Energy in Belize is based on four main sources: imported

fossil fuel A fossil fuel is a hydrocarbon-containing material formed naturally in the Earth's crust from the remains of dead plants and animals that is extracted and burned as a fuel. The main fossil fuels are coal, oil, and natural gas. Fossil fuels m ...

s, biomass, hydro, and imported

electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described ...

Energy sources

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

currently imports 100% of its fossil fuel use (Launchpad Consulting, 2003). Under the San Jose Pact, which Belize signed onto in 1988,

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

and

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

signed a treaty obligating them to offer a concessionary credit from 20-25% of the purchase price of their oil exports. In 1991, both countries increased the oil supply offered under this agreement (Belize – Mining and Energy Industry, 1992). However, fuel prices had jumped to a record high in 2008, over $10 per gallon (Armageddon, 2008). Since 1981, extensive drilling has occurred throughout Belize to find oil deposits. Near

Spanish Lookout Spanish Lookout is a settlement in the Cayo District of Belize in Central America. According to the 2010 census, Spanish Lookout had a population of 2,253 people in 482 households. Spanish Lookout is a community of Mennonites. The Mennonite commu ...

and northwest of

Belmopan Belmopan () is the capital city of Belize. Its population in 2010 was 16,451. In addition to being the smallest capital city in the continental Americas by population, Belmopan is the third-largest settlement in Belize, behind Belize City and S ...

, two oil fields were located. Drilling in these two fields began in 2005 and was predicted to reach a peak by 2010 (Belize, 2010).

Sustainable energy

Sustainable energy Energy is sustainable if it "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs". Most definitions of sustainable energy include considerations of environmental aspects such as greenh ...

is the main goal for Belize. In 2003, the Public Utilities Commission implemented a one-year project entitled Formulation for a National Energy Plan for Belize. The project, funded by the

United Nations Development Fund The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)french: Programme des Nations unies pour le développement, PNUD is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries Poverty reduction, eliminate poverty and achieve Sustainable development, ...

, developed a comprehensive National Energy Policy to promote environmentally sound, safe, reliable, affordable energy (National Energy Plan, 2001). In 2011 this plan was updated with the Framework for the National Energy Policy.http://estpu.gov.bz/images/media/Energy%20Policy%20Framework.pdf The Ministry of Energy, Science & Technology, and Public Utilities was founded following recommendations from the framework. Belize has also taken a role in reducing

greenhouse gas emissions Greenhouse gas emissions from human activities strengthen the greenhouse effect, contributing to climate change. Most is carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels: coal, oil, and natural gas. The largest emitters include coal in China and lar ...

. The Belize and

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

Logs Recovery project aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and prevent

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. The most concentrated d ...

by salvaging

mahogany Mahogany is a straight-grained, reddish-brown timber of three tropical hardwood species of the genus ''Swietenia'', indigenous to the AmericasBridgewater, Samuel (2012). ''A Natural History of Belize: Inside the Maya Forest''. Austin: Unive ...

and other logs in the Belize and Nicaragua Rivers (Legace and Legault International Inc., 2007). Also, in compliance with the United Nations’ program REDD, Reduction of Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation, a national workshop performing with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and the Forest Department of Belize are coordinating efforts to forest management and reduction of deforestation (Protecting Belize and other Central American Countries – Reducing Emissions: REDD, 2010). Along with signing the San Jose Pact, Belize has also been a participant to the

Kyoto Protocol The Kyoto Protocol was an international treaty which extended the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that commits state parties to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, based on the scientific consensus that (part ...

References

* Armaggedon (2008). Energy Crisis in Belize? What Will GOB Do? Is There a Plan? Koncas. Retrieved from https://web.archive.org/web/20110713164248/http://www.koncas.com/energy-crisis-in-belize-what-will-gob-do-is-there-a-plan
Background Note: Belize (2010)
U.S. Department of State. * Belize (2010). Energy Files. Retrieved from http://www.energyfiles.com/americas/belize.html * Belize – Mining and Energy Industry (1992). Mongabay. Retrieved from http://www.mongabay.com/history/belize/belize-mining_and_energy_industry.html * Launchpad Consulting (2003). Energy for Sustainable Development Toward a National Energy Strategy for Belize. Retrieved from https://web.archive.org/web/20110304122733/http://www.puc.bz/publications/energy%20sector%20diagnostic%20report%20final.pdf * Legace and Legault International Inc (2007). Belize & Nicaragua Recovery Project. Retrieved from http://www.ghgregistries.ca/files/projects/prj_8652_750.pdf * National Energy Plan (2001). Public Utilities Commission. Retrieved from https://web.archive.org/web/20110706163840/http://www.puc.bz/nep.asp * Protecting Belize and other Central American Countries – Reducing Emissions: REDD. Expatriate Blog, July 24, 2010. Retrieved from http://www.expatbelize.com/expat- blog/165-protecting-Belize-and-other-central-American-countries-reducing-emission- redd.html {{Portal, Belize, Energy