Chilling out amid natural gas deficit

British Columbians are heeding the call to conserve natural gas, but it might not be enough, says Fortis B.C.

The company has been looking at a variety of options to increase its stock of natural gas since an explosion at an Enbridge gas pipeline in October near Prince George temporarily stopped the flow of gas. Since the pipeline was repaired at the start of November, Enbridge has been willing to push only a reduced amount of fuel through it.

The top priority for Fortis is to ensure B.C. residents have heat through the winter, said Sean Beardow, manager of corporate communications for Fortis. Industrial customers might be asked to switch to other fuels to ensure there’s enough gas for home heating, he said.

“It’s hard to say [if conservation is enough], there are so many variables involved. Demand for gas is very closely tied to temperature.

“That’s why we are pushing that conservation message.”

As many as 700,000 customers on Vancouver Island, the Lower Mainland and in northern B.C. could be directly affected by a natural gas shortage.

Fortis has expanded an ad campaign that includes television commercials and emails to natural-gas customers asking them to wash clothes in cold water and to keep thermostats between 18 C and 20 C when at home and awake, and no more than 17, when away or sleeping.

“Small changes like dropping the thermostat a couple of degrees or cutting down time in the shower by a minute or two ends up meaning a tremendous amount of gas is being saved,” Beardow said.

“Every molecule of gas that one person doesn’t use can then be used elsewhere in the system. It really is one of those things where small steps can make a big difference.”