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Mapecon: Devoted to Laudato Si’ and Sustainability, Powered by Renewable Energy


In Alaminos, Laguna, there is a facility that is devoted to promoting sustainable and renewable energy sources and technology. Established over a decade ago by pioneer scientist and inventor Gonzalo “Jun” Catan, Jr in the 1990s. The facility – Mapecon Green Charcoal Philippines Inc. - is a hub for research and development wherein Mr. Catan continuously finds ways to improve his patented Green Charcoal.


According to company Chief Operating Officer (COO) Mars Catan, the facility was formerly an abandoned activated carbon plant. It was closed down when the Philippines was hit by an energy crisis in the 1980s, and the giant kiln that was the heart of the plant used up 6,000 liters of bunker fuel daily. This meant that the plant emitted massive amounts of carbon dioxide.

“My father developed an alternative fuel source for the kiln: he built a gasifier, and transformed the fuel source of the kiln to hydrogen, and after a few years, to a superheated steam boiler. According to Mr. Catan, their activated carbon kiln may be the only one in the world that runs on hydrogen. MGCPI uses it to produce the cleanest and highest quality activated carbon which is used in air and water purifying filters, as well as for various pharmaceutical products including beauty products.



Food Waste Processing for Vermicast

The MGCPI facility is also a massive garden with vegetables, herbs, and fruits, and flowers. “We use fertilizer here that is generated from processed organic waste from restaurants, including coconut husks. They deliver their food waste here and turn everything into green charcoal or process them naturally by feeding them to African Nightcrawlers – a type of worm that thrives in compost,” he explained.


According to gardening blogs, an African nightcrawler can eat more than its body weight in food per day. This makes the worm very useful when it comes to disposing of large amounts of food waste. “The worms transform the food waste into vermicast, which we use to fertilize the plants here, and we also sell it.” Vermicast is a mixture of earthworm castings (worm feces) and uneaten bedding and feedstock harvested from the worm beds. The worms eat most of the processed food waste and then leave behind a mixture of their castings (worm poop) and undigested organic materials. This mixture is vermicast, and it has been proven to improve seed germination, seedling growth, and plant productivity. It is also sustainable because it does diminish nutrients of the soil, unlike chemical fertilizers.



Organic Farming Benefits Farmers

“Our goal is to make organic farming – including the use of organic pesticides and fertilizers – more popular and affordable for Filipino farmers. The high cost of hybrid and imported varieties of seedlings, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides are driving our farmers to their knees, and their annual crop yields continue to decrease. Shifting to more sustainable farming methods and inputs can help them improve their income and increase the productivity of the soil. The initial outlay will be a little more expensive, but going organic is more cost-effective in the long run and better for soil,” he said.



Mr. Catan said that helping farmers means improving what farmers already know and have, and not changing their crops or their way of life just to increase their profits that will come at the expense of the environment. Organic farming, he said, is very familiar to farmers. “The problem is they’re forced to resort to chemical fertilizers and pesticides because the seeds they plant are genetically modified varieties that rely on chemicals. We have to help our farmers and introduce to them more sustainable practices that are actually more profitable in the long run. With organics, the more you use it, the less you will eventually need it. With organics, farmers can be more self-sufficient,” he said.


The plants and herbs that grow within the facility in long plots and orderly rows are also what goes into MGCPI’s pest control products that are all organic.


Sustainability in practice

The principle of sustainability is really at the core of the MGCPI’s production practices. For instance, red tilapia is grown in several fish pens within the facility, and the fish thrive on Azolla, a type of aquatic fern that is capable of doubling its mass only within two to three days. Azolla, Mr. Catan explained, is considered to be very good livestock fodder.


“It’s much cheaper than factory-made fish feed, and it’s easy to grow. It is also very rich in protein and nonpolluting,” he said. “ The red tilapia feeds on the Azolla, and the fish detritus is used to fertilize the Azolla. The fish will grow bigger and healthier; and while they can’t be harvested at the usual five months but at seven months, it will be worth it because the fish will be clean and, when cooked, very tasty.”


Practicing the Teachings of Laudato Si’

Because of all of his knowledge and experience in agriculture and sustainability, one would think that Mr. Catan took agriculture and other related courses in university, but he didn’t. He is actually a math teacher, and a theologian who believes in “creative and honest work.” “My father and the rest of our family have always been an advocate of this, and this is an integral part of what Mapecon is.” Because of this, it’s expected that the whole facility is also treated by the Catans as an expression of love for God, and is well in line with what Pope Francis teaches in his appeal for ecological conversion, his encyclical “Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home.”


“Caring for the environment is love for others and love for God. We show appreciation for what God has given us, and we share our blessings by teaching others to do the same,” he said. As a businessman, Mr. Catan’s focus is not so much on generating profit, but on helping others to see the importance of sustainability and not spending so much on agricultural inputs. “It’s typical that businesses what repeat customers, but in our case, we want our customers to use our products like the fertilizer less and less with every planting cycle. The fertilizer will replenish the soil, and the soil won’t always need fertilizer because it will have gained nutrients in its recovery. Our customers buy less and less of the fertilizer we sell, and this is what we want,” he said.

This is what Mr. Catan calls the “economics of Laudato Si’” which is grounded in sustainability and concern for the environment and humanity’s relationship with it. Solar for Income Generation In keeping with MGCPI’s values of caring for the environment and ensuring sustainability, the company in 2019 had a solar PV system installed on the rooftop of its main warehouse and storage facility. The installation is a 93.24kWp grid-tied system built with 296 units (315w/panel) and three SolarEdge inverters. For the last two years, the system has been helping MGCPI save at least P100,085.12 monthly or P1,201,0201.44 annually on electricity costs. By operating the system, MGCPI has sequestered 1,855 metric tons of carbon emissions, equivalent to the amount mitigated by 883,432 trees in 25 years.


“We want to develop a paradigm wherein the use of solar technology is not just for cost-cutting and sustainability, but also for income generation. So many agricultural activities can be powered by solar energy, and we want Filipinos to know this. Not only do we save on electricity costs or contribute to climate change mitigation efforts by going solar – but we can also generate profit. Free electricity from the sun should be maximized for income generation efforts – school, dioceses, institutions with sufficient land space can put up green projects powered by solar,” he said.


To maximize its solar PV system, MGCPI made changes to its work schedule. “We do all the labor-intensive processes and those that required electricity during the daytime. Most of the operations here run on the electricity from our solar PV system,” he said. “Energy efficiency is also very important, so adjusting work schedules is part of maximizing the benefits of the solar PV system,” he said.


Plans for 2022

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, MGCPI had to temporarily close its doors to visitors such as students, researchers, and gardening enthusiasts. Next year, however, Mr. Catan hopes to reopen and shared that they have big plans for MGCPI. More flower and herb gardens, and even a maze!


“We want to resume the tours we offer and establish partnerships for research and development projects with different institutions that carry similar advocacies and missions to ours. What we really want is to introduce sustainable and organic gardening to students from grade school to high school. Given the current state of the environment, it is crucial that we teach the younger generations to take action now, care for the environment, and become aware of the damaging practices we are doing that worsen climate change,” he said. “It all starts with awareness, with the consciousness that each of us can help the environment and make a difference no matter how small,” Mr. Catan concluded. #

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