Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article with primary areas in the central Magdalena River valley and the Putumayo area adjacent to its border with Ecuador an alternative that the Cuban government has found to address the massive blackouts affecting its citizens precisely amidst the worsening of the energy crisis "Coal is being sold in the Popular Councils in Santa Clara," reported the secretary of the Communist Party in that city although their information generalizes that sales are taking place in all Popular Councils the Vice Mayor in charge of food production and distribution in Santa Clara clarified to the local station Estereocentro that sales are only happening in a place known as "la Coca-Cola," and that if the weather permits "it will also be sold at the José Martí fair this Sunday." The official also specified that the price of a can of coal ranges between 300 and 350 Cuban pesos Photos shared by officials and state media allow us to see how much this product is accepted by the population the main affected by the massive blackout that has been occurring since this Friday in the country and which the authorities have not yet been able to resolve In a country where people rely on electricity to cook food and the shortage of gas has also impacted the crisis the buying and selling of coal has surged on social media dozens of ads circulate on buying and selling sites from desperate people looking for coal Independent journalist Yosmany Mayeta Labrada has documented how long lines have formed in Santiago de Cuba to acquire this resource essential in households due to the prolonged absence of electricity there has been a call to increase coal production as an alternative for families experiencing power outages of more than 15 hours a day in recent weeks The website of the local television channel Tele Pinar published the information and emphasized that "this product has become a vital resource for cooking food in the areas of Vueltabajo." While before the general collapse of the electrical system the Provincial Government of Las Tunas instructed on the sale of coal coordinator of Programs and Objectives of the Provincial People's Power Government said that the distribution is concentrated in urban settlements Dave Portnoy of Barstool Sports fame must really like pizza Portnoy has made what we guess is a really good living doing pizza reviews on social media Wait! He's made a great living doing pizza reviews and building and selling Barstool Sports. A website MoneyMade says he's worth about $100 Million Portnoy moves across the country doing these "one bite" pizza reviews Let's take a look at the Atlantic City area reviews Portnoy has done we're calling the "Atlantic City area" any place he's reviewed in Atlantic and Cape May Counties We'll go from the highest score to the lowest Phil's Famous Pizzeria in Sea Isle City Carluccio's Coal Fired Pizza in Northfield Sorrento II Pizzeria and Restaurant in Wildwood Tony's Baltimore Grill in Atlantic City Send an email to joe.kelly@townsquaremedia.com Gallery Credit: Joe Votruba Gallery Credit: Nicole Murray Dave Portnoy of Barstool Sports fame must really like pizza!\nRead More Wait! He's made a great living doing pizza reviews and building and selling Barstool Sports. A website MoneyMade says he's worth about $100 Million! I guess he can buy all the pizza he wants. In case you didn't know, Portnoy moves across the country doing these "one bite" pizza reviews. He's been to New Jersey many, many times. Let's take a look at the Atlantic City area reviews Portnoy has done. (For this article, we're calling the "Atlantic City area" any place he's reviewed in Atlantic and Cape May Counties. We'll go from the highest score to the lowest. (Hey, don't shoot the messenger!) Sam's Pizza Place in North Wilwood. 7.9 Phil's Famous Pizzeria in Sea Isle City. 7.6. Berandi Brothers in Sea Isle City. Score: 7.1 (out of 10). Carluccio's Coal Fired Pizza in Northfield. 7.1 Poppi's Brick Oven Pizza in Wildwood. 6.8. Sorrento II Pizzeria and Restaurant in Wildwood. 5.3. Tony's Baltimore Grill in Atlantic City. 4.9. Who did we miss? (It could happen.) Let us know! Send an email to joe.kelly@townsquaremedia.com The price of a bag exceeds the salary of a pensioner 14/11/2024 - 1:27pm (GMT-5) | Residents of Villa Clara are standing in long lines to purchase charcoal an essential resource due to the frequent power outages affecting the country The sale of coal in Santa Clara has skyrocketed amid the energy crisis affecting Cuba and a video posted on social media this Thursday shows hundreds of people queuing at the José Martí fair to buy the coal which has reached a price of 1,500 pesos per bag—more than the average pension in Cuba "This is the coal that arrived for José Martí in Santa Clara at 1,500 pesos per sack How can this be allowed?" questioned Penton in his post on X The sale of coal has emerged as an improvised