WIND

Over time, GSEII has advanced partnerships between island governments, private developers, and utilities that have the greatest potential to develop wind farms.  GSEII has also helped map island wind resources, form relevant policies and plans to mitigate barriers, and assist with project funding.  Unfortunately, GSEII’s efforts have not resulted in the construction of any wind turbines in its partner islands.  The only active wind farms in the Caribbean are in Jamaica and the Dominican Republic (both AOSIS SIDS).

To learn more about how wind energy works and its advantages and disadvantages visit ClimateLab.org

Read about the Jamaican Wind Farm on CIPORE.org

(case study coming)

SOLAR

There are two types of solar energy that GSEII projects support: Photovoltaic (PV) and Solar Thermal. PV cells convert sunlight directly into electricity and can be connected to the grid or serve one building or facility- which can be beneficial for remote islands.  Another advantage is that solar panels do not intrude on vistas like wind turbines which makes them more palatable to the hospitality industry.  Solar thermal technologies utilize the heat generated by the sun which is the backbone behind the GSEII Solar Hot Water Systems (SHWS) campaign. Solar water heaters collect solar power to heat water in storage tanks used in buildings rather than water boilers or electric systems. To promote the energy efficient solar hot water systems, GSEII developed a financing mechanism for them, provides financial training sessions, and is building consumer awareness of the availability and benefits of those systems.

Read about the 2007 Actions for the Development of the Marshall Island Renewable Energy (ADMIRE)  with plans to "light up the Marshall Islands" by 2010.

Read about the work OAS is doing with SHWS in Grenada

To learn more about PhotoVoltaics, Solar Hot Water Systems, and the advantages and disadvantages of solar energy, visit ClimateLab.org

(case study coming)

ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROJECTS

Since the founding of GSEII, one of the principal goals has been working to find ways to make energy use on member SIDS more efficient and more economical. In order to do this, GSEII partners have organized the distribution of energy efficient light bulbs to mitigate electricity bills, brought the earth home concept to the island of Grenada, co-sponsored the now annual energy week on St. Lucia, and performed energy audits in the dominant hotel industry on St. Lucia. Though the ultimate goal of GSEII is to help SIDS move away from fossil fuel use, these projects have improved quality of life for many of the citizens of these islands and have made reductions to fuel use, emissions, and energy bills.

For more information regarding the earth home, please visit SustainableDesign.com

(case studies coming)

GEOTHERMAL

GSEII’s work in geothermal energy has largely been part of the Organization of American States’ Eastern Caribbean Geothermal Energy Project (Geo-Caraibes). In pursuit of developing sustainable geothermal energy on the islands, OAS, working through GSEII, has held conferences and workshops, accessed funds for commercial developers to conduct exploratory drilling, conducted assessment and prefeasibility studies, and has prepared legislation, particularly on St. Kitts and Nevis, between developers and government authorities. Much work has been done on these islands in geothermal development with the hope that they can use this geothermal energy as an alternative to fossil fuel use.

For more information on geothermal energy, please visit ClimateLab.org

For more information on Geo-Caraibes, please visit OAS's Sustainable Energy Partnership for the Americas

BIOFUEL & BIOMASS TO ENERGY

Utilization of different types of biomass or waste products presents an interesting opportunity for business managers in Small Island Developing States, and as such GSEII and its partners are studying the development of biofuels and biomass-to-energy systems. Through a diverse array of projects ranging from coconut biofuels to a landfill gas to energy project, GSEII is able to capitalize on the abundance of biological by-products to create clean energy. GSEII has conducted several feasibility studies on these islands and has worked with local stakeholders to determine whether these bio-energy sources are practical or applicable for the various islands.

SUSTAINABLE ENERGY PLANS / NATIONAL ENERGY POLICIES

Assisting partner islands with National Energy Policies and Sustainable Energy Plans is GSEII’s major method of removing political barriers to RE and EE projects.  Working on a national level, GSEII partners with island governments to develop and implement these policies and plans.  GSEII has worked on multiple islands to write policies where none existed, update and improve old ones, or compile plans for SIDS which only had policies in place.

SEP and NEPs help identify activities to increase sustainable energy use and outlined the appropriate policies for their implementation.  NEPs (the policies) are the goals and targets; for instance, to: “increase the use of renewable energy to 20% of total energy production by 2020.”  The SEPs are the specific ways (the plan) that policies can be realized such as: “the government is to facilitate acquisition of land for the wind farm planned by the national utility on the east coast.”

The plans have and continue to identify regulatory and incentive measures, develop targets and timetables for action, encourage the development of industry capability and partners for project design and implementation, and identify the need for assistance in securing financing and investment sources.

In some countries, GSEII has also conducted progress reviews of NEP / SEP projects.

Visit the OAS's Caribbean Sustainable Energy Program to read more about OAS's work with SEP/NEP

last updated July 8, 2010