29/03/2005 - Last Saturday,
Filipino and Danish engineers successfully
raised the first megawatt-scale wind turbine
in South-East Asia at Bangui Bay. The event
marked a significant milestone in the Philippines’
quest for energy independence by using indigenous
and renewable energy.
The Philippines is set on being the biggest
producer of wind energy in South-East Asia
with the initial construction of a 70meter
wind turbine with a rated capacity of 1.6MW.
It took the team three days to raise this
turbine, affectionately named Wendy the wind
turbine.
One down, fourteen more to go
Wendy is just the first of fifteen turbines
that will be established in the windswept
town of Bangui, Ilocos Norte. Commissioning
of the wind farm is slated for April 30th
this year. South-East Asia’s first wind farm
will have a total capacity of 25MW and will
supply power to customers of the Ilocos Norte
Electric Cooperative (INEC) starting May this
year.
Denmark based VESTAS Wind Systems A/S, the
biggest wind turbine manufacturer in the world,
is constructing the wind farm on a turnkey
basis for the NorthWind Power Development
Corporation, a consortium of Filipino and
Danish investors.
The NorthWind project is only the first of
several wind farms in the Philippines. WWF,
in collaboration with private sector partners,
is also developing two wind farms in Northern
Panay.
Huge potential for wind power
The potential for wind power in the Philippines
is huge. Together with the UP National Engineering
Center, WWF has determined the country’s practical
wind resources at 7,404MW, spread across 1,038
sites all over the country.
WWF has estimated that the country could
save US$2.9 billion in avoided fossil-fuel
imports over ten years if the country’s vast
renewable energy resources are tapped. Through
these efforts, the Philippines will also contribute
to global efforts to reduce carbon dioxide
emission, the main greenhouse gas that causes
global warming.
”Along with our highly successful geothermal
industry, the construction of South-East Asia’s
first wind farm proves that clean indigenous
energy can propel the country towards sustainable
development,” said Raf Senga, WWF Philippines
Energy and Climate Project leader.
Plans to wrap Swiss glacier with insulating
foam fails to address climate change
23 Mar 2005
Andermatt, Switzerland – Plans to wrap one
of Switzerland’s shrinking Alpine glaciers
with insulating foam only deals with the implications
of global warming and more importantly fails
to address the causes of climate change, warns
WWF.
Swiss technicians are to use special insulating
foam to wrap a glacier that has been shrinking
over the summer months, according to Carlo
Danioth, in charge of ski slopes at the central
Swiss resort of Andermatt.
The Gurschen glacier is to be partly covered
with 3,000km2 of foam starting in May to stop
it melting further, a phenomenon attributed
to global warming.
"If the trial is a success, we'll wrap
the other part of the glacier too," Danioth
said.
WWF-Switzerland says that it understands
why tourist authorities want to preserve their
frozen assets from the consequences of global
warming, but it warns that those responsible
should also realize that putting glaciers
under a blanket can neither hide nor solve
the problems of climate change.
On the contrary, the conservation organization
says that the pilot project in Andermatt demonstrates
how expensive and disproportionate such protective
actions are.
A study published last year by Zurich University
estimated that the country's glaciers had
lost about a fifth of their surface area over
the past 15 years. The study, carried out
using satellite data, also found that the
rate of ice-loss was accelerating. A number
of other Swiss ski resorts are reported to
be considering similar measures.
WWF-Switzerland wants to see the implementation
of effective climate protection measures.
This would result in the reduction of climate
warming along with huge economic advantages.
Useful sanctions to stop the emission of greenhouse
gases, and with that the global warming, are
to increase energy efficiency and to reduce
the waste of fossil energy resources.
