Source : http://actu.orangecaraibe.com/
Ce mardi, dans un hôtel du Gosier, après une première journée consacrée à l'Accord de partenariat économique, signé entre l'Union Européenne et le CARIFORUM, la Région Guadeloupe, la Caribbean Export and Developpment Agency (CEDA), agence d'export et de développement économique du CARIFORUM et la Commission européenne sont en réunion de travail sur la thématique des énergies renouvelables.
L'objectif est de faire la promotion de l'expertise locale et des nombreux projets développés sur notre territoire dans le domaine des énergies renouvelables.
La matinée a été consacrée à des présentations thématiques sur les différents types d'énergies développées en Guadeloupe.
Dans l'après-midi, les parties visiteront des sites et participeront à des rendez-vous d'affaires :
- visite du lycée de Port-Louis, premier lycée qui se voudra énergétiquement autonome localement ;
- discussion sur l'installation solaire ;
- puis sur la démarche HQE (Haute qualité environnementale) ;
- visite du site de la ferme éolienne de Grand Maison à Petit-Canal
| Source: Ministry of Energy and Mining |
The Caribbean Information Platform on Renewable Energy (CIPORE) was be launched April 24, 2009 at the Scientific Research Council (SRC) in Kingston, Jamaica.
CIPORE (www.cipore.org) is the information and communication system for the exchange of Renewable Energy information for the region. It will provide information on projects and media galleries of renewable energy sites among other things for the thirteen participating Caribbean territories.
Director at the Ministry of Energy and Mining Yvonne Barrett-Edwards said that "CIPORE represents a seminal moment in the development of the renewable energy sector in the Caribbean as it establishes a central point where governments, industry stakeholders/experts, investors and citizens across the region can access reliable information on the state and potential of renewable energy in the Caribbean".
This she continued will "enable us to discuss and share best practices and ideas, keep abreast of new developments and merge intellectual innovations and thought with the skilled (technical) professionals and resources to collectively plan, strategize and drive regional transformation".
Some of the major components of the Platform include:
. An Information Centre with articles and speeches on renewable energy, a projects database, legislations, statistics and energy calculator.
. A Communications Centre which features a directory, forums, chat rooms and access to host live meetings with up to 20 persons online from anywhere in the world.
. A Demonstration Centre which facilitates access to photo and video galleries, media downloads and Virtual Tours of Renewable Energy sites across the Caribbean.
. Every participating country also has its own Country Page which offers a Renewable Energy Snapshot, news, events and projects in the particular country.
. The News section is devoted to Renewable Energy developments in the region for each participating territory.
Meanwhile Mrs. Barrett-Edwards also affirmed that CIPORE "is another indication of the region's commitment to develop innovative programmes and facilities that further advance our alternative energy sector which helps us to diversify our energy mix and gradually break the dependence on and vulnerability to the volatile oil market".
Uploading of information to CIPORE will be done from the National Focal Points (NFPs) in participating territories.
CIPORE had its genesis in a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the SRC and CARICOM which was signed on September 26, 2008. The Caribbean Energy Information System which is headquartered at SRC won the consultancy to develop the platform.
Source : http://www2.ademe.fr/
Le décret de mise en place d’une réglementation thermique spécifique aux départements d’Outre-mer a été publié le 19 avril 2009. Ce texte rend, notamment, obligatoire l’installation de chauffe-eau solaires thermiques sur les logements neufs.
Par ailleurs, la loi Grenelle 1 a prévu, dans ces mêmes départements, que la climatisation de toutes les constructions neuves soit compensée par l’installation de systèmes solaires photovoltaïques.
Un moyen efficace d’utiliser l’abondante ressource solaire dont jouissent ces départements.
