Eco-activists, consumers call for faster shift to renewables
Following the 48th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit and Related Meetings held in Cebu last week, a group of climate activists and consumers is urging Asean to transition away from continued dependence on fossil fuels, especially now with the prolonged instability brought about by the current crisis in the Middle East.
“Once again, global instability is driving up fuel prices, hurting economies, and placing the greatest burden on ordinary people. Asean will remain vulnerable to these recurring shocks as long as governments continue to rely on imported fossil fuels instead of pursuing real energy transformation,” said Anj Dacanay, lead campaigner of Energy Shift Southeast Asia, a Southeast Asian group of civil society advocates from Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam pushing for just energy transition in the region.
“The region must treat this crisis as a wake-up call to rapidly expand renewable energy and invest in energy efficiency and community-led decentralized energy systems that directly benefit consumers,” she added.
Critical ecosystems
The group reminded Asean leaders to put an end to the region’s overreliance on imported fossil fuels, which threatens the region’s biodiversity, by rapidly and decisively scaling up renewable energy.
“Continued fossil fuel expansion threatens critical ecosystems across the Coral Triangle, where existing and proposed oil, gas, LNG, and gas power projects overlap with vital coral reefs, mangroves, and seagrass habitats. Asean cannot claim to pursue energy security while deepening dependence on the very fuels driving instability, economic volatility, and climate destruction. More fossil fuels will not solve a crisis caused by fossil fuel dependence,” said Dacanay.
According to the group, 183 oil and gas fields exist within the Coral Triangle today: 113 are operational, 13 are in development, and 50 have been discovered.
“If all explored extraction fields are allowed to operate, the area covered by offshore oil and gas fields in this marine region will increase from 1 percent to a devastating 16 percent. These blocks overlap with 24 percent of coral, 37 percent of mangroves, and 22 percent of seagrass ecosystems in the region,” said the group.
Failed model
Furthermore, 15 of 19 operating liquified natural gas terminals in the Coral Triangle are located within 10 kilometers of sensitive marine ecosystems, including coral reefs, mangroves, and seagrass beds. Meanwhile, proposals for gas power plants within the Coral Triangle amount to a combined capacity of 64, 383 megawatts.
Instead of doubling down on this failed model, Asean governments must treat the current crisis as a wake-up call to fast-track renewable energy deployment, improve grid reliability, and invest in energy efficiency measures that directly benefit consumers, said the group.
“We call on Asean to acknowledge and act on their responsibility for the climate crisis. The Global South, including Southeast Asia, must not be forced to follow the same destructive path. Instead, we must strategically embrace a just energy and food transition and biodiversity protection as our core economic strategy to meet the needs of our people while safeguarding our invaluable biodiversity, our primary defense against the climate crisis,” it added.
