Coalition Turns Up Heat On AES Hydro Projects

August 24, 2007

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AES Corporation is facing increased pressure from The Center for Biological Diversity, along with more than 50 indigenous and environmental groups, that are demanding it to withdraw from three proposed hydroelectric projects on the Changuinola River.

The groups say that the projects threaten La Amistad International Park in Panama, dependent wildlife, and local communities slated to be displaced by flooding.

AES has been financing the projects and its subsidiary in Panama, AES Changuinola, S.A., would operate the three dams. A fourth dam would be operated by Hidroecologica del Teribe, S.A., a subsidiary of the Colombian-owned Empresas Publicas de Medellin, on the Bonyic River, a tributary of the Rio Teribe., according to the CBD.

AES has received a lot of coverage lately. Most notably when it and GE Energy Financial Services created a partnership to develop greenhouse gas emission reduction projects in the U.S. The partnership seeks to create an annual production volume of 10 million tons of GHG offsets by 2010. Initially, the partnership plans to sell offsets from these projects to commercial and industrial customers that voluntarily seek to reduce the environmental impact of their operations.

The partnership is also supplying the carbon offsets that are used as rewards for GE’s Money Earth Rewards Platinum MasterCard.

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Reader Comments

I think we deserve more information on this subject. Thing aren’t what we are told.

Roy Playa | July 17th, 2009

I think this a project that will bring good energy at a low cost and Panama needs that. We need to get both sides of the story here.

Marc Cisneros | July 17th, 2009

A real opinion from a resident…

Hello, My Name is Abel Miranda and I am an resident and also a Ngobe and I want all of you to join our group in facebook called ABIA YALA, PACHA MAMA http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=129496360760

Thank You so much…

Abel Miranda
Panamanian Ambientalist

Abel Miranda | July 17th, 2009

The Panamanian state is respectful of the human rights of all the residents of our national territory, and is also a state permanently concerned with the full compliance with its international commitments in this matter, which have been voluntarily acquired.

This project is of national importance and I don’t see the CBD talking about that.

Sany Lopez | July 19th, 2009

Panama’s asking the Human Rights Interamerican Comission to revoke their decision.
A Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ statement informs that Panama can’t comply with their requirements since their taking to consideration information that’s more than a year old.

In the info I’ve seen, the water reservoir of the project will occupy very little surface … Less than 1% of the Palo Seco rainforest.

Rolando Restrepo | July 22nd, 2009

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