BANTAY
GOBYERNO
Ike
Señeres
The European Union
(EU) has set a target that by 2030; all its members would have achieved at
least 27% utilization of renewable energy. However, some island communities
within the EU have already achieved 100% utilization by tapping various
renewable sources such as wind, solar, wave, tidal, hydro, geothermal, biomass
and dendro.
Looking at
the successful cases, we could derive the conclusion that the production of
energy and water could, and should always go together. To put it simply, water
could be produced if there is an energy supply and conversely, energy could be
produced if there is a water supply. Basic as this reality is, it seems to
escape the consciousness of governments in many countries, including of course
the developing countries.
Although
the minimum target of 27% has been set for all member countries, it goes
without saying that nothing would prevent these countries from setting higher
targets and as a matter of fact, many have done so. What is interesting to note
here is that targets have been set for the national level and yet, in some of
these countries, many communities have set their own local targets at their own
levels.
It would be
easy to understand that national governments would set their targets at the
national level purely for energy purposes. In spite of that however, many local
communities have bundled their energy targets with other related targets such
as the production of water and food.
Of
course, it would not be easy to understand that if and when sufficient supplies
of irrigation water are available, the production of more food would easily be
achievable. As the experience of many countries have shown, the demand for
agricultural water has to be balanced with residential water and industrial
water, the latter including water for the production of energy.
Depending
on the country and the locality, the distribution of the supply becomes more
difficult, because food is needed as much as water is needed, in much the same
way that power is also needed. In some cases, the dilemmas are solved by using
power to produce more water, and the need for balance is solved.
Maybe
it’s just me who is not aware of it, but it seems that the Department of Energy
(DOE) has not published a target for the percentage of renewable energy that
should be utilized nationwide by a certain year in the future. Either that or
they may not have published it. Either way, with or without it, nothing should
stop the municipal or provincial governments from setting their own targets at
their own local levels.
Whatever
renewable source they should use should also be their own local decision, because
they would know best what is locally available to them. As far as I am
concerned however, the best solution is always a mixed solution, combining at
least two renewable sources.
On the
upside, it is a good thing that we have electric cooperatives all over the
country that are doing the function of power distribution. On the downside
however, distribution is the only thing that they are doing, because very few
of these cooperatives have ventured into the business of power production, if
ever there are any who have done so already.
On the
other hand, as far as water is concerned, all the water districts are producing
their own water but it seems that none of them have considered the idea of
using the flow of water to run turbines that could produce energy. This kind of
fragmented thinking seems to be prevalent in the Philippines, because the
National Irrigation Authority (NIA) has also not considered using its water
flows to run turbines.
Although
electric cooperatives and water districts are deemed to be independent
entities, nothing should also stop the Municipal Development Councils (MDCs)
and the Provincial Development Councils (PDCs) from including power and water
concerns in their respective agenda items. \
Since the
Local Government Code (LGC) provides for the participation of Non-Government
Organizations (NGOs) in these local councils, the people in these local
jurisdictions should grab the opportunity to drive the agendas so sustainable
that power and water production targets could be set for the common good. In a
manner of speaking, it could be said that power and water are too important
basic needs to leave to the local elective officials.
Although it
could be said that power, water and food is the most important troika of basic
needs, it could also be said that there is that other troika of environmental
preservation, disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation that is
also equally important. Fortunately, by diligently attending to this second
troika, we could also strengthen the first troika as a consequence.
For
example, if we dredge the silted rivers for the purpose of environmental
preservation, it will not only result in flood control, it would also increase
the supply of water for irrigation and human consumption. Aside from that, it
will make the flow of water faster, so much so that it would already be
possible to produce hydro electric energy. Some companies like Melekon
Corporation are even willing to dredge rivers for free, provided that they get
the silted material in exchange for their free services.
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