A Haitian ‘ecodistrict:’ conceptual design for integrated, basic infrastructure for the commune of Léogâne

Current context

At the epicenter of the earthquake, the commune of Léogâne (population then, 130,000) sustained severe losses, with an estimated 93% of its buildings damaged (Eberhard et al. 2010) (Figure 1). While rubble has been substantially cleared, the few services that existed remain un-restored. Critical infrastructure needs to be comprehensively rebuilt. This poses an opportunity to consider progressive paradigms for utilities’ integration and management.

Official waste collection in Léogâne is non-existent. Most refuse is piled and periodically set on fire, a form of ‘local management (University of Notre Dame 2011a).’ Plastics, along with other household debris, are thrown askance and washed downstream, clogging drainage channels and canals. The town lacks sanitary systems for human and animal waste, and waterways are overrun with organic material, creating serious health hazards (Archibold 2012).

The existing electrical grid (servicing only a small portion of the community) has not functioned since the earthquake. While the government has promoted a plan to connect Léogâne to the national grid, nothing has transpired to date (University of Notre Dame 2011b). In July 2012, Electricité d'Haïti (EDH) and the Ministry for Public Works partnered with Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) to install a small microgrid serving 20,000 Léogâne residents, powered by diesel generators (Haiti - Energy 2012). The system is still not yet fully functional. Clinics, organizations and families with resources are left to run private generators with expensive, imported fuel. Few have been able to purchase solar panels. Throughout Haiti, lack of affordable energy limits employment, buying-power, access to education, opportunities, and investment capacity (Barjon 2011a). For a nation largely comprised of remote rural poor, a distributed energy plan realized with local natural resources could greatly improve the standard of living for much of Haiti’s population (OECD 2006a).

The water distribution in Léogâne is similarly problematic. During the 2008 hurricane season, the underground water supply system serving the town center was damaged and, without funding for repair, it has not functioned since (Piasecki 2013). Much of the population still struggles to access potable water. Those with means utilize private wells, while those without utilize shallow hand-dug wells, walk to a public water station or buy water in costly plastic pouches or other containers which are subsequently discarded. While the local water authority, DINEPA, has plans for restoring supply pipelines to the center, service to peripheral and rural areas will be limited to water kiosks (Rebuilding Léogâne Planning Workshop 2011a). The drainage system had been in a similar state of disrepair, but has recently been repaired through international aid. Much of the system, however, lies below sea level. Its drainage cannot be discerned, nor are the parties involved sharing operational plans (Piasecki 2013). Without transparency and local involvement progress is limited.

Transportation services are minimal and crude. Léogâne’s limited roadway system is in severely deteriorated condition (University of Notre Dame 2011c). Market activities choke the town’s central streets, limiting vehicle volume and speed (Shepard 2010). Roadbeds, rutted with puddles, have become vectors for mosquito nesting and water-borne illnesses. (Léogâne is a known center for mosquitos carrying lymphatic filariasis, which causes Elephantiasis.) Rural roadways are unpaved and intermittently overwhelmed by deluges, increasing the extent of erosion. To manage flooding, open drainage ditches flank roadways, posing significant hazards to unwary drivers. The lack of safe roadways also limits deployment of heavy equipment.

Large areas across Haiti have experienced severe environmental degradation. Overall, only 2% of the country remains forested (Library of Congress –Federal Research Division 2006). Both upland trees and coastal mangroves in this energy-impoverished landscape have been widely harvested for charcoal, the primary cooking fuel. Severe deforestation is also endemic in and around Léogâne, along the coastal areas and into its surrounding hills and mountains. No longer stabilized by root systems, upland soil erodes during tropical downpours. It overwhelms rivers and streams, fanning out downstream as it washes into the ocean. Routine flooding takes out roadbeds and creates impassable conditions across the alluvial plain in and around the town center.

Tropical floods have decimated the once confining banks of the Momance and Rouyonne Rivers, severely damaging not only riparian habitat, but also the deltas and estuaries. While natural causes exist for coastal habitat degradation (including the earthquake’s seismic uplift that drained tidal marsh, exposed sub-tidal sea grass causing loss of coral reef and mangrove habitat), (Koehler & Mann 2011) anthropogenic impacts compound the damage through the massive influx of river sedimentation and the harvesting of mangroves for fuel (Rebuilding Léogâne Planning Workshop 2011b). Sited within the Caribbean’s well-trafficked “Hurricane Alley,” Léogâne’s developed land area, along with its once bio-rich estuaries and coastal coral reefs, has become especially vulnerable to rising sea levels. Earthquake damage, coupled with environmental degradation, has triggered negative feedback loops, limiting local economic recovery. Practical opportunities for combined solutions to these interconnected problems have driven the integrative design of this proposed ecodistrict. (Ecodistricts are an urban planning term for sustainable development in a larger region where the ecological footprint is considered in planning and resources are used judiciously (Metzger and Olsson 2013)).