alternative for the Cuban government to address the energy crisis which has intensified following the massive blackout reported in October the country has been experiencing extended power outages due to failures in the electrical system and damage caused by cyclones the shortage of liquefied gas has forced many families to turn to coal for cooking The local government in Santa Clara had initially reported that the sale of coal would take place in all the Popular Councils of the city the acting vice mayor in charge of food production and distribution in Santa Clara sales will only take place at a specific location known as "la Coca-Cola," and that they will also be available at the José Martí fair numerous advertisements for buying and selling coal are circulating as many people are desperate to find this resource to cook in a country that years ago shifted to an energy matrix for food preparation and now lacks the resources to guarantee the service The phenomenon is not limited to Santa Clara In other provinces such as Santiago de Cuba long lines of citizens have been reported as they attempt to obtain charcoal to survive while electricity remains unrepaired a request was made to increase coal production to meet the growing demand of families affected by power outages of up to 15 hours a day Families in this province have been without electricity for over 10 days a steep precipice overlooked stone cottages and grazing cattle more than 300 meters below The tang of eucalyptus swirls through the mountain air We were approaching the summit of an 400-high metre mountain on the outskirts of Sutatausa a coal-mining town 80 kilometers north of Bogota? The mountain and its rocky path guard a forgotten chapter of Colombia’s colonial history—the site of an ancient massacre the Spanish forced over 5,000 Muisca people up this very same path,” says our guide almost all of the Muiscas threw themselves over the precipice feet and hands cut off or were burned alive It was one of the largest indigenous massacres in Colombia’s history.” and the path has been converted into a hiking trail that leads to rock climbing Hotels have sprouted up on vacant lots including high-end boutique lodging like the idyllic Casa Yunque Cheese and yogurt stalls line the highway with merchants hoping to use the reputation of the nearby town also known as the “dairy capital of Colombia.” But the area has struggled to compete with more established tourist destinations like Villa de Leyva or Zipaquira’s salt cathedral for lack of infrastructure Some of the area’s roads are in disrepair and many locals refuse to work on weekends but we haven’t been able to take advantage of that,” Bernal said offers a unique perspective on Spanish colonization A plaque on the town square memorializes the victims of the colonial massacre The town’s cathedral houses rare 400-year-old murals that depict Muisca leaders alongside Catholic saints A hidden subterranean chamber behind the pulpit has a wooden torture rack that dates back to the Inquisition But Bernal said the recent uptick in tourism is for an entirely different reason “People have been coming to hunt the chupacabras,” he said is a mysterious creature that bites and drains the blood of small animals At least 100 animals in the area have fallen victim to the chupacabras in the past six months So far nobody has spotted the elusive predator and the animal doesn’t appear to pose any risk for hikers coal miners whose shift had just ended at a nearby mine The miners were apparently used to the beautiful view for they didn’t look twice And as the majestic folds of the Andes spread out before us—it was well worth the one-hour hike and two-hour trip from Bogota? and website in this browser for the next time I comment Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" The City Paper was founded in 2008 as Colombia’s first free English language newspaper it was awarded the country’s Manuel Murillo Toro medal in communications for contributing to informed and objective coverage of Colombia Copyright © 2024 The City Paper | Terms and Conditions From the Autumn 2013 edition of The Bretton Woods Observer The World Bank’s July energy directions paper Towards a sustainable energy for all appeared to herald a major shift as the Bank stated it would fund coal power generation “only in rare circumstances” (see Update 86) The Directions Paper aims to achieve universal energy access which it argues is the basis for economic growth and poverty reduction hydropower projects and renewable energy such as wind which according to the paper “has half the carbon footprint of coal at the point of combustion” and “can be the least-cost means of providing flexible electricity supply where demand and supply fluctuate This flexibility becomes increasingly important as more solar and wind power is integrated into electricity grids.” The Bank “will help countries develop national and regional gas