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Energy Security and Sustainability Dimensions
Introduction
A central challenge for the whole region is assuring an environmentally-friendly and sustainable provision of the energy system, along with meeting both the social and economic objectives of each country[1]. Hence, energy security and sustainable development concerns are highly connected. Therefor in order to identify the energy systems' vulnerabilities, both aspects should be disected hand in hand[2][1].
For a proper allocation of the country's energy system challenges, a definition of a system will be introduced, along with the dimensions of both energy security and sustainable development, eventually identifying the possible major vulnerabilities of energy systems.
- Systems are defined as: "Systems that are necessary for the stable functioning of modern societies."[2]
In that regard, the vulnerabilities of an energy system is to be identified according to the potential risks, which might disrupt the system occasioanlly or regularly[2]. Hence, for the purpose of forecatsing these concerns in terms of energy security, 3 dimensions of the energy security have to be selected[2]:
- Adequacy: as the core aspect of the reliability of the system
- Resilience: as the ability of the system to adapt to unpredictable disruptions
- Sovereignty: as rooted in international relations, with regard to energy independence and the country's own control of its energy system
In terms of the energy policy, sustainability mainly aims to[2]:
- Reduction of emissions, so they do not exceed the environment's absorbing capacity.
- Both; extracting non-renewable fuels and developing renewable ones at the same rate.
- Observing and controlling the harvest rates of renewables in order to avoid exceeding generation rates.
Thus within the main 3 conern domains of the concept of sustainability: economic, social and environmental.
Examples
- See the Guatemala energy situation: Key problems which are based on this classification.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Yépez, A. Levy, A. & Valencia, A. M. (2016). The Energy Sector: Opportunities and Challenges. Retrieved From: https://publications.iadb.org/bitstream/handle/11319/7801/The-Energy-Sector-Opportunities-and-Challenges.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Ochaeta, K. (2014). Energy Security and Sustainable Development Implications for Guatemala of the Electricity Generation Expansion Plan 2014-2028. Master thesis in Sustainable Development at Uppsala University. Retrieved From: http://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:749642/FULLTEXT01.pdf
