This July the leaders of the U.S.,Canada and Mexico joined together in a pledge,promising that each of their countries will receive more than half of their total electricity generated annually from clean power sources by 2015,reported the Washington Post. According to administration officials,the U.S. and Mexico still rely heavily on fossil fuels for their collective electric supply,while nearly 60 percent of Canada’s electricity is already supplied by hydropower operations,so it has already surpassed the goal.
“The new commitment includes not just renewables,but also nuclear power,carbon capture and storage plants,and energy efficiency",wrote the Washington Post. “Under that definition,37 percent of North America’s electricity in 2015 came from clean energy sources.”
2016 North American Leaders Summit
This year’s North American Leaders Summit took place in Ottaway during early July and included U.S. President Obama,Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto. The clean power pledge underscores the importance of collaboration between nations to combat climate change.
“The alignment between Canada,Mexico and the United States on climate and energy policy is stronger than it has been in decades,” shared White House senior advisor Brian Deese. “In all three countries,there is a significant move toward a clean energy economy.”
Right now,only about 13 percent of electricity generated in the U.S. comes from hydropower or other renewables,while about 20 percent comes from nuclear power plants. By comparison,about 22 percent of Mexico’s electricity came from non-fossil fuels in 2014,and the government has vowed to raise that number to at least 34 percent by 2024. Mexico,the U.S. and Canasda have also reportedly pledged to reduce their emissions of the powerful methane greenhouse gas by at least 40 percent by 2025.
“When countries work together,you improve the odds of success,” stated Gwynne Taraska,associate director of energy policy at the Center for American Progress.
Historic Energy Reform In Mexico
As a recent report by Science Magazine pointed out,the commitment to clean power comes on the heels of historic energy industry reforms in Mexico,which opened up the nation’s state-controlled oil industry to foreign investments. According to the article,hydropower currently makes up around 70 percent of renewable energy in Mexico and wind is hovering at around 15 percent. Last year,the government committed to tripling Mexico’s wind energy capacity by 2018.
“The Isthmus of Tehuantepec in the state of Oaxaca in Mexico – the thin strip of land between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans – is one of the windiest places in the world and already hosts about 1,600 turbines,” wrote Science Magazine.
In March of this year,upwards of $2.6 billion worth of new contracts were signed for wind and solar projects in Mexico during the first round of auctions in the electricity following the reforms. Additional auctions are also scheduled to take place,cementing the role of the reforms in protecting the environment for future generations.
“It is clear that the primary objective in Mexico is to have better living conditions for everyone,” stated Carlos Morales Gil,CEO of Petrobal. “That is the fundamental objective of everything that is being done in this country.”
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