Eigg (Gaelic: is one of the Small Isles, in the Scottish Inner Hebrides. It is situated south of the Isle of Skye. Eigg is 9 kilometers long from north to south, and 5 kilometers east to west. With an area of 12sq miles.

The only way to get to the Isle of Eigg is ferry. Islanders hug the pier in wait of friends and family or delivery of letters and parcels. There is a tearoom by the quay, where kettles boil water for drinks, eggs and bacon frying on the pan.

When the power fails, they would have to rush up the hill to the fuse box and try to fix it - with a just-cooked grilled sandwich in the frying pan.  A weak power supply produced by the tearoom's diesel generator meant that the dishwasher be turned off while the oven stayed on. The small freezer switches off at night and the main generator also. Residents had to rely on noisy, expensive diesel generators or mini-hydroelectric generators. They had to use candles or gas lamps to locate themselves at night.

But, On Feb. 1, all of Eigg switched on its own continuous, clean, and renewable energy supply. For the first time in the UK, locally generated wind, hydro and solar energy are combined providing continuous power to the isle of Eigg.

The islanders are completely off-grid - relying on a £1.6m system that draws power from wind, solar and hydroelectric energy sources.

Supplies more than 95% of Eigg's annual energy needs and backed up by a battery storage system and two diesel generators. It supplies 45 households, 6 community buildings and 20 businesses an a 6-mile voltage network.

What has been used before the invention of "Combustion engines"? Yes - Water Power and Wind which obviously will be our choice when we rid our unsustainable dependence on fossil fuels and frees us from dependency on imported fuels.

The Isle of Eigg has set an example for developing countries when people work collectively to accomplish such an important goal to be ENERGY EFFICIENT

original post