A report commissioned by Greenpeace from the German Space Agency "demonstrates", according to the organization, that a change in the energy model in the Canary Islands archipelago, based 100% on renewable energies, is possible by 2050. "In addition to the environmental benefits, Canarians could save 42,000 million euros in the import of fossil fuels and make the islands dispense with their dependence on oil," says the NGO.
The study "[R]energy revolution for the Canary Islands" is based on an investigation carried out by the Systems Analysis Department of the Institute of Thermodynamics, belonging to the German Space Agency (DLR), for the environmental organization and has the data and technical information provided by Red Eléctrica de España. In addition, according to Greenpeace, "it connects with the demand of the Canarian society to dispense with oil, as has been evident with the great social opposition to oil exploration".
The report also argues that "with a transformation of the Canarian energy model, demand could be reduced by 37% compared to current consumption thanks to the application of energy saving and efficiency measures, and the cost of generating kW/h could be reduced by 9 cents compared to what it would cost if we continue with the current model". In addition, it proposes that "oil-fired power plants could be replaced by renewables without the need to go through gas-fired power plants".
A "tool" for the Canarian Government to "fulfill its commitment"
"The study is an ideal tool for the Canarian Government to fulfill the commitment it acquired in writing to change the energy model of the Islands and make it 100% renewable by the year 2050", said Marina Bevacqua, head of the Greenpeace Energy Campaign. In this way, the new Canarian energy model could achieve a reduction of emissions from 14 million tCO2/year in 2012 to 0.02 million tCO2/year in 2050.
"[R]energy revolution for the Canary Islands is part of a series of reports that are presented in four countries in southern Europe (Croatia, Greece, Italy and Spain) that show that a clear commitment to renewable energies and energy saving is very beneficial both economically and environmentally", said Emily Rochon, Energy expert at Greenpeace International, who participated in the presentation.
In addition, she added that "it would serve for the governments of these countries to accelerate the change of energy model by allowing the large-scale incorporation of renewable energies and energy efficiency, as well as demonstrating to the world that it is possible to fight against climate change by generating employment and respecting the environment".
Azarug Justel, a young Canarian who participates in the Greenpeace project "Anonymous Heroes for the climate", also participated in the act to present this report, in view of the climate summit that begins in two weeks in Paris. Justel recalled that the islands "are firmly opposed to oil" and stressed that now the Government has a tool that would allow the Canary Islands to achieve their energy independence progressively. The environmental organization insists that it is "fully committed to the renewable future for the islands, as was evident in the latest actions against prospecting or with its citizen awareness work, with the aim of ensuring that the islands can have a renewable future in the shortest possible time".
