Prerequisites for Energy Sustainability in Municipalities in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Abstract

The increased demand for energy in cities and the higher frequency of energy crisis justify the existence of more research discussing the issue. The aim of this chapter is to discuss the situation of the energy matrix and the electricity consumption in the South of Brazil, in order to identify challenges and opportunities to improve the energy sustainability. The study shows the results of the Energy work package of the project Prerequisites for the sustainability of municipalities in Rio Grande do Sul (PRESUST-RS) and include the diagnosis, the search for best practices and the selection of the most suitable practices for the municipalities. Initially a group of indicators for the diagnosis of the energy sector was selected and the data collection was taken from secondary sources. After that, best practices were searched, seeking case studies in the literature. The selection of those that could be implemented in the cities was made through meetings with groups of stakeholders in each city, characterizing a study of lifelong learning, in which the community could vote for their preferred practices after discussing the importance and challenges of each one. The results indicate that the electricity consumption has been increasing in cities, but Rio Grande do Sul has a high percentage of supply of this energy from renewable sources. Moreover, the practices chosen by the community mainly address the use of technology and renewable energy.