Construction of wind farms | Renewables propose to include a sort of ‘social license’ among the requirements to build a park

2023-06-29 16:40:32

“renewable yes, but not like thisyelled the winner of the Goya for best film for ‘The Beasts’, Rodrigo Sorogoyen, last February. The filmmaker took the prime time television one of the main problems of the sector in recent years: the social response. Beyond the anecdote, renewable companies they sing the ‘MEA culpa’ due to lack of pedagogy about the benefits of renewables before the alluvium of wind farms and photovoltaic and they promise to work together to improve the social perception of these facilities. Among the measures they propose to the administrations to require a kind of ‘neighborhood license’ among the construction requirements of the parks.

It is not a question of adding more bureaucracy to the already slow processing of the projects, but of including this evaluation in the Environmental Impact Statement (DIA). “It would be nice if environmental procedure demonstrated in some way that this park has social acceptance“, has raised the director of business development in Spain of Acciona Energía, Marta Fernandez, in a debate on this problem during the first day of the Annual Wind Congress organized by the Asociación Empresarial Eólica (AEE).

The Environmental Impact Statement (DIA) It is one of the necessary requirements to be able to build a renewable park in Spain. Who issues it is the central or autonomous administrationdepending on the size of the installation. And it evaluates whether or not it is convenient to build a wind turbine or a solar panel in a certain place, depending on the environmental protection conditions and natural resources. Fernández suggests looking for a formula, such as a survey between neighbors, to add in that process whether the community is for or against the installation.

The social response is “the main problem” of this technology for the future, according to the general director of Renewables, New Businesses and Innovation of Naturgy, Jorge Barredowhich warns that in USA has even led to “prosecute permits” installation of parks. In the last five yearswind and photovoltaics have added almost 25 gigawatts (GW) new generation, a little less than half of the existing total. But with a view to 2030 they intend to install more than 80 new GW.

“We have gone too fast and the rush has not accompanied us to sit with the neighbors and obtain the so-called ‘social license’. If no one tells you that on the mountain that you have in front of your house they will put mills It’s normal for you to be alert”, has assured the executive director of the renewable company Greenalia, Beatriz Mato. “If we do things right, you introduce yourself to the neighbor, tell him that you have come to stay and that you will be a good neighbor, I’m sure of acceptancealthough later another one comes behind contaminate“, has added Beatriz Mato.

From the sector they draw a clear line between the media “noise” that generate proclamations such as that of Sorogoyen or the environmental associations and the neighborhood unrest. “We need differentiate between noise and reality. And although social acceptance is majority, it is necessary to respect the sensitivity of people and municipalities and understand the reluctance to changes in the environment”, warned the president of the wind energy association, Juan Diego Diaz.

Establish direct benefits to local communities such as lower electricity prices, priority for discharge into the grid from renewable facilities or economic compensations It is one of the formulas proposed by the National Commission for Markets and Competition (CNMC) to overcome the difficulties of renewable deployment. Many of these measures are being put into practice in some regions, according to Repsol Renovables’ director of operations (COO) for Europe and Latin America, Enrique Pedrosabut “it needs to be shared,” he adds.

“The social part only depends on us. We have to invite all the actors to teach all benefits and remove all doubts. Renewables yes, but only like this “, she has concluded by saying Marta Fernandez of Activate Energy.