Hi all,
I found this article on Prensa Libre. It talks about a new movement to produce geothermal energy by using the natural energy from active volcanoes. Although this process is more expensive right now than alternative energy sources, such as petroleum or hydroelectric, the article suggests that geothermal energy will be a more reliable and greener energy source in the long run.
The basic process is that tubes which run from underneath active volcanoes carry extremely hot water and water vapour, which can be used by geothermal plants to convert this heat energy into electrical energy. This is a completely sustainable source of energy, while even hydroelectric dams placed on rivers can displace communities, causing conflict, and are also prone to damage from storms. The geothermal plants seem to be much more remote and simply require drilling into the earth for the placing of tubes. Petroleum, now the number one source of energy in Guatemala, isn't produced domestically on a large scale and around 2 billion dollars are spent on oil imports every year.
The Guatemalan government is offering tax cuts on equipment used to build geothermal plants, and the goal is to produce 60% of it's energy through geothermal and hydroelectric plants alone by the year 2022. The companies are also claiming that energy access to the general population will increase. This is something I have never heard of before this article ( I guess we don't have many active volcanoes up here..) and I think its sounds like a great source for sustainable energy!
Geothermal energy is available in some parts of Canada, including Ontario, but our thermal deposits here are much smaller than would be available around volcanoes! The process can be truly identified as a renewable source of energy and so it is good to learn about these alternatives before it is too late (i.e. before we run out of non-renewable sources of energy or destroy the earth's atmosphere beyond livability). Now hopefully governments and businesses act upon this opportunity!
ReplyDeleteIt's really great to read about Guatemala's plan to produce 60% of its energy through renewable means by 2022. Tax cuts are a good incentive to start building plants that will convert natural energy into usable energy but to achieve 60% in the next 12 years, people are going to have to be informed about this existing technology and its potential for success.
For future posts, I think we should include a link to the article and other citation information.
- Alyssa Kate Nebel
As discussed in class on Tuesday, this sounds to be an excellent direction for Guatemala to be headed in. As Nico noted after class the fact that the project is internationally funded does create some concern, BUT this is still a very important initiative. And as we have discussed in class numerous time, the issue of taxation really makes initiatives like these difficult. In an case like this I believe that it is important for those countries with available financial resources to support Guatemala in making positive environmental initiatives. The world needs alternative sources of energy, and barring detrimental effects on the volcanos and surrounding area, this sounds like a great way to create energy for Guatemala.
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