markets and use natural gas as an alternative to coal and thus shift away from locking into coal infrastructure.” In a July statement on the new energy directions paper, US based NGO Centre for International Environmental Law said if the World Bank intensifies investment in natural gas it would be “bad for the climate and bad for the environment Time and time again we have seen dirty energy projects justified on grounds of energy access with very little of that energy actually reaching the communities it is supposed to benefit.” Executive Director of Environmental Rights and Natural Resources (DAR) in Peru said “the main mistake of the loan for the Camisea gas export project (PERU LNG) is that it did not focus on Peru’s energy needs Business interests were prioritised ahead of meeting national energy demand which means now Peru cannot satisfy its gas supply over the next few decades.” Mike Karipco of NGO Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria said “I fear that the rush to build more gas-fired power plants would lock the country into a fossil fuel economy as the world gradually turns its focus to renewable energy There are currently around 20 gas projects in Nigeria but supply is still very erratic and energy prices have shot through the roof Many communities where these projects are situated are not connected to the electricity grid.” 70 percent of those without access in rural areas would be served by off-grid and mini-grid systems – not large-scale Civil society organisations such as International Rivers argue the Bank should fund energy efficiency projects because Bank assessments prove they are very effective such projects are considerably more economic than new power stations they don’t degrade the environment and displace local communities.” However the Bank chooses to fund large-scale projects instead of “complex solar micro-hydropower or energy efficiency projects” because it involves fewer costs and is easier to demonstrate results Get our alerts and publications in your inbox Donate to the Bretton Woods Project In a classic of the auto-translate glitch genre Mexico's official tourism website hilariously mistranslated the country's most popular spots from Spanish to English on Friday the upmarket beachside resort of Tulum became "Jumpsuit," the area of Aculco became "I Blame," and the city of Ciudad Madero became "Log."  Villa del Carbón became "Coal Village," Progreso became "Progress," and Puerto Escondido was changed to "Hidden Port." The site was down as of 5 a.m. ET on Saturday but the gaffe is the latest in a string of embarrassing episodes for the tourism industry On Thursday, the resort of Acapulco hastily removed a promotional video that showed people partying without masks on with the slogans "anything goes" and "there are no rules," according to The Associated Press (AP.) On July 24, the VisitMexico.com website went down, amid allegations claiming it happened because Mexico's Tourism department authority did not pay its bills.  The department apologized for the string of mistranslations "The Tourism Department expresses its most sincere apologies to the public and users for the effects that have occurred on the website VisitMexico," the statement The department then suggested that the glitches could have been done intentionally "We make it known that these acts aim to damage the image of the website and the department and so therefore a criminal complaint has been filed and appropriate legal actions will be taken against those responsible." They went looking for Víctor Rodríguez Aguirre to his home in the Santa Ana sector of barrio Jobos Guayama The young father was resident in one of the most densely populated zones near the AES carbon plant and knew what it was like to live in poverty He became a local sports leader who strived to help his community move forward He focused particularly on young students with no job prospects on the horizon His desire for progress and his influence in the neighborhood were key to convince others to believe in the promise that AES would invest hundreds of millions of dollars in the construction of a power generating plant that would bring wages and prosperity to the region resident of Santa Ana sector in barrio Jobos in Guayama to see the AES facilities,” Rodríguez Aguirre recalled sitting in a chair in the balcony of his home “And what we saw there was very positive; it was in line with what we had been told would be established here in Puerto Rico,” he said From Barranca and Pozuelo to Puente de Jobos and from Miramar to San Martin disappointment spread quickly among neighbors like the smoke left behind by the truckloads of ash “Even the smallest alleys were filled completely with the ashes Then they covered it with white stone and other materials to hide it,” Rodríguez Aguirre lamented The ashes were not supposed to be left here in Puerto Rico That’s the reason why everyone thought it would