Project Manual

Prepared For:

Project Manual - Climate Change Adaptation Pilot

SOURCE® Hydropanel Project

Caye Caulker, Belize

28 February, 2020

Environmental Resources Management 1776 I Street, N.W. Washington, DC 20006

www.erm.com

Climate Change Division Inter-American Development Bank 1300 New York Ave, NW Washington, DC 20577

Project Manual TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acronyms

1. General Information

2. Project Context and Background

2.1 CCSIP Program Background

2.2 Pilot Project Selection

3. Elements of the Integrated Climate Resilience Program Pilot

4. Climate Change Adaptation Pilot Project Implementation

4.1 Implementation

4.2 Water Quality

4.3 System Performance

Annex A – SOURCE® User Guide

Project Manual

Acronyms

CBA Cost-Benefit Analysis

CEA Cost-Effectiveness Analysis

CCCCC Caribbean Community Climate Change Center

CCSIP Caribbean Climate Smart Islands Program

CCVC Caye Caulker Village Council

ECA Economics of Climate Adaptation

ERM Environmental Resources Management, Inc.

IDB Inter-American Development Bank

MCA Multi-Criteria Analysis

NEMO National Emergency Management Organization

WHO World Health Organization

Project Manual

1. General Information

1.1 Name of Pilot Project: Climate Change Adaptation Project – Integrated Climate Resilience Program

1.2 Beneficiary Country Belize (Caye Caulker)

1.3 Project Duration 30 Months

1.4 Starting Date July 05, 2016

1.5 Project Value (US$) $ 216,260 (BZ$ 432,520) Includes both financial and in-kind contributions

1.6 Primary Contact at Eddie Herrera – Tourism Officer Ministry of Tourism Telephone: +501 227 2801

Email: eddie.herrera@tourism.gov.bz URL: http://tourism.gov.bz/

1.7 Primary IDB Contact Gerard Alleng, CCSIP Program Manager Telephone: +1 202 623 2686 Email: gerarda@iadb.org

National IDB Contact Casandra Rogers, IDB Country Representative Telephone: +501 221 5324 Email: casandrar@iadb.org

Gian Vasquez, IDB Local Office Contact Telephone: +501 221 5324 Email: gianv@iadb.org

1.8 ERM Project Partner Venkat S. Kolluru, Partner-in-Charge Telephone: +1 484 913 0390 Email: venkat.kolluru@erm.com

ERM Project Manager William A. Schew, Project Manager Telephone: +1 484 913 0463 Email: william.schew@erm.com

1.9 Partner Entity: Caye Caulker Seleny Villanueva Pott, Chair CCVC Village Council Telephone: +501 226 0043 Email: cayecaulkervillagecouncil@gmail.com

Project Manual

1.10 Zero Mass Water Contact Nate DeFlavio Telephone: +1 802 224 6116 Email: nate@zeromasswater.com

1.11 Caye Solar – Technical Partner Lucas Gana Telephone: +501 532 9084 Email: Lucas@cayesolar.com

Project Manual 2. Project Context and Background

2.1 CCSIP Program Background

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) is financing the Caribbean Climate Smart Islands Program (CCSIP) for Caye Caulker, Belize, which participated in a previous phase of the CCSIP named Caribbean Carbon Neutral Tourism Project (RG-T1640). As a result of that study, activities were being expanded and adaptation to climate change was being added. These additional activities comprise the following three main components as part of the CCSIP:

• Component 1 (C1): Assessment of mitigation options to support the transition to low carbon pathways. Objectives of C1 included updates and expansion of the island’s Greenhouse Gases (GHG) inventory; analyses of potential mitigation interventions from a cost-benefit and commercial potential perspective to produce a mitigation portfolio of activities; and the implementation of a mitigation pilot project.

• Component 2 (C2): Assessment of adaptation options to support the transition to climate resilient pathways. The general objective of C2 was to demonstrate ways of transitioning to climate resilient development pathway utilizing a pilot project on Caye Caulker. Other objectives of C2 were:

o Economics of Climate Change study, which informed the development of prioritized portfolio of adaptation options; and

o The implementation of one adaptation pilot project.

• Component 3 (C3): This component was initiated once C1 and C2 were initiated and it included the marketing and communications plans. The main objectives of C3 were: the design of a communications strategy to disseminate results and create awareness tailored for the different audiences of the project; and the development and implementation of an action plan for the strategy to market Caye Caulker as low carbon and climate resilient tourism destination.

