POTENTIAL HAZARDS
The project will consist of three floating solar projects atop 2, 000 ha of water that will provide about 2 gigawatts of power to the Laguna region and the funds by 2026. The area, which extends 91, 000 ha southeast of Manila, may be served by the project.
Three businesses have already received arrangements, but they must also pass an environmental impact assessment before beginning construction.
Alcones is one of the 13, 000 people who depend on the lake for their livelihoods, according to the Laguna Lake Development Authority ( LLDA ), a state agency responsible for the preservation, development and sustainability of the area.
The LLDA regularly meets with fisher groups to hear their concerns and the government “does n’t want to dislocate them as much as possible” when the solar project gets underway, said Mhai Dizon, the LLDA’s renewable energy project coordinator.
But the Philippines ‘ largest fishery ally, the National Federation of Small Fisherfolk Organizations in the Philippines, or Pamalakaya, accused the LLDA of just consulting local government officials and little parties of Laguna fishing.
Following a request by Pamalakaya, it met with the LLDA in Manila in July, when it raised fears that the Laguna thermal job may affect more than 8, 000 sailors, including 2, 000 people who work in fishing, according to Ronnel Arambulo, Pamalakaya’s evil chairman.
Outside of the conference, which was closed to the media, Arambulo told The Thomson Reuters Foundation,” We are concerned that the floating renewable fields will further reduce our hunting grounds, which have already been reduced by previous development jobs.”
According to Arambulo, Pamalakaya fishermen worry that the project will decrease catch and pose a threat to local communities if they become detached during powerful typhoons and rising water levels. He claimed that the panels was restrict boats and destroy docks.
According to the Responsible Energy Initiative report, water-borne thermal panels are still being tested and have “numerous inquiries” about possible long-term effects on the environment and local societies.
Possible risks include southern soil erosion, increased deposition and siltation, photosynthesis disruption, and decreased fishing yields as a result of ecosystem changes.
According to Marvin Lagonera, Southeast Asia’s energy transition planner for the Future, floating renewable can reduce exposure to fishing grounds based on their specific location and scale. He described” a rights-based view” in clean energy moves as necessary.
” This includes meaningfully engaging with effected areas”, including civil society, environmental organizations and local communities, he said.