British Columbia – Becoming a Renewable Energy Powerhouse

I’m a big believer in the idea of a solar panel on every rooftop. It just makes sense to me. I would also like to experience an electric car traffic jam, and to have the power of the ocean used to light my home. Some may say I live in a dream world. Maybe now I do, but our world is changing—and in British Columbia my dream has a chance to become reality, thanks to the provincial government’s commitment to renewable energy. 

Premier Gordon Campbell proclaimed on April 23, 2009 that “We are going to be the alternative energy powerhouse in North America. We are going to be the example.” With the recent policy shift towards the green and the development of a first class renewable energy industry, I have no doubt that the Premier will achieve his goals and the Province will be a leader in the fight against the effects of climate change.

How is this possible? First and foremost, the BC Government’s 2007 Energy Plan calls for the Province to be energy self-sufficient by 2016. BC Hydro, a crown corporation and the principle electricity provider in the Province, has been a net importer of electricity for 7 of the last 10 years. In this context, self-sufficiency is both a significant and an aggressive goal. In an effort to meet that goal, BC Hydro heavily promotes conservation, and is looking to the private sector to build new renewable energy projects.

Second, in June, 2008, BC Hydro released the 2008 Clean Call for Power, which was an RFP for 5,000 gigawatt hours of new electricity—enough electricity to power 500,000 homes, all of which must come from clean and renewable sources. The local industry met the challenge bidding a total of 17,000 gigawatt hours to the Call. Proposed projects include:

• 45 run-of-river (low impact hydro) projects
• 19 wind (including Canada’s first offshore wind farm)
• 2 waste heat projects
• 1 biogas project
• 1 biomass (wood waste)

Results of the RFP are expected some time this summer.

Finally, in addition to the Energy Plan and the Clean Call for Power, the government has also embarked on a whole slew of climate change related legislation—some which received international attention (our Carbon Tax) and some is still sitting on the sidelines (Cap and Trade).

In my view, it is a very good thing the Canadian Provinces are taking the initiative to fight climate change (in addition to BC, Ontario and Quebec are some other good examples that I am aware of), as the Government of Canada has been extremely slow in passing any significant climate change related legislation. At present, Canada seems “tunnel-visioned” into funding research for carbon capture and storage (CCS), which would serve only to perpetuate the carbon problem doing nothing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Here’s a thought: instead of focussing on burying millions of tons of emitted carbon, how about retiring old coal fired plants and replacing them with renewable energy, and using the billions of R&D dollars for CCS to support clean and green renewable energy projects across the country?

British Columbia is blessed with an incredible natural endowment which can fuel thousands of megawatts of electricity from renewable sources. It is also very fortunate to located within a reasonable range of a tremendous electricity consumer—the great state of California. With coastlines ready for tapping wave and tidal power, rivers flowing eager to spin their turbines, and hot rock begging for a drink of water to turn into steam, BC is about to become a renewable energy powerhouse and a leader in the fight against climate change.