Image
Renewable Energies in a farm contributes to reduce vulnerable people
About this good practice
Published on 11 August 2021
Spain
Andalucía
This is the good practice's implementation level. It can be national, regional or local.
Faced with the high number of people in a situation or at risk of social exclusion, Caritas Seville promotes and coordinates its employment insertion company Bioalverde, which through the management and ecological agricultural exploitation (20 hectares) manages to close a cycle that begins with the need of the vulnerable and ends with the coverage of this need.
In 2018, they detected that the use of irrigated land allowed them to increase the number of contracted staff and therefore training places. This good practice focuses on the PV installation to pump water from the well for irrigation, which supplies more than 92% of the energy required to allows hire more poor people and alleviate the energy poverty situation.
It consists of the following steps:
1. Training in skills and organic farming for vulnerable people every year to create a pool of potential new recruits to the company.
2. Reinsertion of vulnerable people into the labour market so that they can gain experience and to make room for potential new incorporations. Development of organic farming with renewable energy supply (fair and sustainable consumption).
3. Supply of food to social kitchens attended by vulnerable people.
In 2018, they detected that the use of irrigated land allowed them to increase the number of contracted staff and therefore training places. This good practice focuses on the PV installation to pump water from the well for irrigation, which supplies more than 92% of the energy required to allows hire more poor people and alleviate the energy poverty situation.
It consists of the following steps:
1. Training in skills and organic farming for vulnerable people every year to create a pool of potential new recruits to the company.
2. Reinsertion of vulnerable people into the labour market so that they can gain experience and to make room for potential new incorporations. Development of organic farming with renewable energy supply (fair and sustainable consumption).
3. Supply of food to social kitchens attended by vulnerable people.
Expert opinion
The benefits of installing solar parks on agricultural fields are endless. In the case at hand, the energy produced by PVs enables greater access to underground water which allows an organic farm to obtain more vegetables harvested by workers at risk of poverty and social exclusion who, for this precise reason, receive specific training thanks to the partnership between the farm and a charitable organization. The skills training scheme showcased has a great interregional learning value. Its transferability to other European regions where green jobs of this kind could be created is undisputed. Moreover, local and regional policymakers should also be made aware of the growing scientific evidence (among others, see e.g., https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364032121003531) on the benefits for pollinators and wider biodiversity stemming from the installation of solar parks on farmlands, which should also be a great argument in favour of their deployment. Finally, because of water stress exacerbated by climate change, policymakers should also be encouraged to promote as much as possible the reuse of reclaimed water in their territories. This would contribute to reducing the pressure on scarce underground water resources and would be aligned with the latest EU policy and legislative initiatives, chiefly the new Circular Economy Action Plan and the recently adopted minimum quality requirements for water reuse (Regulation (EU) n º 2020/74).
Resources needed
- PV installation: €18,000, financed by ENDESA funds.
- Energy feasibility study of the project and responsible for the supply, implementation and assembly of the solar photovoltaic installation and accessories: Energía Sin Fronteras through its volunteers.
- Energy feasibility study of the project and responsible for the supply, implementation and assembly of the solar photovoltaic installation and accessories: Energía Sin Fronteras through its volunteers.
Evidence of success
In August 2019, 13 people hired full time and assisted by two social workers for their insertion and improvement of socio-labour skills. In terms of production, this irrigation expansion has provided us with a two-fold increase in production and the purchase of our products by our members has grown by 177%, allowing the incorporation of 2 more workers for each hectare of irrigated land.
In October 2019, 48 people trained, who have completed the course on skills and organic farming.
In October 2019, 48 people trained, who have completed the course on skills and organic farming.
Potential for learning or transfer
The forecast for 2020-2023 is to reach 23 people hired and 80 people trained thanks to the continuous expansion of irrigated hectares (2 ha/year) with a corresponding increase in demand for production and therefore employment and training.
Caritas, after seeing the successful results of solar energy, is considering using this technology in other buildings such as training centres and shelters belonging to Caritas. Furthermore, with the new Spanish legislation (2019) that favours self-consumption, the training in ecological agriculture could be extended to include solar photovoltaic installers and thus include this labour reinsertion in the cycle mentioned in the description.
Of course, this good practice can be replicated in any European region with sun and countryside.
Caritas, after seeing the successful results of solar energy, is considering using this technology in other buildings such as training centres and shelters belonging to Caritas. Furthermore, with the new Spanish legislation (2019) that favours self-consumption, the training in ecological agriculture could be extended to include solar photovoltaic installers and thus include this labour reinsertion in the cycle mentioned in the description.
Of course, this good practice can be replicated in any European region with sun and countryside.
Further information
Website
Good practice owner
You can contact the good practice owner below for more detailed information.
Organisation
Bialverde - Caritas Sevilla
Spain
Andalucía
Contact
Project Officer