Document 6517724

ESHA – European Small Hydropower Association
Renewable Energy House, Rue du Trône 26, B - 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium
Tel: +32.2.546.19.45 Fax: +32.2.546.19.47, e-mail: [email protected], I: www.esha.be
SHP and Public Image
what is happening?
Maria Laguna
-TNSHPHIDROENERGIA 2004
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What is happening?
SHP sector is getting very worried about reactions
against the development of Small hydropower
hydropower.
Despite SHP sector is adapting its technology to reduce
environmental impacts through continuous research and
improvements.
Unfortunately results and applications of these
improvements are not broadly disseminated to the
public opinion; as a consequence the SHP sector is
unfairly accused of some environmental impacts out of
its responsibility.
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What is happening?
Indeed, SHP does not have a good marketing.
Not a lot of people know the sector and not to many people
talk about it.
Or what is even worst if few people talked a bit about a
‘bad’ example of SHP that do not integrate environmental
requirements gives the whole sector a ‘bad name’.
Because of all these reasons the issue of public acceptance
has therefore become a high priority for the SHP industry
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And at the same time…
Despite ESHA’s definition on >10 MW, at a national level
the MS have different definitions: France (>12 MW), Italy
(>3 MW) or Sweden (>1.5 MW)
Sometimes no distinction is made between small and
hydropower schemes in statistics, documents and reports.
This brings confusion to the public that assumes that the
impacts produced by large hydro schemes are the same as
the ones produced by small schemes.
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TNSHP and public image
TNSHP is a project Funded by the European
Commission, DG TREN (Transport & Energy).
To identify future research and market needs of the SHP
sectors within Europe and Candidate Countries in order
to overcome Barriers & promote Better Exploitation of
the resource as regards: Cost, Environmental integration,
Public Acceptance, Technological issues etc…
This network will help to reach the public in general and
improve their image of SHP through the exchange of
information and points of view. To contribute very
positively in increasing public awareness and acceptance.
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Contacts with NGOs
TNSHP has started to contact NGOs to know if their official
position or statement concerning small hydropower.
To cooperate with them and open a dialogue to know exactly
what is the problem and to find out ways on how to solve it
together.
Improving SHP public image through contacts with
environmental groups, fishermen federations and other public
opinion makers in order to understand each other and
collaborate to find compromises, is one of the objectives of the
TNSHP
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What do NGOs think?
In general, the main European and International NGOs are
not opposing to the development of SHP (they only oppose
to LHP) but they express their concerns on terms of:
(i) Cumulative impacts of SHP
(ii) environmental integration and quality standards
(iii) local involvement and participation in the process
(iv) and meeting local needs.
Only one NGO from all organisations contacted -The
Swedish Society for Nature Conservation (SNF) - has
expressed its firmly opposition to all types of hydropower
without any distinction.
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What do NGOs think?
- examples
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What are the possibilities?
• To adopt some kind of sustainability guidelines (WCD,
IHA, others)
• To promote the use of environmental management systems
ISO 14001
• Ecolabelling
• Public image campaigns
• Another possibility is to clearly differentiate itself from
LHP and to clearly set the limit of SHP on 10 MW. That
will help to understand the differences of two types of
hydropower.
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What ESHA can do?
To have a common official position (not yet totally defined)
To improve the image through communication activities
In the context of the TNSHP leaflets on Small hydropower
will be produced. These leaflets will present the main
issues of the SHP (environmental benefits, legislative
framework, technology facts, SHP industry sector).
Also within the framework of the thematic network, it will
be prepared a photo gallery of European small hydropower
plants that have successfully integrated the environmental
concerns
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Let’s Discuss about how to
improve the public image of
SHP!
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