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Training Center Location
 
The need for new fishing and transport boats is widespread on the Sumatra West coast. Small communities in many areas can only be reached by sea. The major expense associated with this project will be management and technical assistance provided by Island Aid mission staff and a near-Padang facility is logically the only possibility.

As boats will be produced in both finished form and knock down kits, delivery to remote locations can be accomplished in a number of ways. Smaller boats can be delivered in finished form by truck to mainland locations. For more remote locations, trucking cost can be reduced dramatically by sending kits for assembly in villages. Where assembly is required, we will evaluate two options for each community. In most cases we will try to send an assembly training team to the community in need. If accommodation becomes problematic, we will invite interested fishermen and boatbuilders to our Padang facility for training.

Delivery by sea will normally be in kit form as sea transport is inherently more expensive than land delivery. To maximize the use of Island Aid vessels, it is proposed to mount combined missions to villages in the Banyaks, Telos, Nias and the Mentawai islands with volunteer medical, sanitation and construction teams as appropriate for each area.

The urgent need for tsunami refuges and viable boats in the vicinity of Padang and in the Mentawais was also considered a strong argument for establishing the facility where this demand will be greatest.
Location Criteria
A number of locations were surveyed in the general vicinity of Padang based on the following criteria:
1. Water-frontage suited to launch and retrieval of boats
2. Road Access for material deliveries
3. Proximity to Island Aid headquarters
4. Integration with existing fishing community
5. Proximity to high ground in case of a tsunami evacuation
6. Easy access for government officials/Agencies
7. Cost of securing land
8. Environmental & Social Issues
9. Utilities
Locations Surveyed
The following locations have been evaluated:
a. Bungus, TPI beach front
b. Bungus, Old plywood factory
c. Bungus, Peninsular - Traditional boat yard
d. Pantai Nivana, Teluk Nibung
e. Pulau Pisang
f. Pantai Air Manis
Air Manis Beach Location

All sites surveyed were viable with the exception of the plywood factory. Ownership & legal issues will have to be resolved and that could take some time. The other Bungus sites had superior waterfrontage but most involved substantial travel distances and transport costs. Air Manis peninsular ranks highly in all categories except road access and utilities. In discussions with the city Mayor, tentative agreement was reached to construct a new light traffic road to the peninsular using tsnami evacuation funds. The number of tourists and visitors to Pulau Pisang Kecil, more than justifies this small project. The location does not have access to mains power at this point but small generators can be used for power tools and photovoltaic/battery power for lighting and communications needs. In this way the location is ideal to demonstrate these technologies to convince remote communities that they are practical and affordable.

The land owners have been consulted and all parties have tentatively agreed to allocate approximately one Ha of land on the point on a long term "nominal rental" basis. A period of 15 years has been suggested as appropriate to avoid relocation of the facility during its foreseeable lifetime. The structure and facilities will be designed in such a way that they can be reused to support fish marketing activities or boat repair and storage after the project is no longer deemed necessary or fundable.
The site is level and sandy and mostly grassed. An existing fisher family house will be relocated and upgraded. Its current location floods during the rainy season and that area will need to be filled. The building is in very poor condition and the occupants are very happy to relocate if we assist with materials.
Island Aid headquarters are visible on the hill top in the foreground. A well made road leads to within 200m of the site on the North beach. During the construction phase, 4x4 access is easy along the hard sand beach to the South of the point. It is proposed to purchase an un-licensed 4x4 for this purpose as the salt environment will rapidly devalue any vehicle. This 4x4 will be retained for tsunami evacuation, delivery of bulky items and for launch and retrieval of larger boats.