Each time there is a power outage, we ask ourselves what would happen one day if we no longer had this kind of service. We realize that, as humanity, we have become very dependent on electricity, which keeps everything “running.” This makes us think about alternative energy sources which not only provide us with a practical solution, but also shift us toward self-sustainability and more awareness about the current planetary situation, which is calling on us to collaborate in the environmental balance and benefit from what the universe offers us. In this case, we are speaking about solar energy.
In the Brotherhood Light-Community, in Cordoba, Argentina, there is an aspiration – just like in all the Light-Communities – of being able to implement this kind of alternative energy in as many ways as possible.
The climate of the area where it is located is dry throughout most of the year (rain tends to be more present during the summer), and the water service network of the cities doesn’t extend that far, which makes water a valuable and indispensable item. To supply this essential element in a correct and balanced way, each area of the Light-Community has a well that provides water for human consumption and watering the crops, being stored in reserve tanks to supply these basic needs during times of emergency.
In order to optimize the water supply service, very innovative and beneficial practices were instituted concerning pumping the well water and heating the water that supplies the homes.
First, in 2019, three solar-powered hot water tanks were installed in the area called “Brotherhood 2”, this being a water-heating system that uses solar energy for that purpose. Each has a capacity for 350 liters and provides hot water for six baths. The hot water tanks were placed on the roof of the rooms where there is most sunlight, and when it is cloudy, the water stays hot for approximately two further days. Also, this type of system has the option of using electricity as an alternative in the case of there being many continuously cloudy days.
Here we see the benefit in the capacity to store water in the tanks as a reserve, and the saving of energy, in addition to the fact that it doesn’t depend on any company to provide this element.
Next, also in the “Brotherhood 2” area, in 2021, a water pump was installed for extracting water from the well, powered by solar energy through solar panels, just like the hot water tanks. The panels were installed on the roof of the main house, since it’s a space where there is full sunlight, as well as being more protected and accessible. This mechanism is made up of a normal water pump with motor and rotor to pump from the well, but with a different type of energy to power it, which comes from the sun’s rays acquired by the panels.
An important detail is that this pump, with just a little solar energy, already begins to work; and in the case of being activated with electrical energy, functions with a low voltage of 90V, and can bear an overload of up to 300V, preventing it from burning out easily due to oscillations in voltage.
Among its characteristics, it’s worth mentioning that this system has an automatic turn-off if the level of the water table gets very low, and it can also pump up to 25,000 liters of water a day on minimum power.
Ajshalom, resident of the Light-Community and coordinator of the H2 area, comments: “I don’t see any disadvantages, just advantages. We save energy, fuel, we don’t depend on power outages to keep things running. And because the Community has reserve water tanks, we can go two or three days without sunlight and still have sufficient water stored to supply our basic needs.”
And he concludes: “We have already received warnings that at certain times we will no longer be able to count on electricity. The solar energy is here, available, and we must continue with this attitude of mind of implementing it further. We know that everything is very unstable on the planet and this situation is getting worse every day. Our intention is to continue to invest in this kind of energy so that everything continues to work fully in spite of these instabilities.”
We leave the reader with this impulse of going further in the use of alternative energy, knowing that the planet offers us all that we need. We just need to take a step in consciousness and be able to thus collaborate in practical solutions for balancing the environment.
