GEOGRAPHY FIELD PROJECT

WUSAKIELE SECONDARY SCHOOL

THE IMPACT OF LOAD-SHEDDING IN
CHIMWEMWE TOWNSHIP

NAME: NIZA MUGALA

CLASS: 12T3

EXAM NUMBER: 190501000189

SCHOOL CODE: 5351

YEAR: 2024

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TABLE OF CONTENT

Title ………………………………………………………………….3

Preface…………………………………………………..............4

Acknowledgement…………………………………………….5

Aims………………………………………………………………….6

Objectives…………………………………………………………7

Methods of data collection……………………………….8

Data presentation…………………………………………….9

Interpretation and analysis………………………………11

Limitation……………………………………………………..…17

Conclusion…………………………………………………….…17

Recommendations…………………………………………..18

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TITLE

THE IMPACT OF LOAD-SHEDDING

IN CHIMWEMWE TOWNSHIP

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PREFACE

Load shedding is a process by which an electric utility company cut power to

some customers in response to shortage of available electricity, this phenomenon
is common in many countries and its impact on society cannot be ignored. This
project aims to explore the impact of load shedding in chimwemwe township.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Special thanks goes to my Geography teacher Mrs. Hang’andu for her tireless
effort in helping me in my project. I also wish to thank my father for his financial
assistance and support not forgetting Philip and all my family and friends who
contributed towards the success of my project.

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 AIMS
 To outline the effects of load-shedding in chimwemwe township.
 To assess the impact of load shedding on the economic sector of
chimwemwe township.
 To highlight mitigating strategies on how to minimize the impact of load-
shedding.

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 OBJECTIVES
 To locate the main sectors being affected by load shedding.
 To state reasons why load shedding was reintroduced.
 To access the alternative power sources that people use during load
shedding.

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METHODS OF DATA COLLECTION
I. Primary data; This method uses personal observation, from my
observation I noticed that when it gets dark and there is a blackout
most people especially youths come out onto the streets and do illicit
activities for example vandalism.
II. Interviews; In this method am asking questions to the random
residents of chimwemwe about the impact of load shedding on
house hold level and community level. Example given small
operations like saloons, gaming centers, barber shop e.t.c
III. Literature review; under this method ill utilize information from
books, journals, magazine, newspaper and internet.

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 DATA PRESENTATION

Due to load shedding people are forced to use alternative power supplies which
are really costy and others may contribute to pollution causing an even greater
effect.

The following graph shows the number of people and the alternative methods
they use as a source of energy.

900

800

700

600

500

400

300

200

100

0
CHARCOAL SOLAR ENERGY GENERATORS OTHERS

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Load shedding has many effects on the community and below is a pie chart to
outline some of these effects and there impacts.

COMMUNICATION AND
TRANSPORT
SECURITY THREATS

PRODUCTION CAPACITY

DAILY LIFE

SOCIAL EVENTS

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DATA INTERPRETATION

In an event of load-shedding or grid failure people in Chimwemwe township have

resulted to various alternative power supplies and captive generation facilities

GENERATORS

A generator is a machine that produces electric power by converting mechanical

energy into electrical energy. In an event of load-shedding electrical generators
are one of the most reliable captive power generation tools. These devices are
used in many facilities these include

1) Hospitals: In places such as these and others which are highly dependent on
electricity, a reliable source of energy is required so as to maintain proper
functioning of the services offered. In an event of load-shedding electrical
generators are powered up in order to produce and supply power to such a
place.
2) Churches or community gatherings: These gatherings should not be showed
away from our societies as co-operative and unity in a community being
about development which is why in cases of power shortage generators are
used to supply up microphones, speakers, projectors and any other
electrical device needed for these occasions to run smoothly.
3) Bars and clubs: Liquor stores are a good place for recreation time. Most
people love to come with friends and families to have fun in such places.
which is why in most bars and clubs you can find an electrical generator to
supply electricity in cases of blackouts or power cuts.
4) Homes: Lively-hood activities should not be stopped because of load-
shedding. In an event of power cuts generator are used in homes for
various things such as cooking, lighting, and heating.

