YES, it’s true. It’s fun to live and work in Negros Occidental. Negrenses are in a cusp in building something new, of reinventing themselves.
Call it Negrense exceptionalism as far as the whole country goes. We are transitioning the province from a rural, monoculture economy to a green diversified economy. Leading the way is the provincial government that’s bent on promoting organic agriculture and renewable energy. It’s chutzpa Negrense style.
The province holds the promise of being a leader in solar power generation. In contrast, the country is becoming dependent on coal-based power generation.
Negros Occidental has more in common with Thailand than the rest of our country. The Land of Gentle Smiles is targeting 1,200-1,500 megawatts of solar capacity that’s expected to connect to her national grid this year.
In contrast, the country’s Department of Energy expects 23 new coal-fired power plants to be established by 2020. Facilities include two new 300-MW plants opening in Davao City in 2016 and 2017, a 400-MW expansion of existing facilities in Quezon opening in 2017, a 600-MW plant in Subic opening in 2016, and a plant expansion in Bataan, also in 2016.
No wonder. In 2013 in Davao, President Benigno Aquino III rationalized his policy on building coal plants. “Renewable energy is also more expensive –from the cost of building the plants to the eventual price of energy? Did they mention that it cannot provide the baseload – the capacity required to make sure brownouts do not occur?” the President asked. “If you put up a solar plant, what do you when the sky is cloudy?
Thank God, Gov. Alfredo Marañón Jr. and our Sangguniang Panlalawigan held a different view. Various Negrense cities and towns will host not coal-fired but solar-powered plants that eventually will generate over one gigawatts of electricity.
The grandmother of all climate summits is just four months away. The United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP21 or CMP11 will be held in Paris, France from November 30 to December 11, 2015. Negros Occidental can present the world its best practice on building a green economy.
The world expects national governments to agree to a revolutionary target to rid the world off fossil fuels. Negros Occidental could be a guiding star to navigate away from climate catastrophe, signaling to politicians, boardrooms and stock-markets everywhere that political leaders this side of Southeast Asia are willing to write finis to the era of dirty energy.
(bqsanc@gmail.com)