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San Juan | Tuesday, April 27, 2021 | The La Margarita Residents Association (ARLM), in Salinas, is aiming to become a solar community under the cooperative model, inspired by the achievement of self-management and community empowerment of communities that have become solar in the island. For a period of six months, the Puerto Rico Community Foundation (FCPR) will offer you technical assistance and guidance in the process that will allow you to be owners of your own energy.
Both parties signed a collaborative technical assistance agreement that includes guidance on legal support, governance, economic sustainability, administration, empowerment, community organizing, and promotion and strengthening of community participation. For its part, ARLM will undertake community organizing efforts and seek funding and philanthropic investments to enable the construction of a micro renewable energy grid.
“We feel very enthusiastic and hopeful about the start of this stage in the process of becoming owners of our own energy, while also protecting our planet. We know there's a long road ahead, but we're willing to go step by step to improve the quality of life for our community. The example of these solar communities shows us that it's possible,” they said. Wanda Janet Ríos Colorado, president of the ARLM.
Following the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, the FCPR added a focus on renewable energy access to its strategic plan. The project portfolio in this area includes: Black Bull, in Ciales, first solar community owner and administrator of the system; Pirucho Coop., in Caguas, first solar community certified as a renewable energy cooperative by the Puerto Rico Energy Bureau (NEPR); and Esperanza Village in Juncos, the first microgrid certified by NEPR. Other projects with access to renewable energy include: 37 primary health centers, six community aqueducts, one hydroponics center, three mobile renewable energy systems, 30 residences in Loíza, and 5 community resilience centers.
“Strengthening human and social capital is fundamental for the development of community projects like this one, and with this collaborative technical assistance agreement, we can contribute to that goal. La Margarita joins all these communities that have accepted the challenge of self-management and community empowerment to improve their quality of life, beginning to paint an increasingly resilient and environmentally friendly Puerto Rico, and the Puerto Rico Community Foundation is there to support them,” said the President and Chief Executive Officer of the FCPR, Dr. Nelson I. Colón Tarrats.
On the other hand, the FCPR is actively working on the island municipality of Culebra to provide solar energy infrastructure thanks to a contribution from Economic Development Administration (EDA) and philanthropic investors such as Global Giving y Prudential. Additionally, it collaborates closely with community aqueducts to provide similar infrastructure to the 242 that exist in Puerto Rico, thanks to a grant of funds from the Central Office for Recovery, Reconstruction, and Resilience (COR3), under the Mitigation Program of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). It is also part of a team driven by Rocky Mountain Institute, Rockefeller Foundation, and Resilient Power Puerto Rico, for the development of Puerto Rico's Community Energy Resilience Fund. And it carries out a feasibility study, co-financed with the Segarra Boerman Foundation, to explore the potential of a Community Energy Corridor in Puerto Rico's Central Zone.