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Wind power project in Mexico
Context
Mexico has a lot of wind power potential, with the zone of El Istmo de Tehuantepec alone having the potential to produce over 33,000MW. Despite this, in 2009 Mexico was only producing 0.13% of the world’s wind power, which equated to 202MW. Globally, 743GW is now being produced from wind power annually. In 2020, electricity from wind power made up 6.36% of Mexico’s electricity supply, compared with just 0.24% in 2009. Increased capacity for producing energy from wind power is vital in Mexico’s transition away from fossil fuels, which still generate over 90% of Mexico’s energy.
Generally, electricity consumption in Mexico has been increasing since the 1980s, but in recent years electricity consumption has decreased slightly, from 317.93TWh in 2018 to 302.87TWh in 2020. With Mexico’s population still growing, and predicted to peak around 2060, reductions in electricity consumption per capita will need to continue to ensure total electricity consumption continues to decline.
Project
This project will prevent the emissions of 245,015 tonnes CO2e on average every year that it is operational, which will be for at least 20 years.
The project is part of a larger wind project, with two other wind turbine sites also producing clean energy for Mexico. The three projects have contributed towards several areas of sustainable development in the local area in collaboration with local groups including the Civil Association MEXFAM and the Espíritu de Ayuda foundation, the Technological Institute of Mixe, Istmo University, The National Educational University, and the Training and Productivity Institute for work in Oaxaca State.
Improved health services in the local area funded by the project had, by the end of 2012, distributed information about the importance of prevention and early detection of cervical cancer and prostate cancer to 1,580 local people, delivered workshops and medical examinations to 1,000 young people about avoiding unwanted pregnancies and AIDS, and constructed 4 sports facilities and donated 1,100 pieces of exercise equipment.
Education has been boosted in the local area by the project too, with grants being offered for Masters degrees in wind energy (7 students have already graduated from this course thanks to the grants), a small wind turbine design and production course has had 50 students graduate from it, psychopedagogical support programs for primary school students have been supported, with 421 students and 206 family parents receiving guidance, 22 students have earned their Energy law Certificate, and a fund for grants titled “Higher education at your disposal” for local young people has had 17 beneficiaries.
Local employment has also been boosted by the project. Jobs at the wind power plant itself have boosted local employment rates, but also 40 women from the local area have been trained on typical clothing embroidery techniques and have received help to organise the sale of their products.
Biodiversity has also been supported by the project, with 152.8 hectares of land being restored in local communities, bat monitoring and a vertebrate rescue program has been put in place, and bird observation towers also help reduce the impact of the turbines on local wildlife. In addition, 1,080 children aged 6 to 15 have been taught in a new sustainability classroom about the importance of nature and biodiversity.
Onshore wind turbines
Onshore wind turbines generate electricity at a utility scale, comparable to power plants. They replace fossil fuels with emissions-free electricity.
Today, 314,000 wind turbines supply nearly 4 percent of global electricity, and it will soon be much more. In 2015, a record 63 gigawatts of wind power were installed around the world.
Onshore wind farms have small footprints, typically using no more than 1 percent of the land they sit on, so grazing, farming, recreation, or conservation can happen simultaneously with power generation. What’s more, it takes one year or less to build a wind farm—quickly producing energy and a return on investment.
UN’s Sustainable Development Goals
The goals recognised by Oaxaca IV Wind Energy Project are