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 5) Small businesses: Small businesses are the most valuable when it comes to
load-shedding either offering services or providing goods, there is still a
demand of electricity. For shops and groceries certain goods need a
controlled temperature to stay in a good condition examples may include
drinks, fruits, cakes meat and fresh vegetables. In service offering examples
may include barbing, welding, phone repairing among others.
For machines to run and pumps to pump there has to be power to run and
operate in these devices. Electrical generators are the most used in small
businesses in cases of power outages. Here in Chimwemwe township
generators are really common and are used by a good number of small
operating businesses.

SOLAR ENERGY

Solar energy is a good method of alternative supply of electrical power as it is a

renewable source of energy. It can be used over and over without being
exhausted, it is used as a captive generator in various places these are

1) Learning institutions: solar energy is used in many academic institutions by

installing solar panels and invertors to supply electrical energy to the
institution. This method is mainly used in universities, colleges and schools
especially boarding schools.
2) Homes: The use of solar panels in homes is quite simple and definitely solar
means light and in every home we need clear visibility for various activities
to take place. We offenly see these solar panels placed on top of roofs in an
event of power cut the solar energy is converted to electrical energy that
can now be used for various things in our homes such as lighting, cooking,
heating among other things. The other reason why people use solar energy
is that, most people do have yards that covers an extensively large piece of
land and if they were to use a diesel powered generator it would not only
be causing noise pollution to the neighborhoods but also air pollution

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 which when put in prolonged use can affect the health of people near to
them including themselves
3) Public places: These are places that are accessible to everyone, these places
usually have people to take care and maintain their facilities examples of
these are cutting grass at the park, providing solar powered charging ports
for mobile devices.

4) Lodges nd guest houses: solar energy is reliable and ensures that these
facilities are not left in the dark. They provide steady power sources even
when the grid fails essential services like lighting, security system and
communication devices can continue to operate using solar generated
electricity. Owning a solar panel can allow ones business to operate off the
grid.
5) Street lighting: solar powered street lights are increasingly becoming
popular, they operate independently off the grid relaying on solar energy to
illuminate streets.
All in all solar energy is clean and renewable by using solar panels people
reduce the reliance on fossil fuels and contribute to environmental
sustainability.

CHARCOAL
Charcoal serves as a good alternative source of energy during load shedding
especially in places where there is regular interruption, here is how it is utilized.

1) House hold: many homes relay on charcoal for cooking when the power
grid is down, charcoal stoves or braziers provide an adequate heat source
for preparing meals.

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 2) Restaurants and food venders: restaurants, food venders and small food
eteries usually turn to charcoal grills and stoves in order to keep their
businesses running.
3) Heat and warmth: charcoal can be used for heating indoor spaces during
cold weathers, people normally have chimnyes , charcoal burners or
portable stoves to keep warm in areas where electric heaters are
unavailable charcoal becomes an essential source of heat.

OTHER ALTERNATIVE SOURCES OF ENERGY

Load shedding also known as rolling blackouts has been experienced in many
countries for several decades now as time went by people have developed
different mitigating strategies and discovered a variety of alternative power
supply to help reduce the impact of load shedding. The following are some
examples

1) Wind power: wind turbines generate electricity by harnessing wind

energy, wind farms can provide a significant amount of power
especially in areas with consistent wind patterns.
2) Bio mass: Bio mass energy comes from organic materials such as
wood, agricultural waste and even animal dung, these energy is
enough for lighting, cooking, heating and electricity generation.
3) LED Lighting: switch to energy efficient LED bulbs reduce electricity
consumption during load shedding LEDs use less power and have a
longer lifespan than traditional incandescent bulbs.
4) Energy efficient appliances: upgrading to energy efficient
appliances e.g air condition, conditioners, refrigrators and fans
helps reduce overall demand.

