BackOver the last few years, citizens’ concern about climate change and energy has heightened. The signing of the Paris Agreement in December 2015 and its subsequent ratification in 2016 has led most countries around the world to have plans to reduce their emissions and adapt to climate change. It also significantly backed work done at all levels of the public administration, business and civil society as well.
At the same time, the energy sector has undergone significant changes over the last decade. The cost of renewable energy has been drastically reduced and nonconventional gas has burgeoned in the United States. Major international energy organizations agree in indicating that a low carbon economy compatible with the Paris Agreement is technically and economically feasible, and should be based mainly on energy savings and efficiency and the roll-out of renewable energy. This, for instance, is stated in the recent joint report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), presented at the G20 Summit in July 2017.
In 2018, the Office of the Ombudsman for the Basque Country has therefore published a Special Report on “The Energy Transition in the Basque Country: Towards a Sustainable Model”. The Executive Summary of this Report has now been translated into English. The report shows that Ombudsman institutions can become involved and take the initiative in a highly complex and technical issue such as climate change which is becoming acuter every day and one of the top concerns of the citizens Ombudsman institutions serve. It can also be a tool to enhance the public’s participation in holding environmental authorities accountable.
There is uncertainty surrounding the degree of use of natural gas compatible with a virtually decarbonised economy in the 2050 horizon, and with regards to the availability and future cost of Carbon Sequestration and Storage (CCS) technology in industry and in the energy sector (see IEA/IRENA 2017 report). Nevertheless, all of the analysis concurs in indicating that coal, first and foremost, and then oil must quickly disappear from the global energy mix. In this respect, recently several countries close to the Basque Country have established dates for the definitive shutdown (in France, 2023 and in the United Kingdom, 2025) and certain countries have begun to set dates after which no combustion engine automobiles may be purchased (in Norway, 2025, and in France, 2040 or earlier).
The special report of the Ombudsman for the Basque Country aims to place all of these changes in their context and trigger thought among citizens about the present and the future of the Basque Country Region’s (CAPV) energy system. It intends to inform citizens about the policies that are being carried out at various levels of government, establish a diagnosis of the current situation and put forward critical elements to spark thought about a sustainable, low carbon future.
Source: Ararteko - Ombudsman of the Basque Country, Spain
