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The Atlas of Energy Soils of Barrancabermeja identifies solar energy as the most viable renewable resource for the municipality due to high and homogeneous irradiation levels. While the resource is abundant, 62% of the territory is restricted by environmental and regulatory factors, primarily related to the region's complex hydrological network and protected areas. The analysis validates four planned solar farm polygons (Galias 1, 2, 3, and El Tiburón) as being located in unrestricted areas. The document recommends updating the municipal Land Use Plan (POT) to formally integrate energy planning and the identified solar potential.

The study assesses the vulnerability of the Boyacá-Santander region to climate change, projecting temperature increases between 1.3°C and 2.4°C by 2040-2070. It identifies significant risks to surface and groundwater availability, particularly in the northeast, and uses econometric modeling to project negative impacts on agricultural production, municipal value added, and social indicators such as multidimensional poverty and education. The authors recommend diversifying climate finance, improving intersectoral coordination, and implementing specific hydrogeological interventions like artificial aquifer recharge in the Middle Magdalena Valley.

Global Witness reports that Veolia may be causing severe health complications, including congenital malformations, by pumping toxic leachates from a landfill into a protected Colombian wetland. Secret videos and sediment tests showing mercury levels 25 times higher than safe Canadian limits contradict Veolia's claims of environmental compliance. The contamination threatens the drinking water of 300,000 people in Barrancabermeja and impacts the Ciénaga San Silvestre ecosystem. The report also highlights the danger faced by environmental defenders in the region and argues for the strength of the EU's Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) to hold multinationals accountable.

Global Witness reports that Veolia is discharging untreated toxic leachate from a landfill into protected wetlands in Colombia, with sediment analysis showing mercury levels 25 times higher than safety limits. The report links this pollution to congenital malformations in the local population and the degradation of the San Silvestre swamp, which provides drinking water for up to 300,000 people in Barrancabermeja. While Veolia denies causality and claims its internal controls show no mercury, independent experts argue the company's sampling methods were flawed. The document also highlights the extreme danger faced by environmental defenders in the Santander region and argues that the EU's Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive is essential for holding such companies accountable.

The document serves as an educational tool to explain the technical and economic aspects of Colombia's energy system and the transition toward a low-carbon economy. It distinguishes between energy sources and forms, details the electricity value chain, and explains the environmental necessity of decarbonization and 'Net-Zero' goals. The guide emphasizes that a 'just energy transition' requires both a shift in energy sources and a parallel economic transition to ensure labor reconversion and regional sustainability.

Friends of the Earth International condemns the intimidation of environmental leaders in the Magdalena Medio region of Santander, Colombia, who are protesting an open-pit coal mine operated by the French company Colcco S.A. The organization demands the Colombian government ensure the safety of defenders and follow through on the Ministry of Environment's January 25, 2023, announcement to begin revoking the 30-year mining permit.

Friends of the Earth International is calling on the Colombian government to protect environmental defenders in the Magdalena Medio region of Santander who are facing threats and intimidation from groups like the Autodefensas Gaitanistas de Colombia (AGC) while protesting an open-cast coal mine operated by the French company Colcco S.A.

Friends of the Earth International expresses solidarity with communities in Santander, Colombia, who are protesting an open-pit coal mine operated by Colcco S.A. The organization condemns threats and intimidation by the Autodefensas Gaitanistas de Colombia (AGC) against environmental leaders and demands that the Colombian government safeguard these defenders and finalize the revocation of the mining permit.

Friends of the Earth International has issued a statement regarding the disappearance of Miguel Ángel Pabón Pabón, a leader of the social movement for the defense of the Sogamoso River in Colombia, who was last seen on October 31, 2012. Pabón Pabón is recognized for his work defending fisherfolk and peasant communities against the social and environmental impacts of hydro-electrical projects, specifically those involving the company ISAGEN. The document highlights a pattern of violence in the region, noting that the Observatorio de Paz Integral reported 11 disappearances in 2012, with six individuals subsequently found dead. The organization calls upon Colombian authorities, including the Magdalena Medio Police and the National Attorney General, to ensure Pabón Pabón's safe return.

Global Witness reports that Veolia has been secretly filming and testing sediment at a Colombian landfill site, finding mercury levels 25 times above safe limits. The report alleges that untreated leachate is being pumped into wetlands that provide drinking water to hundreds of thousands of people in Barrancabermeja. While Veolia denies causality and claims its internal monitoring shows no mercury, expert analysis suggests the company's testing was insufficient. The report also highlights the danger faced by environmental defenders in the region and argues for the strength of the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive to hold such companies accountable.

The document analyzes the socio-economic dependence of Barrancabermeja on the oil industry and explores pathways for economic diversification to mitigate the risks of the energy transition. It identifies key opportunities in regenerative agriculture, low-emission hydrogen, and carbon capture, while warning that abrupt reductions in oil production could destabilize the local economy.

Barrancabermeja faces a high structural dependence on the hydrocarbon sector, particularly the Ecopetrol refinery, which creates fiscal and labor risks. While gasoline demand may remain stable until 2035, the document warns of a structural crisis thereafter. It recommends a 'very rapid transition' policy to accelerate economic reconversion into bio-industrial services using oil palm biomass, ecotourism, and the creation of a Free Trade Zone to ensure a just economic transition.