SEAI has started a new community engagement program called the “Solar Meitheal” project.
The old Irish term ‘Meitheal’, signifies neighbours coming together to help with larger tasks in their community. It was common during harvests, especially when it came to turf-cutting. In modern Ireland the spirit of ‘Meitheal’ is still thriving.
A Solar Meitheal is a community-led concept. It involves informing and grouping homeowners in a local area who want to install Solar Photovoltaic (PV) panels on their homes. As members of Ballinaglera SEC (Sustaınable Energy Community), we decided to launch that program in Ballinaglera.
First, we organized a local survey to check local interest in solar panels and spread the word about Ballinaglera Solar Meitheal and our initiat meeting. That took us 3-4 days around the local area. During the survey, our volunteers made more connections with locals and learned more about local people’s opinions.
During the survey we visited more than 50 houses and we collected 33 responses for our survey question. The questions were as follows:
- How much are you interested in having solar panels on your house?
Most of the people said that they were very interested.
- How much do you already know about solar panels?
The majority said that they had some knowledge but were not experts.
- How much do you already know about getting grants for solar panels, etc.?
Very few said that they knew a lot about getting grants.
- What things would prevent you from installing solar in your own house?
The most common answer was the expense of solar would put them off.
Overall, local people are interested in solar panels but they do not know that much about grant details and they think solar panels are not affordable.
On 6th June, we organised a very successful meeting of our Solar Meitheal in Ballinaglera Community Hall. Over 20 local people attended with GEAI volunteers and an SEAI mentor from ATU, Paul McNama. The meeting was also attended by a local supplier of solar panels, who added his experience in giving quotes and estimating the best systems for people. Paul presented the project, followed by a very lively question and answer session, where local people asked their questions and shared their own experience and ideas.
The second step of the project is to collate a list of those interested in joining the Solar Meitheal group. The group can come together to get quotations and apply for grant-aiding and hopefully to avail of economies of scale if a number of households cooperate in getting solar panels for their houses.
Anyone interested can contact the Solar Meitheal group at 087 2382324.
Ballinaglera Solar Meitheal is supported by SEAI, Ballinaglera SEC, GEAI and Ballinaglera Development Company.