Wind Turbines Light Up a Floating Village

On the roofs of boats owned by 10 households in the floating village in Bai Giua (Middle Shoal) by  the Red River (Tu Lien Ward, Hanoi) stand special wind blades made of red plastic buckets. The humble electric generators designed by architect Le Vu Cuong have brought clean energy to ease the life of poor people there, especially during scorching summer days.
The floating village by the Red River has nearly 20 households whose main livelihoods are pottery trading or scrap collecting. For more than 20 years, they have lived on old iron houseboats. They have to buy electricity at a high price due to the extra cost for electric wires.


The floating village by the Red River has nearly 20 households whose main livelihoods are pottery trading.
For years they have had to buy electricity at the price of 4,000-5,000VND/kWh.
Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP



Architect Le Vu Cuong, who devises the mini wind energy system. Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP


Electricity generated from wind generators are stored in batteries to use for lighting. Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP


Wind blades are humble plastic buckets. Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP


Wind turbines are assembled in the boathouse. Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP


Slight wind can easily spin plastic buckets. Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP


A wind energy system consists of turbines, a steel pole, energy panels, wind blades, control system,
storage batteries and a 9W LED light. In the photo: Energy panels are place on the roof.
Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP



Wind turbines are installed in 10 boathouses in Tu Lien Ward. Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP

Aware of the difficulties of these people, architect Le Vu Cuong, Director of the 1516 Green Interior Architectural Company Limited, and his partners came up with the daring idea of applying a wind energy system in the area. “I had studied and learned about small scale wind energy systems applied in urban areas before going to the village to examine the situation. Using plastic buckets which are cheap, available and replaceable to make blades is a reasonable choice,” he said.

He also sought funding for the project from Live & Learn Vietnam, PLAN International Vietnam and Australian Aid and received funds from Live & Learn Vietnam for a pilot system to generate electricity using wind energy for 10 households.
Plastic buckets are used to make the blades of wind turbines that help create electricity and light the old iron houseboats.

From then on, Le Vu Cuong has made regular visits to the village to measure the indexes of the turbines and check if the system works well. He and his partners are working together to generate a larger output so that people can use wind energy to run fans, cookers or fridges.



Wind energy is used to light a 9W LED light with the equivalent brightness to a 60W light bulb.
Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP



A small light using wind energy can light up the space of the boathouse. Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP


Dung, a local resident, acknowledges that the wind energy system is useful.
Each month her family saves up tens of thousands dong thanks to it. Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP



Electricity generated is enough to light a space with the radius of 2m, easing the life on the boathouse.
Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP



All household appliances are packed in a boat. Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP


Besides using wind generators, people in the floating village grow vegetables themselves.
Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP



Besides using wind generators, people in the floating village grow vegetables themselves.
Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP



A wind turbine system is expected to help cut down the electricity bills of people in the floating village.
Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP



An outdoor gym on the boathouse’s roof where wind turbine are installed. Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP


The mini wind energy generators are gifts for poor people and contribute to the fight against climate change.
Photo: Tran Cong Dat/VNP



The wind energy system designed by Le Vu Cuong runs when the wind spins the plastic buckets and the turbines to generate electricity. Electricity will be stored in batteries and used to light a LED light of 9 Watts which has the equivalent brightness  of a 60-Watt light bulb.

 
By Tran Cong Dat

From street kid to famous photographer

From street kid to famous photographer

Photographer Tran The Phong is well-known for his photos, featuring the daily lives around him and in places where he travels.

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