This document is the project manual for the pilot project for Component 2 – Adaptation to climate change.

2.2 Pilot Project Selection

As part of Component 2 “Assessment of Adaptation Options to Support the Transition to Climate Change Resilient Pathways” of the Caribbean Climate Smart Islands Program (CCSIP), ERM conducted an Economics of Climate Adaptation (ECA) study of potential climate change adaptation measures that could be implemented on Caye Caulker, Belize. Following the ECA, ERM developed a Prioritization Report that presented a prioritized ranking of potential climate

Project Manual resilience projects for the island. The prioritization was based on a benefit-cost analysis of the projects as well as a multi-criteria scoring of qualitative project attributes (e.g., Importance, No-Regret, etc.). The weights for the multi-criteria analysis (MCA) were developed at stakeholder workshops.

Based on the projected outcome for each metric and for each project and the weights developed by the stakeholder group, ERM estimated a total score for each project. The top three scoring projects were chosen for review and selection by the stakeholders. These projects were: 1) Mangrove Restoration – hydrologic restoration or planting; 2) Hurricane Shelter Improvements; and 3) an Integrated Climate Resilience Program (Table 1).

Table 1. Descriptions of Finalist Projects

Mangrove Restoration (Hydrologic/Planting)

Mangrove preservation/restoration is considered a soft and permeable coastal defense structure and one of the most effective forms of coastal protection from wave action, off-shore currents and coastal erosion. These structural measures may be successful but they would require additional studies such as coastal and sediment transport to better understand the dynamics of marine currents, waves, and sediments to design structures that can resist all these forces and do not generate additional effects.

Shelter Improvements

The Caye Caulker Roman Catholic School was identified as the only on-island hurricane shelter that could be improved by updating facilities and equipment. Implementing an early warning system in the event of storm surges and the establishment of primary and secondary emergency routes with sufficient and proper signage that will efficiently direct the public to the shelters or to the evacuation points would be part of the improvement program. Shelter improvements also impact the housing and tourism sectors by improving the building's resilience in the event of natural disasters. These improvements will allow Caye Caulker residents to stay safe and return to their place of living more quickly. Improving shelter's resilience will also allow the tourism industry to resume normal operation more rapidly after natural disaster event.

Integrated Climate Resilience Program

This project combines several pieces of the interventions into a single project (e.g., shelter improvements; and education). This innovative project will provide a showcase for resilience projects and clearly show both residents and tourists the need for and value of activities to prepare Caye Caulker for future climate change, as well as reducing the impact of climate change on key assets and the population.

Following the ECA and initial prioritization of projects, a Prioritization Workshop took place on 24 October 2018 at the Caye Caulker Village Council office. The purpose of the workshop was to gather stakeholders, review the results of the Prioritization Report and to select one of the top three highest ranked projects for implementation.

Following in-depths discussion of top-ranked potential adaptation measures, the stakeholder group voted for the preferred project. The results of this vote are summarized below in Figure 1.

Project Manual Figure 1: Stakeholder Voting for the Final Projects

Although the Mangrove Restoration option was ranked highest, it was not selected for the following reasons: 1) the inability to produce a meaningful restoration within the project budget; 2) extended time for permit applications and stakeholder negotiations; and 3) Government inability to ensure the long term sustainability of the pilot project with current human and financial resources. Ultimately, Mangrove Restoration was removed from consideration for those reasons.

The Shelter Improvement project was ranked second and was not selected either. A needs assessment was conducted for the Roman Catholic School by the Belize National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO) because it is not currently recognized by NEMO as an official hurricane shelter. The assessment indicated that the school did not meet NEMO’s hurricane shelter requirements and that the cost to bring the school into compliance was approximately US$ 170,000 (BZ$ 340,000), which greatly exceeded the implementation budget for this pilot project. For this reason the Shelter Improvement pilot project was also removed from consideration.

The outcome of the validation workshop also showed stakeholder supported an Integrated Climate Resilience Program that would improve long-term climate resilience and also provide educational opportunities. The potential components of the project were discussed in general terms, with the understanding that more precise information would need to be developed at the pilot project design stage. Based on subsequent analyses, it was decided that the proposed integrated program would include an educational component as well as a technology-based component aimed at increasing the island’s long-term climate resilience. This met with the approval of the Caye Caulker Village Council, and consequently, the Integrated Climate Resilience Program was selected as the proposed intervention.