Holistic design for synergies across sectors: Léogâne as model for rural utilities

Plans for Léogâne’s redevelopment include environmental remediation and optimization of material and resource flows across the energy, water, agricultural and transportation sectors. Investment in one sector, per the plan, creates the stability needed to initialize another; this is integral to the final outcome and can’t be undertaken successfully unless the supporting sectors are in place. The new paradigms for the plan rely upon the cascading of energy, water or residual resources extracted from nature across these sectors. Through colocation and coupling of complementary components, the program will capitalize on designed-in exchanges among multiple system elements. For instance, floodwater control may also be used to generate energy, irrigate crops and improve water quality. Agricultural and municipal solid waste can provide energy and heat for industrial processes while returning beneficial soil amendments. The vision entails closing loops to create a self-sufficient, holistic system, one that captures synergies, creates economic efficiencies, and eliminates waste. Promoting synergies between economic gains and social infrastructure helps to amplify benefits, ensuring that real gains are made in all sectors for the poorest and most vulnerable people (OECD 2006b). The design also promotes colocation of complementary entities such as industry, hospitals, clinics and schools, allowing these entities to take advantage of infrastructural outputs and/or contribute inputs. Overall, the plan reduces reliance upon most ‘first world’ carbon-intensive systems, substituting for the most part technologies that can, after training, be constructed and managed by local labor. In addition to new jobs, the scheme also entails alternative employment opportunities for agriculture, agroforestry, and aquaculture industries envisioned for the commune, along with other forms of local enterprise.

Léogâne is an ideal locus for reconstruction as its landscape mirrors that of much of Haiti, with its steep rural mountains, rivers and streams, and its populous alluvial plains. Successes in Léogâne could be used as templates for integrated development across rural Haiti where conditions are similar. Interventions in Léogâne were therefore designed along just such a typical corridor running from the mountainous uplands in the South, through the more populous alluvial plain and down to the coast on the North. The area is bounded on either side by the Momance River and the Rouyonne River, both of which have large seasonal variations.

Local efforts to guide reconstruction along this mountain-to-coast transect will help to inform placement of the system’s modular elements. Working components will be sited at locations with specific relationships to both natural resources and existing settlements (Figure 2). For example, the upland placement of wind turbines captures higher wind speeds. Photovoltaic arrays, interspersed with agriculture, occupy the middle range and power the pumping of water from a nearby receiving reservoir to a holding reservoir above for the pumped-hydro-storage generation system. Within this region too, biomass salvaged from agriculture will be used to supplement energy generation. All along this corridor, riparian resources will be stabilized for flood control, infrastructure protection, and for improved water quality for farming and aquaculture.

A base load generated by a pumped-hydro storage system (PHS) will power the industrial, civic and commercial sector. Explained below, the PHS is a generation system networked for reliability and redundancy. The distribution of electrical services also relies on an integrated delivery mechanism: a set of service points or ‘‘nodes’’ (Figure 3). This approach standardizes and maximizes the reach of new services. In the town center, for example, nodes serve neighborhoods, public plazas, the markets and other civic functions. Nodal locations will be linked by a newly paved road network. These stations will also serve as outlets for clean drinking water and as drop-off locales for waste collection. Here, cellphones may be recharged, as well as auxiliary LED lamps. Organic and solid waste dropped off at these service points (incentivized through rebates) will be carted to a nearby waste processing (biodigestion) plant site for augmentation of the power-supply. Economies obtained from colocation and simultaneous construction of these services will make the best use of limited resources until more are at-hand to finally extend services to individual dwellings. The nodal service points create an integrated web of services linking new and existing infrastructure. A few are designed to incorporate auxiliary community services such as ‘‘electronic cafes.’’ A number of ‘‘nodes as community-hubs’’ are also planned for the town square, on school campuses, clinics and at the hospital.

Proposal components

Generation of renewable energy

Léogâne’s renewable power system (with diesel back-up) will have its base load generated by PHS, powered by distributed wind and solar PV farms of 10 MW and 8.6 MW respectively. Electricity produced by these renewables will pump a quantity of water from the lower to the upper reservoir, where it is stored until released on demand (Figure 4). Passed through turbines, it generates the base-load for the microgrid. The PHS effectively acts as the storage battery and load-leveling device for the overall system (one of GEMi co-founder Daniel C. Gregory’s many primary organizing concepts). Léogâne’s PHS system is sized at a 10 MW, with a 180-meter head. The upper and lower reservoirs each have a water storage volume of 157,000 m³. The closed-loop flow of PHS water through surface-mounted pipes will not interfere with local riverine ecology; however, these must be placed in stabilized areas. For 8–10 hours during the day, electricity will reliably feed local micro-grids serving key industrial, commercial and residential locations, as well as some outlying areas. This type of system, which minimizes transmission losses, could serve much of Haiti where mountainous regions and streams are adjacent to urbanized areas.

