Improvement of rural people livelihood
in cold desert areas of the Western Himalayas

PSH : Passive Solar Housing the Western Himalayas

On going activities

 

Benefiting from solar energy, the main natural resource of the area, the project proposes to integrate energy efficiency in domestic housing, combining passive solar architecture (attached greenhouses, double glazing or tromb wall) and thermal insulation with local materials, to improve access to reliable, sustainable and affordable energy.

 

The rural population, 85% of the whole population, is socially homogenous and is energy vulnerable. The targeted group is the rural households, selected by the community, able to replicate energy efficiency initiatives, women's group or individuals, especially youth, with basic handicraft skills. The project enables 100 households to incorporate energy efficiency in new or retrofitted domestic houses. In 2006 and 2007, it supports 20 households in Leh area, whose houses have been damaged by 2006 summer floods, and 20 households in Spiti, as a pilot project.

 

Thanks to energy efficient houses, impact studies show that fuel consumption is reduced by 60%, temperatures of rooms are always above 10°C and the inner air is smokeless. Cold-related illness is reduced, and households double their handicraft production. 3.5 tons CO2 per household are yearly saved, that contributes to mitigate global warming.