be positive This all happened while the Puerto Rican government and federal agencies looked the other way build a fence or plant a garden in the courtyard of a newly built home in some of the aforementioned municipalities it is common to unearth thick layers of gray dust AES, the multinational corporation that produces the ashes since 2002 and bills nearly a million dollars daily to government owned Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) for the sale of coal based electricity, argues that they are not toxic waste and that they are safe for citizens and the environment. Company executives sustain that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) lists the ashes as non-hazardous waste and indicates that they can be reused as a filler in construction projects. Nonetheless, four years ago that same federal agency ordered and paid for a chemical analysis that debunked this thesis in response to complaints from environmental groups such as Diálogo Ambiental. The research conducted exclusively with coal ash from the AES plant in Guayama concluded that this waste tends to release heavy metals in concentrations that exceed up to 9,000 times federal safety standards upon contact with liquids and soil. Researchers at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee and ARCADIS laboratories in North Carolina also detected excessive levels of arsenic EPA could classify AES waste -or any similar one- as a dangerous Neither the EPA nor its homonymous local agency reported these findings to the plant’s neighbors or to the communities impacted by the transportation and unloading of the material the EPA integrated some references to the report in its website and to this day the agency only provides the final study upon request There is strong evidence on the effects of high concentrations of heavy metals on human health and the environment For example, the Technical University of Delft in the Netherlands, one of the most prestigious research centers in Europe, points out that the intake of inorganic arsenic can intensify the chances of developing of skin Very high exposures can also cause infertility and abortions in women On the other hand, thallium detected on the ashes of Guayama -in concentrations 14 to 31 times above the maximum allowed- can be absorbed by the body very effectively through skin respiratory organs and the digestive tract as deduced from the Vanderbilt and ARCADIS and the Technical University of Delft studies Used as one of the active ingredients in rat poison thallium intake can cause nerve and congenital damage in children and even death The chemical analysis commissioned by the EPA also found that the ashes of AES can issue chromium concentrations between 470 to 9,000 times above the acceptable threshold Previous studies, such as the one funded by the United States Department of Energy in 2006 have agreed that 97 percent of the total chromium released by coal ash is of the hexavalent type Better known by its reference in the film “Erin Brockovich” water contaminated with hexavalent chromium caused cancer to animals according to laboratory tests conducted by the National Toxicology Program of the US Department of Health between 2006 and 2008 coal ash is water soluble so it is common for the substance to pollute aquifers a professor at the University of Puerto Rico has a specialization in EPA Environmental Chemistry worked for a decade as a consultant to the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and has spent 35 years as a researcher He warned that the main impact of Vanderbilt and ARCADIS findings is that wherever these ashes are taken “they carry with them these toxins and carcinogens and thus they have the potential to do damage in the locality where you unload them and to all those exposed in the areas.” Photos and documents held by Puerto Rico’s Center for Investigative Journalism (CPIPR in Spanish) detail how this toxic waste ended up in at least 36 locations in Santa Isabel Among them are the developments Parque Gabriela II The ashes were also deposited in commercial spaces such as Arboleda Shopping Court Also a plot of land belonging to the Eta Sigma Alpha fraternity near Punta Guilarte Beach and close to three water wells Some images confirm the widespread disposal of toxic material at the banks of the Saco and Guamaní rivers a source who asked not to be identified told the CPIPR that tons of ashes from AES were buried between 2004 and 2008 on public land of high agricultural value and managed by the Land Authority of Puerto Rico in Salinas The material was mostly used as filling for roads and in some cases the greyish residue was not covered with another material AES has continued to produce toxic coal ash at a rate of 400 to 1,600 tons per day or about 300 thousand tons per year a fact that helps understand the magnitude of the company’s ash waste production Given the light weight of the ashes and the type