Esquerra Republicana also demands recognition of the right of the people to generate their own energy as an instrument to combat energy poverty.

Staking on renewables right now. As one of the keys to combating the climate emergency, the Parliament of Catalonia passed on Wednesday a decree-law on urgent measures to promote renewable energies. The bill expedites the deployment of wind and photovoltaic power generation, and amends several aspects of the Climate Change Law that had been declared unconstitutional.

Esquerra Republicana considers "it is necessary we move towards an energy model that prioritizes distributed energy over power transmission, a zero-kilometre model to secure energy sovereignty," said Republican Member of Parliament Ferran Civit in his address. "Right now, Catalonia is a renewables desert," warned Civit. "We are not even generating 10% in renewable energy."

Ferran Civit also remarked that staking on the energy transition is not enough. In this sense, the MP pointed out that the Republican group was also seeking "a 100% democratic energy model." "In this transition, we are running the risk of switching from polluting energy to renewable energy in very few hands, specifically those of large multinationals," said Civit, "so it is very important that local communities, the people and the territories, participate and go from being mere spectators to taking a central role in the model."

That is precisely why Civit is defending the basic right of the people to generate energy as an instrument to combat energy poverty at the same time as the climate emergency. "Defending sovereignty for Catalonia is also advocating energy sovereignty," said the Republican MP, who is focusing on taking further steps beyond the decree-law.

For the time being, the act approved by Parliament centres on four points:

1. Establishment of wind and solar farms. The act approved repeals Decree 147/2009 which limited the implementation of wind and solar farms in Catalonia, and establishes a new procedure with fewer administrative barriers.
2. Renewable energy in urban areas. The decree-law amends the Urban Planning Law to facilitate the implementation of renewable energy in urban areas, and thus favours the installation of self-generation systems in buildings and public spaces in cities.
3. Electrification of ports. The act establishes neutrality of CO2 emissions for the 2050 Horizon, the electrification of ports administered by the Catalan Generalitat government, limitation of fracking, and the penetration of electric mobility in the transport sector. These measures have been reformulated after the corresponding points in the Climate Change Law were struck down by the Constitutional Court.
4. Prohibition of coke and coal in new facilities. The act prohibits the use of coal and petroleum coke in newly installed heaters, boilers and furnaces, and establishes a four-year transition period to replace them with other, less impactful fuels.

Likewise, Parliament also approved on Wednesday the creation of a commission to monitor the climate emergency, which amongst other things will scrutinise Catalan legislation and will draft amendments to those laws that hinder combating the crisis. The commission will draw up a report corresponding to each parliamentary term.