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 5) Battery backup systems: These systems store electricity during non
load shedding hours and provide power when the grid is down.
6) Gas stoves: A gas powered cooking solution can help you prepare
meals during load shedding.
7) Power banks: keep your mobile devices charged using high capacity
power banks.
8) Cooler boxes: These store perishable foods items in a cooker

Load shedding is a management strategy used by electric companies to prevent

overloading of the electric grid during periods of high demand it involves
internationally cutting of electricity to certain customers in order to reduce
overall demand and prevent grid collapse, load shedding can have significant
impacts on communication, transport, delay social events, disruption of daily life,
security threats and reduced production of business.

a) Communication: In terms communication, load shedding can disrupt power

supply to cell towers, communication towers and other infrastructures
necessary for maintaining a stable and reliable communication network.
These can to reduced or lost connectivity, making it difficult for people to
stay in touch with each other, access information or conduct business
operation.
b) Transport: Looking at transport, load shedding can affect traffic lights, rail
systems and other transportation infrastructure that relies on electricity.
This can lead to traffic congestion, delays and increased risks of accidents,
as traffic signals and other safety measures are not functioning properly.
Additionaly if load shedding occurs during peak travel times, it can cause
significant disruptions to public transportative systems making it difficult
for people to get to their destinations.
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 c) Interruption of social events: load shedding can have significant impacts on
social events and meetings as it can cause delays, cancellation or
disruption. For example is an event is scheduled to take place in a venue
that relies on electricity such as a banquet hall or a conference center load
shedding can cause the event to be delayed or even cancelled, this can be
paticullary problematic for events that have limited time such as wedding,
business conference.

Security threats: Here are some of the ways load shedding can cause security
threats.

Disruptions of critical infrastructure such as operations on data centers,

communication towers and military bases which relay on a stable and continuous
power supply this disruption can lead to communication breakdowns, data loss
and operational in effecience compromising national security.

Impact on military bases this can affect operations that relay on on a stables
electric grid like AIR bases, naval installation and military communication
networks. This can hinder military readiness, disrupt supply chains and
compromise situational awareness posing a threat to national security.

Cyber security vulnerability this can be caused as power outages may lead to
system failures, data corruption or loss of connectivity. This can expose sensitive
information.

Economic consequences load shedding can have vital consequences, including

loss of productivity, supply chain disruptions and potential damage to critical
infrastructures however this consequences can strain national security as
economic instability can lead to political instability and increased reliance on
foreign aid.

1) Daily life: load shedding can cause inconvenience by interrupting daily

routines such bas cooking, cleaning and other house hold chores It can also
affect schedules as business may need to close temporally or adjust their
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 operations to accommodate the power outage, load shedding can pose
safety risks, especially in situations where people rely on electricity for
essential services like lighting heating or cooking for example if there is a
blackout during winter people are at risk of catching a cold if they cannot
heat their homes. Services such as communication and internet browsing
can not be accessed in periods of load shedding which may make it difficult
to stay in touch with friends and family.

2) Reduced production capacity for companies that relay heavily on electricity

this can lead to reduced productivity due to employees not being able to
work with adequate resources. Increased cost load shedding can lead to
increased cost for businesses have to invest in backup energy. Load can
lead to customer in satisfaction when there is reduced availability of
products, delayed delivery time which could cause loss of trust from the
customers

LIMITATIONS

The following are some of the problems I encountered during this project.

 Objectives where not well defined and too broad which made it difficult to
focus on one thing.
 Lack of resources and money as the saying goes money gets the job done it
turned out to be really difficult to finish up the project as it demanded
certain equipment and funding which was not easy to get hold of.
 Load shedding itself was one of the major hinders to the progress of this
project cause most of the time when I was supposed to be working on it
the device needed for research where not in operation because of no
electricity.
 A field project requires effective management, skills, organizing and
controlling resources to achieve your objective and in this case Iacked with
adequate project management capabilities and skill.

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CONCLUSION

In this case a lot of things can be concluded, from what is men by load shedding
to the impact and effect of it. This project has outlined most if not all of the key
points starting from the effects of load shedding to some of the mitigating
strategies to follow in order to reduce the impact of load shedding in chimwemwe
towship. The main reason to why load shedding was reintroduced was to inco
operate the available electricity to everyone by cutting off from some customers.

RECOMMENDATIONS

 The government should invest more in the energy sector so as to reduce

the impact of load-shedding on the economy of the country.
 People should not rely so much on the Zambia Electricity Supply Company
(ZESCO).
 The Zambian government is so much dependant on Hydro-Electricity to
generate power which may be easily affected by climatic changes but
should try and invest in other renewable sources of energy for example
solar energy, geothermal energy and wind energy.

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