| Source: http://www.caribbeannetnews.com |
| BASSETERRE, St Kitts (SKNIS) -- The Caribbean Region and Central America are better prepared to deal with natural or man made disasters, after successfully completing the latest round of training and evaluation under the Allied Forces Humanitarian Programme (FAHUM). The annual exercise, which is typically held prior to the start of the hurricane season, saw disaster simulations being staged in Antigua, Grenada, Honduras and Costa Rica in this instance. The mobilization of emergency personnel and resources, and their use, were evaluated by representatives from the 25-country body who spent the past two days in St Kitts for the After Action Review session. Andria Grosvenor of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDERA) explained that the exercise in Grenada focused on the threat of a tsunami. A model with warning protocols has been developed and is to be piloted in four countries. A guide was also produced to allow easier adaptation in other countries. In Antigua, an earthquake simulation caused major damage including the collapse of a four storey building. “We were able to mobilize the Regional Security System (RSS) [whose] military troops will lend support for areas related to security,” she revealed. “We were also able to mobilize the CARICOM Disaster Relief Unit, as well as search and rescue teams from St Kitts and Nevis and Barbados.” Emergency personnel from Jamaica and Dominica were placed on standby in this exercise. In a case of life imitating art, the region is better prepared to handle the current threat posed by the H1N1 virus, commonly known as swine flu. Colonel Eric Rose of the United States Army disclosed that one of the first scenarios held earlier this year dealt with the spread of a pandemic influenza from South America, into Central America and then the Caribbean. Inter-agency communication, warning alerts and health officials were involved in controlling the outbreak. The CDERA official stressed that this exercise and the subsequent review was extremely timely and will be useful as authorities brace for the possible entrance of the H1N1 virus into the Region. Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Wallace of the St Kitts-Nevis Defence Force noted that the Federation has benefited from its association with FAHUM as it has provided networking opportunities, information sharing and best practice models that serve to raise the skill of local emergency and rescue officials. FAHUM is a US Southern Command-sponsored multinational exercise that concentrates on improving how civilian, government and military agencies from the United States, the Caribbean and Central America respond to natural disasters in the region. |
Source : www.eclac.org
Delegates from 22 countries reasserted their support to the Regional Action Plan for the Information Society in Latin America and the Caribbean (eLAC2010), in which ECLAC holds the Technical Secretariat.
"We are going through difficult times that require, now more than ever, a new approach towards development, with a comprehensive perspective that includes productivity, competitiveness, social inclusion and sustainability," said ECLAC Executive Secretary Alicia Bárcena during the inauguration of the First Follow-up Meeting to the Regional Action Plan for the Information Society in Latin America and the Caribbean (eLAC2010) .
Ms Bárcena underscored the potential of Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) in gaining productivity and competitive advantages, as well as extending the coverage of education, health, and government services, among others.
"However, in light of the current scenario, with the many priorities countries in our region must address, investments in ICT and other relevant aspects in the development of the Information Society are running the risk of being postponed," said Ms Bárcena. "If this happens, not only will countries be making a mistake in the present, but even worse, they will be compromising the competitive capabilities of our countries in the future."
The Regional Action Plan eLAC is a long-term strategy implemented by governments in the region since 2005 to promote the use of ICT for development and social inclusion. The follow-up meeting to the second Action Plan, eLAC2010, reviewed the progress and challenges of its 22 member countries in the region in complying with the plan's 83 goals.
"I am a firm believer that the eLAC process is prepared for this quantum leap: to become transversal, permeate in priority areas, and spread," stated ambassador Miguel Angel Alcaine, of the Foreign Ministry of El Salvador, country that holds the presidency of eLAC2010 Board.
"Our challenge is to show our Health Ministers, for example, that investments in ICT in health, if they are done well, have a positive effect on the health of citizens, and helps them do more with less, become more efficient and effective," he added.
The delegates reasserted the need to foment the generation of synergies and public-private partnerships in order to increase investment in ICT, as well as promote the creation of contents, connectivity and capabilities.
The meeting, which ends today at ECLAC headquarters in Santiago, Chile, included presentations of the coordinators of the 13 working groups and the six thematic areas in the Action Plan: education, infrastructure and access, health, public administration, productive sector and policy instruments.
Ambassador Jaime Pérez Vidal, head of the European Commission Delegation in Chile, noted the importance of this Regional Action Plan for the European Union. The project "Inclusive political dialogue and exchange of experiences" co-funded by the European Union's LIS2 programme and ECLAC, provides direct support for the implementation and assessment of the eLAC2010 Plan. This is the Commission's largest cooperation programme. Its implementation is coordinated by the Information Society Programme of ECLAC's Production, Productivity and Management Division, with the support of other divisions.
