What is a Micro Hydro?
Micro hydro is a term used for hydroelectric power installations involding a small dammed pool at the top of a waterfall with several hundred feet of pipe leading to a small generator housing. They are often installed in third world countries in areas too remote to be included in a regular power provider's grid. Typically, it produces up to 100KW, although this one is Sarangani will generate 10KW, just enough to power a corn mill.



What determines an ideal micro hydro location?

• water volume and vertical drop from the water source (usually a waterfall) to the turbine location - the combination of volume and drop height determine the viability of a micro hydro. A fall of water as short as five feet with a volume of a gallon of water per second can be a sensible supplement to any other energy source.
• proximity of the waterfall to the village - too far and the project gets more expensive (eg - more pipes, more digging, etc.)
• accessibility of the village - while location is off-grid, location should still allow for hauling of consruction materials, capital equipment, etc.
• villagers willing to be stakeholders of the project - in Dlumay, the villagers of Dlumay and Datalnay agreed to provide labor

Where is it?
Dlumay, the nearest sitio from the micro hydro is perhaps the most isolated sitio in the Province of Sarangani. It's nestled almost in the middle of the mountain range flanked by Sarangani Bay to the west and Davao Gulf in the east. From Manila, it takes a plane ride to Gen San in Mindanao followed by land transpport then on foot.


B'laan Tribe
The main beneficiary of this project are the B'laans, who inhabit the cluster sitios of Datalnay and Dlumay. As stakeholders, they provide labor which they delegate amongst themselves.

The Bilaans are probably the most marginalized of Mindanao's indigenous people. With an illiteracy rate of 98%, they rank the poorest in the country (type 5). Government aid never reaches them, and other municipal offices don't even know the exact whereabouts of these villages.

By 1910, some 1,500 Bilaans lived on Sarangani. Because of the mountainous terrain and environment, houses were separated by long stretches. Over the years, settlers from the Visayan islands came to Mindanao and occupied the coastal plains and foothills on the western coast of the Davao Gulf, which was traditionally part of Bilaan country. Gradually, the Bilaan were pushed deeper back into the interior, without much resistance on their part.

Getting there from Gen San to Sitio Dlumay (click on icons to view popup images)
Time: 10 hours
Distance: 39.2 kilometers

Timelines

2008
• September: A multi-stakeholdership with LGU, NGO and PO was formalized by a Memorandum of Agreement
• August- October: Procurement of construction materials including purchase and hauling.
• November: Engineering construction (visit 1)
  • Project planning with community of construction schedules and activities
  • Actual groundbreaking and lay-outing of intake, headrace canal and silt basin
  • Construction of intake
• December:
  • Community works on excavation, channel construction and silt basin
  • 3 croppings of corn fail, resulting in a food crisis
2009
• February: Engineering construction (visit 2)
  • construction of silt basin
  • Assembly of headrace pipe (spiral HDPE)
  • Layout of forebay
• March -May:
  • Hauling of materials
  • Excavation of forebay
  • Processing and shipping of donated turbine equipment
• June: Engineering construction (visit 3)
  • Layout of powerhouse
• July - August:
  • A landslide hits the siltbasin
  • Community works on forebay completion, powerhouse structure and hauling
  • turbine is shipped to Gen san and transported to project site
  • generator and connecting equipment is also transported
  • funding secured for milling component
• September: Engineering construction (visit 4)
  • Electromechanicals foundation setting and construction of powerhouse floor
  • tailrace construction
  • installation of turbine, electromechanicals
  • penstock layout and jointing
• October:
  • Community constructs anchor blocks and slope stabilization
  • hauling of milling equipment
• November: Engineering construction (visit 5)
  • weir construction
  • testing and commissioning of MHP system
  • installation of milling equipment
  • operations and management training

Reader Comments:

Roy Canseco
(Jul 15, 2009) wow. compliments to whoever made the webpage. it made me look forward to doing a project with SIBAT even more.

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Gallery of June 8-16 Vist (powerhouse layout)