Alberta should be a renewable energ y leader
This sunny, windy province needn’t be in the carbon doghouse
As the smoke clears from this week’s Enbridge Northern Gateway decision, one thing is clear — this pipeline will never be built. Given opposition from the British Columbia government, a litany of First Nation lawsuits, a possible referendum and inevitable protests, Northern Gateway’s demise is already being written despite the federal green light.
Beyond Gateway, the fates of the other major tar sands pipelines are just as uncertain.
A denial of the TransCanada Keystone XL pipeline looks to be in the works after the U.S. mid-terms. Opposition to Kinder Morgan’s pipeline to southern B.C. is heating up as First Nations are joined in opposition to the project by the mayors of Burnaby and Vancouver. Meanwhile, on the other side of the country, opposition to the proposed Energy East pipeline is also growing, particularly in Quebec, where they would need to lay the new pipe. Add to this the growing threat of climate crisis, efforts around the world to address it and the UN climate chief talking about how three-quarters of all fossil fuel reserves need to remain in the ground, the picture of Alberta doesn’t look so rosy.
Instead of getting mad, we should get smart. Rather than putting all of our eggs in the boom-and-bust basket of tar sands expansion, Alberta could capitalize on its tremendous potential to get us off the roller-coaster, out of the carbon doghouse and become a real leader in renewables.
Alberta is one of the sunniest provinces in the entire country. Solar energy has dramatically dropped in price in recent years, making it cost competitive with traditional power in many parts of the world. China installed as much solar capacity as the entire Alberta electricity system just last year, and the global possibilities for a solar boom are only looking sunnier. The opportunities here in Alberta are almost endless. Solar can save home and business owners money on their energy bills, it can help reduce costs for farmers, and in some cases, can provide them with a much-needed guaranteed income.
Tapping into the power of the sun also creates jobs. In California, there are now more workers employed in the solar industry than there are actors. In Texas, there are more solar workers than ranchers. Alberta should seize the momentum.
Wind is also big. We all know how windy the south of Alberta is, but there’s huge potential throughout the province. Alberta used to lead Canada in wind energy development and has the potential to reclaim that lead once again. Despite numerous hurdles, wind already supplies five per cent of Alberta’s electricity, but has the potential to do a lot more. Wind is one of the lowest cost risks for new electricity supply and it could be another sector that would help diversify our economy, reduce our emissions and put people to work.
A robust retrofitting program could create some of the quickest and biggest wins for Alberta, generating anywhere between 10,000 and 22,000 jobs. Employing people to retrofit leaky buildings and homes is an easy way to save home and business owners money. And who doesn’t like a little more money in their pocket, with the side-benefit of shrinking Alberta’s greenhouse gas footprint? A good retrofitting program could reduce emissions equivalent to taking more than 150,000 cars off the road.
According to Natural Resources Canada, Alberta also has some of the best geothermal energy potential in Canada. Tapping into the energy of the intense heat that exists deep underground requires expertise in drilling, of which there is no shortage in our province.
The possibilities for Alberta’s renewable energy growth really are endless. From high-speed rail, to supporting solar energy, there is much we could be doing with our wealth that the government isn’t. Opinion polls consistently show that Albertans want action on the climate, and they prefer investments in renewables to fossil fuels.
So I say to the would-be premiers of this great province: With so many people standing up against tar sands pipelines they don’t want, isn’t it time Alberta invests in something they do?