ECLAC studies show that investments in ICT have had a significant impact on economic growth in the region. It could be even greater if these technologies were to be used more intensively and their benefits were to reach the entire population. Innovation in the use of ICT, especially in production, is vital for overcoming the current crisis.
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Source: By Oscar Ramjeet |
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Source : http://www.caribbeannetnews.com The announcement was made by the International Partnership for Energy Development in Island Nations (EDIN) on the final day of the US Department of Interior’s Conference on Business Opportunities in the Islands. The conference, which was recently held in Hawaii, was attended by both USVI Energy Office Director Bevan Smith and WAPA Executive Director Hugo Hodge. Directors Smith and Hodge were attending the conference as co-chairs of the USVI-EDIN Energy Action team, which was formulated to bring about a fundamental and sustained transformation in the way renewable and energy-efficient resources are planned and used in the US Virgin Islands. Energy Development in Island Nations is an international partnership that seeks to further the use of energy efficient and renewable energy technologies in island nations and territories. “Since our Territory is made up of islands requiring electrical distribution systems on both districts, we are vulnerable to energy price fluctuations given our full dependence on foreign oil for energy production,” deJongh said, adding that this project will allow the Virgin Islands to work with the US Department of Energy National Laboratories to remove barriers to clean energy development, attract private capital for the development of renewable energy and energy efficiency projects, and development of a knowledge base for industry through technical assistance and training. “Our selection as the United States pilot project reflects a commitment of both EDIN and the deJongh Administration in bringing about fundamental changes to the way energy is used in our Territory,” Director Smith said. The effort will focus on redeploying the maximum amount of renewable energy and energy-efficient technologies to achieve specific and measurable clean energy targets. A specific work plan is under development which will identify key needs, projects and goals that EDIN will help the government achieve, he added. “The US Virgin Islands was selected for participation as the pilot project in the United States due to the demonstrated commitment by the leadership to advancing clean energy goals and the readiness of the Territory to implementing projects within the pilot program’s timeframe.” |
Source : The Barbados Advocate, Regina Selman Moore
Government is presently seeking to strengthen its legislative framework, to better address environmental issues, including the management of solid waste.
This disclosure has come from Dr. Denis Lowe, Minister of Environment, Water Resources and Drainage. He was speaking yesterday at the launch of the University of the West Indies (UWI) Cave Hill Campus Recycling Initiative, at the Errol Barrow Centre for Creative Imagination.
“If we are serious about protecting our environment, it has to be and it is Government’s primary responsibility to ensure that there is a suite of legislation that enables the system to police the process and very often things that are environmentally unfriendly are not treated with the haste, the speed and the force, because of the weakness in the legislative framework. And one of our primary responsibilities in the early stages of this new ministry, is to ensure that that is corrected as quickly as possible” Lowe remarked.
According to Lowe, comprehensive solid waste management legislation is presently being drafted and this legislation will complement the Coastal Zone Management Act, the Marine Pollution Control Act, and the soon-to-be-introduced Environmental Management Act. Highlighting statistics that date back to 2005, Lowe pointed out that approximately 1 000 tonnes of waste is generated every day and this is taken mainly to the Mangrove Pond Landfill. Lowe therefore stressed that his government is committed to the 3 R’s
philosophy of reduce, reuse and recycle. A fourth “R”, that of recovery, has also been added, he said, and this forms part of Government’s commitment to adding waste-to-energy to the equation for addressing solid waste management in Barbados.
In fact, Government is currently examining the feasibility of pursuing a number of waste-to-energy options, including incineration and the conversion of landfill gas-to-energy, to not only increase its diversion rate of over 80 per cent, but to also contribute to increasing the use of renewable energy alternatives and reduce the dependence on fossil fuels, Lowe said.
For solid waste man-agement initiatives to succeed, however, Government will need to work in unison with the private sector and other agencies in a structured manner. To this end, Government will officially be opening the Solid Waste Management Centre at Vaucluse in St. Thomas, in partnership with Sustainable Barbados Recycling Inc., a predominantly Barbadian-owned private sector firm. This facility includes the operations of a transfer station for the processing and sorting of waste, a chemical waste storage facility for the safe storage of hazardous waste, as well as a materials recovery and compost facility. The latter is for the processing of con-struction and demolition waste, green waste and other recyclables into useful by-products. All waste haulage vehicles will therefore deliver their waste to the Solid Waste Management Centre, instead of having to traverse the landfill, Lowe said.