Following an evaluation of technology that would increase Caye Caulker’s capacity to adapt to climate change, SOURCE® hydropanels were found to be an effective way to provide safe drinking water before, during, and after extreme weather events and a feasible pilot project option both in terms of project timeline and available resources. The final pilot project consisted of a 21 SOURCE® hydropanel installation on the roof of one of the buildings at the Caye Caulker Roman Catholic School. The school is currently the island’s only hurricane shelter, although it is not officially recognized by NEMO. Rather, it is used unofficially as a hurricane shelter, housing island residents or tourists who choose not to shelter in place at home or in

Project Manual their hotel/hostel/rental. In addition to the 21 panel system at the Caulker Roman Catholic School, Zero Mass Water donated two (2) hydropanels that were installed at the Caye Caulker Health Center.

In addition to the shelter improvement component, the final pilot also consisted of a capacity building component (training) and an educational component. All pilot components are described in Section 3 below.

Project Manual 3. Pilot Project Description

The Integrated Climate Resilience Program developed by ERM includes the installation of 23 solar powered hydropanels that produce drinking quality water from sun and air, on-island capacity building through training, and an educational program tailored to promote the use of sustainable adaptation strategies. These program components are described in more detail below.

3.1 SOURCE® Hydropanel Installation and Capacity Building

The chosen climate change adaptation on Caye Caulker, Belize includes the installation of 21 solar powered SOURCE® hydropanels at the Roman Catholic School (the Primary School) and two (2) hydropanels at the island’s Health Center. SOURCE® hydropanel are designed to make, mineralize and deliver safe drinking water from the sun and air, completely free of existing water infrastructure. Clean drinking water infrastructure delivered by SOURCE® will enable the Roman Catholic School and the Health Center to have continuous clean and high quality water and provide a meaningful step towards water security/resilience and water independence. Adopting SOURCE® as the drinking water solution proves a commitment of environmental and climate adaptation stewardship, while also positioning Caye Caulker as a champion in the country for sustainable water technology, water conservation and climate adaptation. The SOURCE® Product User Guide can be found in Annex A.

The installation of the 23 SOURCE® hydropanels was conducted by Caye Solar, a solar project delivery company based on Caye Caulker, under the direction of Zero Mass Water. The installation process included training 14 Caye Solar personnel to install and commission SOURCE® hydropanels. As an outcome of this pilot, Caye Caulker became Zero Mass Water’s only Certified SOURCE® hydropanel installer in Belize.

3.2 Community-Based Educational Program

The Caye Caulker CCSIP Team will develop a community focused educational program to promote the use of sustainable adaptation strategies. This curriculum content will include information about climate change impacts on the Caribbean and information about various adaptation measures including among other things, water conservation, preservation of mangroves, climate proofing of shelters, etc. This information was presented to students and interested residents in a workshop to be held on Caye Caulker on March 12, 2020.

Project Manual 4. Scope of Works

Two buildings were identified as locations for SOURCE® hydropanel systems: 1) The Caye Caulker Roman Catholic School; and 2) The Caye Caulker Health Center. In addition, a local company was chosen as the SOURCE® hydropanel system installer,

Item Component Works to be Performed

1.0 Shelter Improvements – Caye Caulker Install twenty-one (21) SOURCE® Roman Catholic School Hydropanels and three (3) water

dispensers.

2.0 Caye Caulker Health Center Install two (2) SOURCE® hydropanels and Improvement one water dispenser

3.0 Capacity Building Contracting of Caye Solar as Zero Mass Water’s Installer. Training of Caye Solar personnel to install, commission, and maintain SOURCE® hydropanel systems.

4.0 Community Education Community-based educational program

Project Manual 5. Pilot Implementation Chronology

The SOURCE® hydropanel pilot project was implemented October 25 through November 4, 2019 in Caye Caulker, Belize. Relevant milestones and dates are as follows:

October 25, 2019: Twenty-three SOURCE® hydropanels and associated infrastructure equipment were shipped by barge from Belize City to Caye Caulker.

October 27, 2019: Stakeholder meeting with Mrs. Beatriz Chan, the principal of the Caye Caulker Roman Catholic School to discuss the implementation schedule and establish ground rules for working at the school.

October 28, 2019: Presentation to the students during their Monday Assembly explaining what the pilot project was about and what was going to be happening during the installation. Students were also instructed to adhere to the rules set by their teachers and Mrs. Chan and to stay clear of the yellow caution tape that would be along the perimeter of the work area.

SOURCE® hydropanels and related equipment were delivered to the school. Three water dispensers were installed.