of cargo vehicles used part of this waste ends up spread over the routes chosen to transport it from Guayama to landfills in Peñuelas and Humacao These locations have received the waste without authorization or supervision of the Environmental Quality Board the EQB acknowledged in writing that during 2015 350 thousand tons in the Humacao landfill and other seven thousand tons of ash were illegally unloaded in the Peñuelas landfill These violations have not resulted in fines or cancellation of permits and contracts The questions of why regulatory agencies do not comply with their own laws or stop the dangerous disposition of toxic material around the island emerged again last year when another suspicion was confirmed Researchers at Duke University in North Carolina certified that coal ash also has radioactivity levels up to ten times higher than the coal “due to the way the combustion process concentrates radioactive substances” as published by the American Chemical Society magazine “Right now there is no standard or safe level of exposure to radioisotopes Any exposure is unacceptable,” said Rosario Lopez about the study The findings and conclusions of the scientific team from Duke match another analysis done in 2010 where ashes of neighborhood Parque Gabriela in Salinas were evaluated. Test America Savannah laboratory certified not only toxic levels of arsenic but also excessive presence of alpha radiation The EPA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recognize that when radioactive particles are inhaled the risk of cancer increases significantly These particles disperse easily when handled transported and unloaded without control mechanisms According to the latest Cancer Registry of Puerto Rico Newsletter Juana Díaz and Ponce recorded the highest incidence of all types of cancer between 2008 and 2012 higher mortality was reported among people with cancer residing in Guayama “Does the EPA know about all this (the radioactivity)?,” CPIPR asked Dr They know very well and coal company consultants also know it They are also scientists,” he replied “And what is completely immoral is that the health and the quality of life of the people is being sacrificed for economic greed According to references of the Public Justice organization it would cost AES between $100 and $200 per ton to properly dispose of this waste but the company has preferred to not take on that expense the pollutants from the ashes seep through the ground and the Southern Aquifer in all the places where they have used coal ash as a filler there is a threat of irreversible pollution with heavy metals He believes it is “only a matter of time” before the toxic chemicals leak into water supplies like the Southern Aquifer until they make them unusable Governor Alejandro García Padilla meeting with Judith Enck in Puerto Rico His remarks are not alarmist. An internal memo of the EPA obtained by the CPIPR shows how the administrator of the Region 2 2011 about this same issue to the president of the Environmental Quality Board Enck was concerned and mentioned Nieves Miranda specific cases and lawsuits filed in the US by contamination of aquifers with toxic elements in coal ash EPA has profuse evidence on the pollution of aquifers and wells “leached” by coal ash in the United States the federal agency found that the chromium present in an aquifer contaminated by an ash landfill in Ohio reached 1.68 parts per million a figure that exceeds 84,000 times the amount allowed by federal regulations In more well-known cases for residents of the United States -like those of Town of Pines Virginia- important drinking water supplies were contaminated with coal ash that had been used as construction fill like in Puerto Rico In 17 states there are about twenty cases tested and documented by EPA At the same time the company investigates hundreds of additional complaints Water extraction has been banned in places where chromium and other heavy metals contamination has been found According to Puerto Rico’s chief adviser on water issues for EPA the Southern Aquifer is an elaborate network of drinking water wells that runs between the municipalities of Guayama to Peñuelas At least 35 million gallons are extracted from it every day to serve around 140 thousand people and for residents and businesses in Salinas it is the only supply of drinking water Although Soderberg Mayoral said that he was unaware of EPA studies where the toxicity of coal ash AES is recognized he described the current state of the aquifer as critical due to salinization and acknowledged that posing another threat to this resource could be detrimental not only for residents but also to the possibilities for commercial and industrial growth in the area “The Southern Aquifer is in a critical situation… and therefore deserves special protection,” he said He further argued that if the consumption from this water resource was ever banned “there will