Source : ECLAC Press Release
Today in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the new online Statistical Information System on ICTs was launched. Created by UN-ECLAC's Observatory for the Information Society in Latin America and the Caribbean (OSILAC), it allows the general public to process data on access and use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in the region.
Given the potential of these technologies to generate productivity gains and improve the coverage of public services such as education, health and e-government, there is great need for quantitative information about the current state, the evolution, and the effects of ICTs in the region. In response to this need, OSILAC designed the Statistical Information System, with the financial support of Canada's International Development Research Centre (IDRC).
This system can be used to generate news stories, since it makes it possible for journalists and others to compare ICT data and indicators from the household surveys of 17 countries in the region.
At the same time, it allows one to measure the digital divide in terms of access to and use of ICTs, according to socio-economic factors. For example: in 11 of the 14 countries analyzed, the richest segment of the population was more than 30 times more likely to have access to the Internet from home than was the poorest segment (see Graph 1). In another 14 countries examined in the region, the average rate of home access to a computer in urban areas was nine times higher than the rate for rural households (see Graph 2).
By quantifying such gaps or progress, it is possible to identify potential targets for public policies in those populations that illustrate the greatest disadvantages in the adoption and productive use of ICTs. As such, the system is a powerful tool for the formulation and evaluation of public policies and ICT-related strategies in the region.
Among the system's 47 variables on ICTs are: frequency of Internet use, home access to a computer, use of the Internet for electronic banking operations, among others. Among its 20 socio-economic variables are: income, educational level, occupation, gender and geographical area (urban/rural). The system allows for comparisons over time, within countries, between countries, and at a regional level.
The data available in this system have been harmonized to enable their comparison, according to the indicators approved by the Partnership on Measuring ICT for Development, which unites various international organizations and statistical offices around the world. Data confidentiality is maintained at an individual level, in keeping with United Nations recommendations.
The system was launched today during the "Fifth Regional Workshop on Information Society Measurement in Latin America and the Caribbean," organized by OSILAC. The Observatory is part of ECLAC's Information Society Programme, which also implements and monitors the Regional Action Plan for Latin America and the Caribbean (eLAC2010).
For graphs illustrating the results mentioned, see attached.
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Source : Eluniversal
07:22 AMTokio.- El presidente Hugo Chávez abogó hoy, durante su primer viaje oficial a Tokio en 10 años, por una relación fuerte entre su país y Japón centrada en la cooperación energética.
Chávez se reunió con el primer ministro japonés Taro Aso en la residencia oficial del gobernante. Durante el encuentro, que duró 45 minutos, el presidente "manifestó su deseo de construir una relación fuerte con Japón, principalmente en el área del desarrollo petrolífero y del gas natural", informó en un comunicado el ministerio japonés de Relaciones Exteriores, informó AFP.
"Los dos líderes acordaron reforzar su cooperación en el sector de la energía. También acordaron formar un equipo de trabajo para estudiar la participación (de Japón) en el desarrollo petrolífero del Orinoco", agregó.
Venezuela, el mayor productor de petróleo sudamericano, instauró en 2007 en la Faja del Orinoco (sureste) un sistema de empresas mixtas entre la estatal Petróleos de Venezuela (Pdvsa) y otras firmas extranjeras, que prevé una producción de tres millones de barriles diarios en esta zona para 2020.
Japón, que intenta diversificar sus fuentes de energía para depender menos de Oriente Medio, ya firmó en marzo con Venezuela un principio de acuerdo para la explotación conjunta de campos de gas natural y de petróleo.
Durante su visita, Chávez también se reunió con representantes de la poderosa patronal japonesa Nippon Keidanren, pero canceló la única conferencia de prensa que tenía previsto mantener en Tokio.
En 2006, Chávez rechazó una prueba atómica realizada por Corea del Norte, aunque el mismo año el entonces vicepresidente venezolano José Vicente Rangel defendió el derecho de Pyongyang a realizar pruebas de misiles.
Concluida su estancia en Japón, la segunda tras la que hizo poco después de llegar al poder en 1999, Chávez viajará el martes a China, última etapa de una gira internacional durante la cual también visitó Qatar e Irán.