The province of Iloilo is one of the recipients of the Energy Champion Award from the Visayas Field Office of the Department of Energy.

“We want to recognize government entities, individuals, and other institutions that have contributed to the promotion of our goal on renewable energy and energy efficiency,” Chief Science Research Specialist Lourdes Arciaga said in an interview on Friday.

She said the Energy Champions, Leaders, Achievers, and Pioneers (ECLAP) Awards will be held at a ceremony in Cebu City on Dec. 12, serving as the highlight of the National Energy Consciousness Month celebration this November.

Iloilo, she said, is a leader in the implementation of the government energy management program.

Through the initiatives of the provincial government, 100 percent of its local government units have a Local Efficiency and Conservation Plan, a requirement for them to allot funds for their energy efficiency projects, she said.

“We want to highlight this to also encourage other provinces,” Arciaga said.

Other than Iloilo province, DOE Visayas will also confer the ECLAP award to Iloilo Board Member Rolando Distura for having authored the Iloilo Provincial Ordinance for Renewable Energy (I-PORE), a landmark legislation that promotes renewable energy.

The I-PORE mandates that one-half of one percent of the total budget of the province will be allocated for renewable energy projects.

The Western Visayas Regional Development Council, the only council in the country that has provided a special chapter on promoting renewable energy in its Regional Development Plan, will also be recognized.

“That is big for us in the Department of Energy. We want to give them recognition for them to serve as a benchmark for other LGUs,” Arciaga said.

Meanwhile, Rey Victor Garin, OIC Head for the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Desk of the Provincial Government Environment and Natural Resources Office, said their renewable energy efforts are anchored on the Government Energy Management Program (GEMP).

“It was stipulated in the GEMP that we have to have 10 percent savings on both fuel and electricity. There is no better way than to invest in renewable energy projects,” he said.

Garin noted that Distura is crafting another ordinance, the Iloilo Schools Having Access to Renewable Energy, which is now on second reading at the Sangguniang Panlalawigan.

The project will prioritize far-flung schools or areas without access to electricity. (PNA)