be a serious social economic problem,” especially for the municipality of Salinas in order to bring an alternate superficial supply having to bring in water though tanker trucks for several There is nothing else to do,” he concluded “It’s not whether it’s going to happen or not it’s a matter of when will it happen,” Dr Manuel Mata, chief executive of AES Puerto Rico, did not agree to be interviewed by the Center for Investigative Journalism the Center for Investigative Journalism reveals how the rules for company AES in Puerto Rico were changed backstage officials from government agencies react to the coal ash problem Toxic Ash: A Caribbean time bomb is the result of collaboration between the Center for Investigative Journalism and La Pela del Sur newspaper through a special grant of environmental journalism awarded by “Para la Naturaleza” See the complete series with its graphics and interactives in periodismoinvestigativo.com Necesitamos tu apoyo para seguir haciendo y ampliando nuestro trabajo El CPI reconoce que el requisito fundamental para una verdadera democracia es que la ciudadanía esté bien informada y que existan entidades independientes con la capacidad de fiscalizar los poderes que accionan en la sociedad Si tiene una solicitud de investigación, queja, aclaración, 'orejita', prueba, inquietud, u observación sobre alguna información publicada por el Centro de Periodismo Investigativo, escriba al correo electrónico [email protected] Los donativos que recibe el Centro de Periodismo Investigativo están exentos de contribuciones en Puerto Rico y Estados Unidos Dave Portnoy is back at it again with his infamous pizza reviews He recently reviewed two different pizza shops in Chalfont and Doylestown If you haven’t seen a video of Dave Portnoy’s pizza reviews before he travels around to different states and ranks some requested pizza shops in the area The President of the media company, Barstool Sports visited a ton of local favorite shops in the New Jersey and New York area and now he can cross two different Bucks County shops off of his list The first stop on his pizza journey in Bucks County was at Peppino’s Tomato Pies in Chalfont After going inside and getting a pizza made up special for the pizza review Dave says “It’s a little messy - 7.8” If you know anything about his pizza rankings you’ll know this is a great ranking so Peppino’s for sure got some good praise from him If you want to try out Peppino’s Tomato Pies for yourself you can check them out at 449 W Butler Ave in Chalfont Dave Portnoy also recently stopped by Lucatelli’s in Doylestown, PA! During his review, Dave says “It almost has more of a New York Vibe to me, than a Philly vibe.” The final rating for Lucatelli’s was also a 7.8. If you want to check out this pizza shop for yourself, you can visit Lucatelli’s Pizzeria at 73 Old Dublin Pike Suite 12 in Doylestown It’s safe to say these are two highly-rated pizza shops in the Bucks County area These 2 pizza shops are a must try!\nRead More The President of the media company, Barstool Sports If you want to try out Peppino’s Tomato Pies for yourself Dave Portnoy also recently stopped by Lucatelli’s in Doylestown, PA! During his review, Dave says “It almost has more of a New York Vibe to me, than a Philly vibe.” The final rating for Lucatelli’s was also a 7.8. If you want to check out this pizza shop for yourself, you can visit Lucatelli’s Pizzeria at 73 Old Dublin Pike Suite 12 in Doylestown Villa de Zaachila (Mexico): Reyna Díaz cooks beans which she sets up in the open courtyard of her home in a poor neighbourhood on the outskirts of this town in southwestern Mexico it has been a big help to me,” Díaz told IPS as she mixed the ingredients for cochinita pibil a traditional pork dish marinated with spices and achiote She then placed the pot on the aluminium sheets of the cooker which reflect the sunlight that heats the receptacle Before receiving the solar cooker in March a traditional hot Mexican drink based on corn or wheat dough and is raising her son and daughter on her own did not believe it was possible to cook with the sun’s rays I wondered if the food would actually be cooked It’s a wonderful thing,” said this resident of the poor neighbourhood of Vicente Guerrero a municipality of 43,000 people in the state of Oaxaca Also read: Can India’s Solar Revolution Help Meet Its Paris Agreement Emission Goals? One thing the inhabitants of Vicente Guerrero have in common is poverty But although they live in modest houses that in some cases are tin shacks lining unpaved streets and have no sewage system they do have electricity and drinking water The women alternate their informal sector jobs with the care of their families Diaz used to cook with firewood and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) which she now uses less so it lasts longer Women in this neighbourhood were taught how to use the solar cookers and then became promoters