Energy Saving Program: green innovations and low-carbon development
Energy is an integral part of our daily lives. It is the foundation of the development of modern industrial society. The demand for energy carriers continues to grow rapidly, and the increasing energy crisis is perceived as a serious socio-political problem.
With the onset of cold weather, the issue of energy supply becomes increasingly pressing. According to the State Secretary of the Ministry of Energy and Industry of the KR, Batyrbek Bayetov, last winter reached a historical maximum of daily electricity consumption – 71.7 million kWh. During the summer period of last year, electricity consumption increased by another 2 million kWh compared to the year 2013. Since the beginning of December last year, that is, the beginning of this winter, there has been a significant increase in daily electricity consumption compared to the corresponding period in 2013. The growth of daily consumption averaged about 5 million kWh, in some days reaching 8.5 – 9 million kWh of electricity. In Kyrgyzstan, the main share of electricity is generated at hydropower plants. According to the Ministry of Energy, the hydroelectric potential of 252 large and medium rivers is estimated at 18.5 million kWh of capacity and more than 142 billion kWh of electricity production. Currently, the implementation of projects to increase hydropower capacities is actively underway. However, water resources are particularly vulnerable to ongoing climate changes.
Forecasts from scientists and specialists have shown a reduction in the area of glaciers and an increase in river flow rates by 2025-2030 and beyond for both small and large rivers. Accordingly, the hydroelectric potential of Kyrgyzstan will decline. Thus, the projected electricity deficit in 2017, as provided in the National Strategy of the Republic dated January 21, 2013, is expected to be within 3 billion kWh, and the annual complex situation with unstable electricity supply to consumers requires urgent decisions to promote and implement energy conservation and energy efficiency policies across all sectors of the economy. The issue of resource conservation is a top priority for the KR. The country also needs to actively develop hydropower and other types of non-heating energy as the most economical and environmentally friendly. It is necessary to expand the construction of energy facilities in the regions using local resources, including renewable and alternative energy sources. Kyrgyzstan also requires a separate program for the extraction of hydrocarbon raw materials from unconventional sources, regular monitoring of emerging technologies and plans for their implementation in this area, studying and implementing “clean coal combustion technology” and carbon capture and storage technology released during the combustion of fossil energy carriers. “A key component of the overall efforts to combat climate change is financing. Without adequate funding for adaptation measures and efforts to reduce harmful emissions, all our good intentions will remain unrealized,” says B. Bayetov. “Given the rapid development of the KR with regard to joining the Customs Union and the Single Economic Space, it will not be sufficient to focus solely on quantitative growth indicators and increase GDP and production, but at the same time, we must also aim to improve economic, social, and environmental growth. ‘Green’ growth represents a strategy for transforming the economic system, where investments in ecological resources and services become the driving force behind economic development.” According to the Chairman of the ED “BIOM” Vladimir Korotenko, energy issues are closely linked to environmental issues. The use of energy obtained from fossil fuels creates a significant burden on the environment and negatively impacts human health. Despite the grand scientific and technological progress, achievements in environmental protection are often offset by increasingly large-scale energy consumption. To implement the program for transitioning to sustainable development in the KR by 2017, it is necessary to develop intersectoral cooperation among various ministries and departments, scientists, entrepreneurs, and NGOs to reduce the level of consumed resources and increase the efficiency of their use. The activities of ED “BIOM” are an example of active and serious work in this direction. Due to the evident gap between the aspiration to achieve green growth and the understanding of how to achieve systemic changes for such growth. Thanks to the influence of the SPARE and Clean Energy projects, questions of sustainable development have been included in the content of regional school education. BIOM’s activities within the school educational component also contribute to the qualification enhancement of teachers and representatives of regional and district education departments in the methodology of teaching questions of sustainable development and the regional component. Special attention was given to the establishment of a Working Group with representatives from schools, universities, the Center for Advanced Training, and managers on regional component issues, the development of elective courses based on regional ecological priorities allocated by the Working Group, requests from the Ministry of Education on regional components for areas, the development of courses for implementing the regional component and training material packages on issues of sustainable development for structures of additional education for schoolchildren and students. ED “BIOM” also facilitates the implementation of the National Program for Energy Conservation and Energy Efficiency of the Kyrgyz Republic until 2017, paying great attention to the development of the Energy Conservation and Energy Efficiency Program. As part of the project “Energy Efficiency for a Stable Future”, recommendations for the development of the energy sector for the implementation of this Program were prepared. Special attention in the proposals to the Program was given to energy audit issues; equipping buildings and structures with devices for accounting used energy resources to increase the energy efficiency of lighting systems, with a special focus on educational institutions. Various activities have also been conducted by the coordinators of the “Clean Energy” Program to improve the energy efficiency of facilities. In support of the implementation of regional and state programs for transitioning to Sustainable Development, ED “BIOM” also helps government bodies establish cooperation with international projects in search of financial mechanisms.
“Collective efforts to develop a plan or model of ‘green growth’ will allow the KR to get onto the path of sustainable development. Since the concept of ‘green growth’ is relatively new for the KR, the Energy Conservation Program and the policy planning for Energy Efficiency for 2015-2017 is the first step towards implementing the principles of ‘green growth’ in the country,” summarized Batyrbek Bayetov.
