NGO Alofa Tuvalu Finalizes First Renewable Energy Objective

TIDC July 23, 2007
Brian Cannon

With hopes to turning Tuvalu into an example of sustainable development that others can emulate, construction of the first ever biogas digester on a coral island has been completed, according to a press release by the Non-government Organization (NGO) Alofa Tuvalu.

The unit is located on Amatuku, a small islet of Funafuti, located just north of Tegako and Fogafale. Amatuku is the home of the Tuvalu Maritime Training Institute, and the plan is to make the school completely self-sustainable.

Left: Biogas digester and piggery on Amatuku

The biogas digester is a 6 cubic metre fixed dome Carmatec type, and uses manure from about 60 pigs to produce gas for cooking stoves. The operation of the digestor was launched in mid-June.

Carmatec Biogas Digester, similar to the one built on Amatuku.

Tuvaluans have shown great interest in the project. On April 13th, the opening workshop was attended by over 80 people on Funafuti. Tuvaluans being trained at the newly opened Tuvalu National Training Centre on renewable energy.

Gilliane Le Gallic, a documentary filmmaker, is president of Alofa Tuvalu, a Paris-based NGO group. Le Gallic co-produced the film Trouble in Paradise, which documented Tuvalu's plight as the first nation destined potentially to be wiped out by global warming. Afterwards, she had to get involved in finding solutions. In 2004, she and some partners formed Alofa Tuvalu with the Small Is Beautiful slogan. The complete project is a decade-long plan to assist Tuvaluans in making there country as self-sustainable as possible.