organising demonstrations in their homes to exchange recipes taste their dishes and spread the word about the benefits and positive changes that the innovative stoves have brought The solar cookers are low-tech devices that use reflective panels to focus sunlight on a pot in the middle Their advantages include being an alternative for rural cooking because they make it possible to cook without electricity or solid or fossil fuels helping people avoid breathing smoke from wood stoves The drawbacks are that they do not work on rainy or cloudy days some 19 million use solid fuels for cooking which caused some 15,000 premature deaths in 2016 from the ingestion of harmful particles according to data from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi) The main fuel consumed by 79% of these households is LPG followed by wood or charcoal (11%) and natural gas (7%) gas and firewood each account for 49% of household consumption Of the state’s more than four million inhabitants 70% were living in poverty in 2016 and nearly 27% in extreme poverty crowded housing and 62% lacked access to basic services Oaxaca is also one of the three Mexican states with the highest levels of energy poverty which means households that spend more than 10% of their income on energy Solar cookers can help combat the deprivation They first began to be distributed in Oaxaca in 2004. In 2008, activists created the initiative “Solar energy for mobile food stalls in Mexico”, sponsored by three Swiss institutions: the city of Geneva, the SolarSpar cooperative and the non-governmental organisation GloboSol Cocina Solar Mexico a collective dedicated to the use of solar energy for cooking With the support of the non-governmental Solar Household Energy (SHE) Also read: How Solar Energy Has Empowered Communities in Rural Assam SHE launched a pilot project in indigenous communities to assess how widely it would be accepted “I learned while working with the local women. It was hard, like breaking stones; people knew nothing about it. Now people are more open, because there is more information about the potential of solar energy. In rural areas, people understand it more,” Lorena Harp which has a useful life of five to 10 years The group has distributed about 200 solar cookers in 10 communities they have gained respect in their families.” Oaxaca does not take advantage of its high levels of solar radiation it was listed among the 10 Mexican states with the lowest levels of distributed (decentralised) generation according to the government’s Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE) Oaxaca had an installed photovoltaic capacity of 6.69 megawatts with 747 interconnection contracts in a country where distributed generation only involves solar energy This Latin American country registered 17,767 contracts for almost 125 megawatts (MW) almost the same volume as in the same period in 2018 -when they totaled 35,661 for 233.56 MW CRE has registered 112,660 contracts for 817.85 MW of solar power Luís Calderón, president of the Oaxaca Energy Cluster But “there is a lack of precise, reliable information and certainty about the savings achieved with distributed generation, which is generated for self-consumption while the surplus is fed into the grid. In addition, there is no policy in the state,” Calderón, also a member of the National Solar Energy Association Mexico registered a total installed capacity of 70,000 MW Gas-fired combined cycle plants contributed 36% But the government of left-wing President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is driving the exploitation of fossil fuels and standing in the way of the growth of renewable energies It plans to modify the Business Ecocredit initiative, led by the government’s Electric Energy Saving Trust for micro small and medium enterprises for the acquisition of efficient appliances The measures include eliminating the 14% subsidy and a limit of some 20,000 dollars in financing but the government has yet to define its future Watch: Is This the Dawn of the Solar Age? the Oaxaca government’s plan to create two cooperatives for energy for agricultural irrigation does not yet have the 1.75 million dollars needed for two 500-kilowatt solar plants in the municipality of San Pablo Huixtepec to serve 1,200 farmers in 35 irrigation units The local women don’t plan to stop using the solar cookers in a neighbourhood ideal for deploying solar panels and water heaters while checking that her stew wasn’t burning The SHE assessment found that the solar cookers were widely accepted and have had a positive impact as nearly half of the local women who use them have reduced by more than 50 percent their use of stoves that cause pollution Users also report that the solar cookers have saved them time Harp said more partners and government support were needed Something is missing to generate truly widespread use General enquiries: science@science.thewire.in