UN believes HYDROPOWER IS the answer to climate change.

People in the hydroelectric power industry have long known that this clean, reliable, renewable generating technology has an important role to play in meeting vital goals related to the environment and climate change.

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change agrees, as evidenced by an article published on its website last week.

Below are excerpts from the text of this article:

The rapid and responsible deployment of clean, renewable energy is crucial to meet the goals of the Paris Climate Change Agreement. The evolution of solar and wind energy has been the driving force of the transition to a low-carbon world in the past years, but … one technology remains a cornerstone of the renewable energy mix in some regions of the Earth: hydropower.

Hydropower still accounts for 70% of the world’s renewable generation capacity, a proportion that rises to more than 80% in Latin America, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). So the sector has a key role to play in the implementation of the Paris Agreement.

Hydropower holds a double relationship with climate change. On the one hand, it contributes to the avoidance of greenhouse gas emissions from the burning of fossil fuels. On the other, water availability and hydropower generation are likely to be affected by changing rainfall patterns, which can reduce the flow of rivers.

At the UN Climate Change Conference in Katowice, Poland (COP24) in December 2018, … Itaipu Binacional will showcase best practices in the sector to illustrate the potential of hydropower to avoid greenhouse gases emissions. Located on the border of Brazil and Paraguay, the plant is owned by the two governments and provides around 15% of the energy consumed in Brazil and 86% of the energy consumed in Paraguay. It also holds the world record of annual energy production for a hydroelectric plant, with 103.1 million MWh generated in 2016. Around 500 thousand barrels of oil per day, about a fifth of the Brazilian production, would be required to produce the same amount of energy.

The development of hydropower, however, does not come without environmental and social costs. …  An additional issue confronting the sector are the threats to its generation potential presented by climate change, which triggers an increased occurrence of extreme weather events. Between 2014 and 2017, an unprecedented drought reduced water pressure in hydroelectric plants in Brazil, resulting in higher water consumption tariffs.

The contribution of the hydropower sector to the goals of the Paris Agreement, therefore, needs to be considered not only in terms of avoiding greenhouse gas emissions, but also in promoting projects that ensure that the impacts of large projects are minimized and sufficiently compensated.

Itaipu implements projects in the areas of conservation of biodiversity and maintenance of ecosystem services and local cultures, providing a strong example of joint efforts between two countries working together to achieve sustainable development and leadership on climate action.

"Climate change challenges governments, companies and other organizations to work together in order to build a sustainable future for all. Itaipu understands it has, not only to generate clean and renewable energy, but also to promote water security, biodiversity conservation, and social development in Brazil and Paraguay", says Brazilian General Director of Itaipu Marcos Stamm.

Click here to read the full release.

The upcoming POWER-GEN International event features a session on the subject of climate change and hydropower. Click here to learn more.

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Maine Center For Public Interest Reporting – Three Part Series: A CRITICAL LOOK AT MAINE’S WIND ACT

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(excerpts) From Part 1 – On Maine’s Wind Law “Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine if the law’s goals were met." . – Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, August 2010 https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/From Part 2 – On Wind and Oil Yet using wind energy doesn’t lower dependence on imported foreign oil. That’s because the majority of imported oil in Maine is used for heating and transportation. And switching our dependence from foreign oil to Maine-produced electricity isn’t likely to happen very soon, says Bartlett. “Right now, people can’t switch to electric cars and heating – if they did, we’d be in trouble.” So was one of the fundamental premises of the task force false, or at least misleading?" https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-swept-task-force-set-the-rules/From Part 3 – On Wind-Required New Transmission Lines Finally, the building of enormous, high-voltage transmission lines that the regional electricity system operator says are required to move substantial amounts of wind power to markets south of Maine was never even discussed by the task force – an omission that Mills said will come to haunt the state.“If you try to put 2,500 or 3,000 megawatts in northern or eastern Maine – oh, my god, try to build the transmission!” said Mills. “It’s not just the towers, it’s the lines – that’s when I begin to think that the goal is a little farfetched.” https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/flaws-in-bill-like-skating-with-dull-skates/

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Hannah Pingree on the Maine expedited wind law

Hannah Pingree - Director of Maine's Office of Innovation and the Future

"Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine."

https://pinetreewatch.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/

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