Residents of Pa Deng, a village in Thailand have stumbled on the most organic, renewable source of cow manure for generating energy. The second largest consumer of energy in South East Asia, Thailand that has always been using fossil fuels excessively. The usage is primarily dedicated to flashy cities such as Bangkok and obscure villages like Pa Deng never get to share a slice of the power pie. However, the country is also briskly investing in clean-energy burning fuels and could emerge as a 100% clean-energy user by 2050.
Campaigning for renewable energy sources and awareness on usage is also on full steam. This energy from- faeces method also came about in a casual chat. Pa Deng has about 100 families and has no access to state’s power lines. Solar power panels that were installed a decade ago broke down. The villagers tried to reach city folks to learn to fix the broken panels, and learnt about other renewable energy sources too, the energy thus produced was not sufficient.
Every day the villagers had to go down to the forest to chop wood for cooking. The method is simple: the animal manure and other organic waste are packed in polyester sacks. After the microbes break down the source, methane fills up the sacks and is used for cooking purposes. So far, only a fifth of the village population is hooked to the idea. With no government electricity aid in sight, soon, the method is expected to catch up on the rest.