Today, Tuesday, February 13, is the last deadline to participate in the stage of Public Consultation on the Green Hydrogen Action Plan 2023-2030. The instance was open for 35 business days for citizens to comment on the document prepared by a Strategic Committee, whose mission was to develop a framework that allows implementing the National Green Hydrogen Strategy.
A few hours before the deadline to submit observations, the Citizen Panel on Hydrogen in Magallanes called on the entire community to review and leave their comments, emphasizing that it is not necessary to be specialists in the subject to be able to participate, since the planning of An energy industry of these dimensions must particularly consider the reality and vocations of the people and the territories where it will be located.
In around 100 pages, the text explains the process and methodology to build the plan, the structure and financing of its governance, the guidelines and sustainability criteria for business development, and the lines of action, which cover the market, infrastructure, education, the permit system, territorial deployment, capacity development and international positioning, among others.
Those interested in participating in this consultation can enter this form.
Observations
Among the more than 80 observations presented by the citizen organization, it is read that the plan does not have indicators of compliance with each established measure, necessary to be able to evaluate its application. Likewise, it is stated that it does not offer information on associated risks and impacts, nor on the scale of intervention required to achieve the productive goal established in the Strategy, thus failing to comply with the standards established in the Escazú Agreement, which were also not applied in the Citizen Participation processes. In this regard, they highlight the lack of dissemination of an illustrative map of the southern territory like the one managed by CORFO, where the number of projects and hectares that are currently being evaluated for use by the industry are clarified.
The Citizen Panel also stated that the Government must justify its decision to commit the country to a commitment of such magnitude, with studies already carried out and current, and make transparent how it is measuring carbon neutrality. In particular, in Magallanes, a region that is carbon negative due to the contribution made by terrestrial and marine ecosystems, which are now in danger due to the installation of the export hydrogen industry.
