The Bishkek Center for the Rehabilitation of Homeless Children named after Petrushevsky is a specialized institution for the psychological and social rehabilitation of children and teenagers. It is in need of alternative energy sources due to a lack of material and energy resources, as well as weak budgeting for social sector facilities in the country. The ecological movement “BIOM” back in 2010, as part of the project “Renewable Energy Sources – New Opportunities for Kyrgyzstan,” provided the Center for the Rehabilitation of Homeless Children at the Bishkek City Hall with water heating collectors, solar stoves, and lanterns.
According to the coordinator of the new SPARE project “Energy Efficiency for a Stable Future,” Natalia Bogatova, ED “BIOM” signed an agreement for the installation and subsequent maintenance of the above-mentioned equipment for a period of 3 years. Even after the expiration of this period, technical specialists, with the support of “BIOM,” continue to provide technical expert support for the solar equipment. “The Center is state-subsidized,” says ED “BIOM” coordinator Natalia Bogatova, “and the solar collector system can effectively heat 500 liters of water and retain heat for a long time. This happens due to the thermos principle in the heating elements and does not incur costs.” “We are very grateful to the specialists of ED “BIOM,” as they have not left us without their attention throughout the operation of the solar vacuum collectors,” says Deputy Director of the Center for the Rehabilitation of Homeless Children Galina Anatolievna Bibikova, “This system is capable of converting solar energy into electrical and thermal energy. The solar collector allows heating water in household conditions using solar energy even in winter. However, it is not easy to find specialists for its maintenance, so we call BIOM at the slightest problem. Today our 500-liter water tank leaked, and our donors immediately came to our rescue.” According to the director of “Premium Stroy Compani,” Marat Yunusov, there is no service for maintaining equipment that runs on alternative energy sources in Bishkek. “It has long been said in the country about the need for the development of RES, and there are already examples of use by individual entrepreneurs and private individuals of solar equipment for heating rooms, for warming cold water, but no one has even thought about a service,” says Yunusov. “In the capital, there is only a service center for the maintenance of air conditioners and refrigerators, as well as washing machines,” says technical expert Pyotr Lebedenko, “but the demands of the time dictate the need to create a service for such equipment as well. One such 100-liter system costs $1000 and requires preventive maintenance at least once a month. Allowing amateurs to handle such expensive equipment is dangerous.” According to the educator of the Center, Anara Kadyralieva, it is very important that the solar installations at the Center operate without interruption. “Because it is not only very convenient, as there is always hot water in the dining room for washing dishes, as well as for handwashing, but it also significantly saves precious kilowatts,” says the educator. “The center also has a solar parabolic stove, donated by “BIOM” for cooking and heating water using the sun, and solar lamps that charge during the day and use the stored electricity to illuminate the Center’s territory at night.” “This allows us to solve part of the problems in providing thermal and electrical energy, which is very relevant during the heating season, as well as in the context of rising electricity tariffs. By personal example, the staff and students of the Center for the Rehabilitation of Homeless Children have confirmed that using solar energy is very beneficial, allows reducing the environmental burden, and contributes to the growth of ecological safety and the quality of life of the population,” said psychologist Alexander Pavlovich Rudometov. Reference: The ecological movement “BIOM” has been participating for several years in the implementation of the International SPARE program, which operates in Kyrgyzstan with the support of the Norwegian Society for the Conservation of Nature and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As part of the “Clean Energy” program, BIOM promotes energy efficiency ideas and the use of vacuum collectors at the local and national levels.
Text and photo: Irina Bayramukova
