological and efficient desalination system offers the island of Iraklia <http://www.iraklia.gr/eninfo.html> in the Aegean Sea 70 cubic meters of potable water per day. This system converts sea water to drinkable water and produces the required energy for the desalination using a wind generator mounted on the top of a stabilized floating platform. The system is now under operational tests near the island Iraklia. The project has been selected by the EU for receiving the Regiostars Award on the basis of innovation, usefulness for society, environmental protection, peripheral development, local acceptance, economic sustainability, and publicity.

TV Channels such as BBC World and ZDF and ARD (Germany) as well as newspapers have reported on the project. Furthermore, the project received the award for innovation at sea in 2006 from Lloyd's List Journal (the most reputable journal in the maritime field).

http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/cooperation/interregional/ecochange/goodpractice/3sustainable/stars08/033.pdf

In June 2007 the first worldwide environmental friendly unit of desalination of sea water that functions with a navigable wind generator, that directly exploits the aeolian energy, was inaugurated in the Cycladic island of Iraklia. This unit, which combines the use of a wind generator and a photovoltaic system, is expected to contribute effectively to the resolution of the problem of water scarcity in the island of Iraklia with a very low cost. The advantage of using a navigable wind generator is that it is situated in a great distance from ashore, where the wind speed is greater and more stable. This project is a major innovation worldwide and simultaneously an important step towards the resolution of the water scarcity problem in the islands of the Aegean, with an effective and environmental friendly way. The construction of two other navigable wind generators of triple productivity is also planned in the islands of Simi and Amorgos which are two of the most anhydrous islands in the Aegean. The functioning of this desalination unit in the island of Iraklia could constitute a model that can be implemented in other insular regions that also face water scarcity.

Impact:
The project’s impact on the regional economy has been as follows:
- support for local tourist activities in summer when the population of the island almost doubles and shortages of drinkable water are a critical factor;
- support for other primary-sector activities (e.g. farming) within the local population;
- contributes to sustainable development on a remote island using renewable energies;
- improves the ecological image of the islands, boosting the development of eco-tourism.

Sustainability:
The expected lifetime of the whole system is over 20 years. The running costs of the desalination unit are very low, because it operates autonomously without personnel, while the energy and water required are provided for by nature.
A new company was founded as a spin-off from the project: the "Corporation for the Development of Renewable Energy Sources and the Production of Drinking Water". The company has been set up by the project partners, with patents and rights transferred to it. The newly-created company is in contact with venture capitalists, businesses and ship owners and hoped to start work on a bigger production facility before the end of 2007.

 


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