Solar farm in B.C. expected to save 1.1 million litres of diesel a year
A First Nation in central British Columbia says it will take a step toward "en‐ ergy sovereignty" when it builds what officials say will be the largest off-grid solar farm in Canada.
Around 1,500 residents of Anahim Lake, home of the Ulkatcho First Nation, and surrounding small communi‐ ties currently rely entirely on costly diesel for power.
"If we run out of diesel, then the lights go out. That's it," said Ulkatcho Elder Mary Williams.
But once built, the solar farm spanning about 12 hectares (30 acres) will sup‐ ply up to 70 per cent of the electricity the communities need, according to Chief Lyn‐ da Price and B.C. Hydro.
"We believe that solar en‐ ergy will be the source of our ability, for a lot of our fami‐ lies, to live off the grid," Price told CBC News on Friday from Anahim Lake, which lies around 380 kilometres north‐ west of Vancouver in B.C.'s Chilcotin region.
"We're really excited that this is the first stage of our solar power, and I believe our future generations will bene‐ fit."
On Friday, the Ulkatcho Energy Corporation (UEC), which owns the project, signed a historic 20-year agreement with B.C. Hydro, promising that the public util‐ ity will purchase the energy created by the solar farm and integrate it into power lines and a storage system to serve the community.
The $30-million project which is receiving $16 million in provincial and federal funding - is expected to pro‐ duce enough electricity to power about 350 of the area's 5,000 homes, ac‐ cording to B.C. Hydro.
That transition will reduce the community's reliance on diesel by approximately 1.1 million litres - equivalent to approximately 3,300 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions - per year, B.C. Hydro CEO Chris O'Riley told CBC at the signing ceremony.
The provincial govern‐ ment has currently commit‐ ted to reducing reliance on diesel for power by 80 per cent by 2030, and B.C. Hydro says Anahim Lake is one of 44 communities still depen‐ dent on the fuel.
"It's important for people to understand how impor‐ tant this project is as part of our larger climate goals, as part of our reconciliation goals with First Nations," O'Riley said. "And it really is a beacon for others."
Security, self-determina‐ tion
Ulkatcho First Nation elected councillor Corrine Ca‐ hoose says the solar farm is an important step for the na‐ tion's economic, environmen‐ tal and cultural self-determi‐ nation.
"Our people are very re‐ silient in our nation. We lived through all the colonization and the contact and smallpox and the residential schools, the missionaries," said Ca‐ hoose.
"We're all the knowledge keepers of the land. We know every mountain, we know every tree, we know every metal, we know all the ani‐ mals, we know where they hang out," she added.
"We have to be the stew‐ ards of that land. We have to protect in every way, and this project is one of the ways."
Anahim Lake community members and experts say the transition to clean energy is also a practical decision.
Wildfires and icy roads of‐ ten cause power outages, preventing truckloads of diesel from making it to the remote community before generators run out.
"On the whole, there's very little drawback to actual‐ ly putting in place these sorts of projects that again just add energy security and re‐ duce costs for off-grid com‐ munities," said Evan Pivnick, with Clean Energy Canada.
Construction at the site of the First Nation's former sawmill is set to begin by Au‐ gust and the solar farm is projected to be operational by October 2025, according to the UEC.
The UEC, which is owned by the nation's economic de‐ velopment corporation, will also feed revenue from the sale of solar power to B.C. Hydro into services, infra‐ structure, education and housing on the First Nation, according to Price and Ca‐ hoose.
"The revenue that's going to come from this project will ensure that we continue to build a healthy future for our children," said Cahoose.
WATCH | B.C. encour‐ ages First Nations to pitch new energy projects to meet growing demand: