The Minister of Agriculture, Food and the Environment, Miguel Arias Cañete, said today that the call for Climate Projects “is a good example of how we can act in the field of climate change mitigation, also promoting economic development and job creation in sectors of enormous potential”.

 At the presentation of the “Climate Projects 2012 Carbon Fund”, which was held at the headquarters of the Ministry, Arias Cañete added that these projects are an example that “Spain has the necessary technology to face the challenges that arise and move towards a low-carbon economy and society”. In addition, the projects “are an example that it is possible to reduce emissions and, at the same time, create wealth”, he added.

At this event, the minister was accompanied by the Secretary of State for the Environment, Federico Ramos, and the Director General of the Climate Change Office, Susana Magro. Also in attendance were the Deputy Minister of Environment and Territorial Planning of the Community of Madrid, Luis Asúa; the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Environment of Aragon, Modesto Lobón; the Minister of Agriculture of Castilla-La Mancha, María Luisa Soriano; the general manager of the Industrial and New Energies Area of REPSOL, Josu Jon Imaz; the manager of the company “Calor Erbi”, Manuel Lamela; and Matilde Cabrera, from the Aragonese Water Institute, among other personalities.

The minister, who congratulated the representatives of the selected projects, announced that today the contracts for the first 37 Climate Projects have been signed, from which the verified emission reductions they generate will be acquired. “We are talking about more than 800,000 tonnes of CO2 in the next 4 years, whose emission into the atmosphere will be avoided thanks to these initiatives,” he said.

On the other hand, Arias Cañete stressed that a large part of the projects will be carried out in rural areas, often associated with agricultural, livestock or forestry activities. “As Minister of Agriculture, Food and the Environment, it is a satisfaction to see that rural Spain can find in the protection of the environment an opportunity to develop new economic activities, perfectly integrated with traditional ones,” he said.

Given the conviction that “the path taken is the right one, we have foreseen a budget allocation in 2013 for the Carbon Fund that amounts to 10 million euros”, said the minister, who announced that on February 15 the 2013 call for Climate Projects will be opened, in terms very similar to those of 2012. The minister expressed his confidence that “we can add many more projects, to contribute to building a better future for the next generations”, he concluded.