The charcoal briquetting technology (CBT) of the Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau (ERDB) is bringing livelihood benefit to a marginalized community in Taguig City.
After an intensive skills training, a venture has come out of ERDB’s CBT, generating livelihood for persons with disability (PWD) who are members of the Samahan ng May Kapansanan sa Taguig (SAMAKAT).
ERDB Executive Director Dr. Henry A. Adornado expressed satisfaction that ERDB’s research on the production of charcoal briquette has reached a success level for small communities as that of SAMAKAT.
The PWDs are now renting a small charcoal briquette factory in an estimated 200 square meter site in Taguig City.
“We’re glad that this success story can inspire many other grassroot communities to venture into charcoal briquetting. If persons with disabilities can succeed in it, why can’t anyone else?” said Adornado.
Members of SAMAKAT are using ERDB’s charcoal briquetting technology as an environment friendly way to generate income. To start charcoal production, SAMAKAT acquired the ERDB-developed machinery through the financial assistance of Pondo Pinoy.
The machineries include carbonizer, mixer, briquettor, and dryer. Charcoal briquetting has generated livelihood for 12 PWDs for tasks such as raw material gathering and simple machinery operation.
Women PWDs also get hired for packaging. A 24-piece briquettte is sold at P20 per pack and generates an income of around P100 per day for each PWD, according to SAMAKAT President, Mario Galvez.
SAMAKAT now supplies the charcoal briquettes to nearby markets and Catholic Church diocese communities.
“Charcoal briquetting has given new lives for people like us. Now, persons with disability can look up because they have a contribution to society,” said Galvez, himself an orthopedic PWD.
A training session on producing environment-friendly charcoal was held three years ago by ERDB researcher Santiago Baconguis Jr. Engr.
Baconguis introduced the techniques on how to come up with charcoal briquettes from various biodegradable waste materials.
Among the waste materials that SAMAKAT uses are from buko juice merchants and water hyacinth (water lily) directly taken from the Laguna Lake.
The DENR-ERDB’s CBT is an excellent approach to solid waste management for many local government units, according to ERDB researcher Esmeralda Andres who has actively encouraged potential technology adopters in NCR.
Compliance to the Solid Waste Management Act has been a challenge for many municipal, city and provincial governments despite its passage more than 10 years ago.
And ERDB could be of assistance in managing their wastes using DENR-ERDB’s CBT.
“We are open to sharing the technology to any sector interested in learning from us. We provide trainings and free demo as part of our collaborative program in technology transfer and extension,” said Adornado. ###
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Melody Mendoza Aguiba
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