 | Chimney culture
Mohamed Habib highlights an alternative combining society, energy and environment JOÃO MAURÍCIO DA ROSA  ecology professor Mohamed Habib, from the Department of Zoology at the Institute of Biology (IB) at Unicamp, turned off one of the three fluorescent lamps in his office to combat energy waste. If the economy caused a loss of luminosity, you won't notice it. The environment is clear as is his reasoning about Brazil's energy crisis and the emergency plan outlined to combat it, which he considers a real trap if it goes through the construction of thermoelectric plants.
 “In addition to the culture of waste, Brazil fails to offer an intelligent development alternative combining society, energy and the environment, and respecting the regional characteristics of each State”, he analyzes, referring to the purchase of Bolivian gas to power the plants thermoelectric. “It is a completely wrong concept to believe that development only comes with chimneys, smoke and poisoning. Furthermore, we must take into account that this attack on the environment also leads to a lack of water that dries up reservoirs and, consequently, the possibility of a drop in the availability of electricity,” he states.
In fact, according to the professor, Brazil doesn't even have a development project, since the crisis is being fought with short-term measures when its energy deficit has been known for a long time. Although it is the eighth largest economy in the world, the country occupies the eightieth position in terms of electricity quota per inhabitant/year. There are 2 thousand kilowatts on average per year for a Brazilian, compared to 20 thousand for a North American. “In the Northeast this average does not reach 900 kilowatts”, he recalls. “While some have so much light that their house looks like a Christmas tree, others have never turned on a light bulb”, he compares, attributing the contrast to the concentration of income. Forged image – Therefore, Mohamed Habib considers the image propagated in recent weeks that Brazil is at risk of running out of energy because there is a deficit to be fabricated, as if this were something new. “The lack of energy is historic when compared to developed countries. Thus, when we associate energy and electricity with development, we realize the country's economic growth difficulties, since its quota no longer allows for enterprises and we can only continue to struggle in this fight of unemployment, poverty and misery”, he says.  To eliminate this deficit, which keeps Brazil's energy quota small compared to its economic potential, Habib advocates drafting plans for energy generation. But not these emergencies, made with provisional measures only for short-term generation. According to him, the plan must be medium and long term, considering that Bolivia's gas is capable of generating energy for only 10 or 11 years, as it runs out and is not a renewable resource. “And what did we look like afterwards? How to invest in a thermoelectric plant whose price ranges from US$700 million to US$1 billion, condemned to have nothing left to generate? How to work with gas from abroad paying in dollars?”
Diverse realities – “The energy plan must take into account local characteristics to maintain coherence with each reality, since we have a national territory occupying a huge area of the continent, with great variation in environmental, cultural, social terms and availability of natural resources” , remembers the teacher. Brazil also needs to define what type of development it wants for each region and what type of energy would be compatible with this type of development. “The energy plan cannot be based on a single recipe. We will buy gas from Bolivia and extend it to Brazil, as if the country were homogeneous. It is mandatory that the plan is coherent with these differences to generate development that serves current society and future generations”, he argues.
---------------------------------------------------------
The water problem, always The choice of the energy matrix, according to biologist Mohamed Habib, has been as problematic for the country as the deficiency in its hydroelectricity quota. “The criterion defended by science for the use of natural resources follows the tripod of sustainability: the resource must be inexhaustible or at least renewable, economical and safe for health and the environment”, he explains. According to these criteria, natural gas is discarded, as it is a fossil resource and is exhausted. The water that is lost through evaporation in the process of cooling the turbines of these thermoelectric plants must also be taken into consideration in a region like ours, where we already suffer from shortages in times of drought. The big problem with thermoelectric plants designed by entrepreneurs, says the professor, is that they require water to cool the turbines. “It’s a frightening volume, accounting for 80% of the total used,” he explains. Other alternatives can be sought for each region. Habib also mentions wind and solar energy, as well as mini-hydroelectric plants and even gas, as long as they meet ecological, economic and socio-cultural criteria. Therefore, the professor projects a bleak future for the Campinas region, if the installation of Carioba 2 in Americana or nearby takes place.
In the current scenario, with a drought of up to 45 days during the winter, the forecast is for a total shortage of water. “The expansion of the Paulínia Petrochemical Complex will consume a volume of water equal to the consumption of the entire Campinas. So, how to build a Campinas about Campinas?”, he asks. “Allied to Carioba’s consumption is that of industries that will run after its energy and that will also need water”, he adds.
The problems don't stop there. Although considered less polluting than thermoelectric plants powered by pitch or refinery waste, these gas plants also produce greenhouse gases, particulates, pollutants and toxic gases. “There's more: does our region still need polluting technological and industrial development, while the interior of Brazil has populations that need jobs, have water and need factories, which should never be polluting? Why does the industrial business sector stay in this saturated and fragile region and not seek to participate in a national development project, performing a correct social function?” Short leg – This contrast leads the professor to insist that Brazil does not have a government plan for development respecting the tripod of energy, society and environment. “A tripod cannot have a shorter leg, otherwise it will lose its stability and firmness. This balance can only be achieved through study and not through mitigating or corrective measures. Brazil is always chasing losses, instead of being ahead of events”, he criticizes. Habib also remembers that the installation of industries is not the only path to development. “New Zealand is a global example of development with respect for the environment and is similar to our country in the environmental aspect, only rich and preserved. Thinking that wealth means destruction, smoke and intoxication is stupid. We cannot fall into this trap. Academics, together with the government, must have the capacity to offer society the most intelligent alternative for national development”, he argues.
--------------------------------------------------------- First world waste If Brazil can compete with the United States in some performances, one of them is waste, according to professor Mohamed Habib. Our country loses 25% of available electricity, 5% more than the rationing quota. “If there wasn’t a culture of waste, we wouldn’t need rationing. But even the electricity concessionaire’s headquarters and public buildings woke up in the morning with the lights on,” he accuses.
Energy waste, for the professor, has a cultural side that can also be observed in industries. “Obsolete industrial equipment wastes energy and has low productivity. The businessman, paying cheaply for electricity, is going to renew the equipment for what? The industrial sector needs to evolve to keep up with reality and replace its machines with more efficient and economical ones”, he teaches.
|  |