For system resiliency, the PHS system is reliant on multiple, complementary sources with intermittent energy supply. While Haiti’s North and West Departments enjoy dependable wind velocities, Léogâne’s flatlands do not reliably produce sufficient wind speeds. Placement of wind farms at higher inland elevations in the commune will better take advantage of seasonal and diurnal on- and off-shore breeze. One or more solar farms comprised of commercially available PV panels will provide electricity to the PHS during the 11–13 hours of daylight. Excess power, not needed for water pumping, will augment the microgrid. Floating PV arrays are placed spanning across each of the PHS water reservoirs, comprising part of the generation system. Floating on pontoons, these arrays shade the water, reducing evaporation. The water in turn lowers the arrays’ temperatures, improving their efficiency. The arrangement also avoids unnecessary displacement of agricultural land.

Placed on opposite hilltops at elevations of 600+ meters, a total of eighty-six 100 kW wind turbines will complement the solar farm as primary feed for the pumped-storage system. These medium size turbines, selected in part for easier transport on primitive roads, are supported by lattice towers that provide greater stability in this earthquake- and hurricane-prone region.

The GEM model assumes a long-term phased approach to 24/7 power. The electrical consumption planned per household is calculated initially as quite minimal; it covers basic energy services, allowing for night illumination, and the operation of small pumps for drinking water, radio and other small appliances including cell phone charging. Community nodes and hubs are more energy intense and require power sufficient for small refrigerators, laptop computers, basic medical equipment, and some income producing productive uses. In all, it is estimated that basic household services, along with commercial, community activities (schools and clinics) could be provided for on average just 50 kilowatt-hours per person per year, (Dilip Ahuja et al. 2008) for an annual project total of 5,000 MW hours.

Challenges and next steps

This proposal was built around the regulation of distributed renewable energy with the pumped-hydro storage as its lynchpin. To operate effectively, local environmental conditions must be stabilized. In addition construction must be staged to maximize resources. There are technological challenges as well. Pipelines must be protected from corrosion. The PHS water being exchanged requires filtration. The upland reservoirs will also need a measure of protection against sediment accumulation, a serious consequence of deforestation.

Successful ecological restoration will be contingent on temporary or permanent land acquisition. Stable administration and governance are essential for the necessary adjustments to land ownership and/or the creation of easements, complex social and financial transactions for Haiti. For fair distribution of services, placement of infrastructure assets cannot be done piecemeal, but rather systematically and according to a codified system such as GEM. Implementation of GEM’s uniformity and modularity will require local, departmental and national cooperation.

A sophisticated understanding of local values and culture will be critical to program delivery. Particularly in Haiti, success or failure will depend upon the quality of local engagement as well as a commitment to local employment. The plan envisions an extensive stakeholder engagement process, which develops infrastructure based on input of local inhabitants, while conveying information about consumer responsibilities and costs. Long-term maintenance of these systems will demand skilled administrative and enforcement personnel. Therefore, a central strategy of GEMi, which will be necessary to implement this proposal, is to help train a workforce for the systems. Creating general awareness of the link between natural resources and infrastructure services is critical. This, along with technical training are GEMi cornerstones, not just for sustainable infrastructure, but ultimately sector-wide to balance short-term needs for water, food and shelter with investment in long-term. Given Haiti’s history of electricity ‘‘piracy,’’ it is also imperative to maintain the security of infrastructural components. The logistics of installing, maintaining and protecting expensive alternative energy infrastructure demand ongoing staff and security presence.

Creating and maintaining local political will and the capacity to coordinate with national ministries and other resources constitute the primary challenges to the plan’s implementation. In-depth meetings with local leaders at all levels of governance and direct engagement with community members will be essential. Education will also be pivotal for acceptance of the paradigm shift involved in cross-sector integration. In many ways, Haitians are ready for this transition, given the failure of many infrastructure investments to date. A related challenge will also be first world buy-in to new infrastructural regimes implied by the integrated and autonomous ecodistrict—one designed with context sensitivity, with local input and for local self-reliance.

Financing will be an obstacle for integrated infrastructure systems, as it requires coordination of resources and personnel from across what are traditionally ‘siloed’ ministries. Funds sourced from the international community are also needed for the initial outlays, while the program embeds plans for self-sufficiency after initial support is withdrawn. Estimations of lifecycle costs and comparisons between conventional fossil fuel (coal or gas) and the proposed alternative energy systems are not meaningful here since all fuel sources must be imported by this island nation. While currently, PetroCaribe provides a very generous rate to Haiti that allows for a 25 year payback period with 2% interest, (Jacome 2011), the Government of Haiti lacks sufficient credit to ensure a competitive fuel supply for the long-term. Costs for solar PV farms installed in Haiti would likely incur a 30 to 40% premium over U.S. costs due to charges for shipping, tariffs (Gregory 2011b) and transport to hard-to-access locations. Installation of a smart-grid energy network is more competitive for Haiti (as other emerging economies that lack existing energy infrastructure) and would provide a significant leap forward for this energy-impoverished nation. Biomass digesters are also likely to be cost effective given the tandem social and economic benefits of also providing a solid waste management system over and above a supplementary energy system. The cost benefits for natural systems regeneration are significant. The outlay for upland ecological restoration is likely to be more than offset by eliminating future loss of life and property from seasonal and hurricane flooding. The natural systems afford a measure of resilience where none currently exists.