October 29, 2019: SOURCE® hydropanels were moved to the school’s roof and construction of the hydropanel array commenced.

The implementation team met with Seleny Villanueva-Pott (the Caye Caulker Village Council Chairwoman) to discuss the installation of two SOURCE® hydropanels at the Caye Caulker Health Center, which is located in the Village Council building. An engineering analysis had concluded that the trusses of the building’s roof are not spaced adequately to support the hydropanels and two auxiliary purlins needed to be placed between the rafters to accommodate the hydropanels. Because necessary work would require the removal of some of the exterior roof sections, it was decided that roof improvements to mount two hydropanels on the roof would take place during the “dry” season to reduce the potential for rain to interfere with the installation and the daily operation of the health center. The primary factor in this decision was that any delay once the structural reinforcement project started could impact the services provided by the Health Center.

October 30, 2019: The hydropanel array construction continued. The ERM/IDB team inspected the installation and were made aware of a minor crack in plaster of the exterior wall of the building as well as a hairline crack in the ceiling of one of the classrooms. It was demined that these cracks likely existed prior to construction activities. Nevertheless, the cracks were photo-documented. All cracks caused during the installation of the SOURCE® hydropanels have been fixed ever since.

October 31, 2019: By the end of the day, 21 hydropanels were mounted to the roof of the school and aligned. The first two hubs were plumbed and prepared to be commissioned. A “hub” consists of 6 hydropanels feeding into one hydropanel that acts to serve one water dispenser.

November 1, 2019: Hub’s “1” and “2” were outfitted with satellite communication and commissioned. Construction of the 3rd hub was completed.

November 2, 2019: Water samples were collected for analysis from hub’s “1” and “2.” Water samples were tested by Zero Mass Water (ZMW) for coliform contamination using the IDEXX Colilert Presence/Absence test. The 3rd hub was outfitted with satellite communication and commissioned.

Project Manual November 3, 2019: A water sample was collected for analysis from the last hub. Test results for water samples for the first two hubs came back “negative,” indicating an absence of E. coli bacteria.

November 4, 2019: Test results for water samples for the last hub came back “negative,” indicating an absence of E. coli bacteria. Mrs. Chan and several students took the first drinks of water from the newly commissioned system.

November 14, 2019: Belize Ministry of Health collected water samples from all three hubs at the Primary School and submitted them for testing.

December 23, 2019: The Belize Ministry of Health confirmed that the results of the water testing were WHO compliant.

December 30, 2019: Installation of two SOURCE® at the Caye Caulker Health Center was completed.

January 14, 2020: The Caye Caulker Health Center system was commissioned.

January 30, 2020: Belize Ministry of Health collected water samples from the Caye Caulker Health Center system.

6. Water Quality

Water from the SOURCE® hydropanel arrays were tested by Zero Mass Water (ZMW) for coliform contamination using the IDEXX Colilert Presence/Absence test. All results were “negative,” indicating an absence of E. coli bacteria. The Belize Ministry of Health tested water from the both SOURCE® hydropanel arrays for chemical contamination. The Belize Ministry of Health deemed water from both arrays to be WHO compliant.

7. 2020 System Performance to Date

The 21 panel SOURCE® hydropanel array at the Caye Caulker Roman Catholic School was fully commissioned on November 2, 2019. Figure 2 below presents an analysis of system performance from January 26, 2020 through February 25, 2020. Water production ranged from 24.1 liters per day to 77.9 liters per day. As of February 25, 2020, the Caye Caulker Roman Catholic School system has produced more than 6,775 liters of drinking water, resulting in a carbon offset of 1.1 metric tons of CO2 and an environmental offset of 13, 551 single use 500 ml plastic bottles.

The two panel SOURCE® hydropanel system at the Caye Caulker Health Center, located in the Caye Caulker Village Council building was commissioned on January 14, 2020. Figure 3 below presents an analysis of system performance from January 26, 2020 through February 25, 2020. Water production ranged from 2.5 liters per day to 10.1 liters per day. As of February 25, 2020, the Caye Caulker Health Center system has produced 288 liters of drinking water, resulting in a carbon offset of 0.06 metric tons of CO2 and an environmental offset of 576 single use 500 ml plastic bottles.

Project Manual Figure 2: Caye Caulker Roman Catholic School SOURCE® Hydropanel Performance

Figure 3: Caye Caulker Health Center SOURCE® Hydropanel Performance

Project Manual

ANNEX A – SOURCE® Product User Guide