Global Climate’s mission is to support projects that provide clean and sustainable energy like solar, wind and hydropower. Their hydroelectric power plant in Northern Honduras helps families in remote villages access electricity, whilst also providing clean, renewable energy which helps the planet.
How it cleans up the planet:
The hydroelectric power plant harnesses the power of the river to provide renewable energy to the national grid, directly replacing harmful fossil-fueled power plants.
The scheme generates up to 23,000 MWh of green energy per year. That’s the equivalent to the energy consumed by 5000 western families. Generating electricity this way reduces the dependency on burning wood for fuel, also meaning less trees and vegetation are cut down in the local area.
Power plants run by fossil fuels need to be replaced if we are to tackle climate change. But burning trees for energy (due to a lack of access to clean energy in some places) has actually been shown by some studies to be more harmful than burning fossil fuels (Laganière et al. 2017). Burning trees also has a double impact – releasing carbon emissions, whilst also stopping the trees cleaning up the planet through carbon sequestering. Giving local communities access to clean energy is therefore a great way to lower emissions.
How it helps local communities:
A lack of access to reliable electricity is a major issue for families in the Northern region of the Republic of Honduras.
The hydroelectric power plant means more reliable electricity for local communities. In just one area, Puerto Lempira, the plant has provided 1000 families with access to sustainable electricity.
It helps the whole community in organising local health care and education services which allow children to flourish.
Less dependency on burning wood also means a cleaner and healthier energy source for everyone.
Finally, it also helps to create jobs and boost the economy in a very rural area.
For more information, please contact: info@global-climate.nl
