Discussion/background information: Burning fossil fuels to produce electricity and heat is responsible for 16 per cent of Canada’s total greenhouse gas emissions1 and produces significant air pollution, particularly in Southern Ontario. Renewable-energy technologies including wind power, small hydro, and solar photovoltaic energy offer us the means to produce the electricity and heating we need without the greenhouse gases, air pollutants, or other environmental impacts associated with conventional Big Energy approaches Significant gains in renewable energy have been made around the world recently. As of mid-2008, wind-power capacity worldwide was 100 GW (enough to supply the total electricity needs of 25 to 30 million North American homes)2, and 20 GW of wind power generation are expected to be installed in 2008 alone. A remarkable 2.3 GW of solar photovoltaic panels were produced in 2007, bringing global total capacity to over nine GW – enough to supply the total electricity energy needs of three million European households. The German state of Bavaria already gets more than one per cent of its total electricity supply from solar panels. Entire industrialized areas of Germany and Northern Denmark are powered 100 per cent by renewable energy and the countries export renewable power and manufacturer systems. China has now become the world’s largest producer and user of solar water heaters and is also a major player in the manufacturing of wind turbines and solar photovoltaic systems. Closer to home, despite some progress in implementing wind power, small hydro, and biomass power plants in Canada, we still have not implemented the policies to take advantage of our country’s huge comparative advantage. Developing strong domestic markets that tap into Canada’s huge renewable-energy resources promises to create thousands of new jobs and usher in a new industrial revolution. Nations including Germany and Spain are already enjoying the economic benefits of a sustainable-energy industrial strategy, generating more than 400,000 jobs in the renewable-energy sector through ambitious targets, smart policies, and an emphasis on forward-looking solutions. By contrast, influential lobbies for the nuclear, coal, and large hydro energy industries in Canada – with many sympathizers within utilities and government – continue to dismiss renewable-energy technologies and energy efficiency as too “marginal” and “unreliable” to play a significant role in provincial power grids. Ignoring research and numerous case studies that show how a combination of renewables and energy efficiency could solve crises like the looming power-supply crunch in Ontario (when the province’s existing coal plants are shut down in 2014), lobbyists stubbornly contend that the only option to deal with energy-supply gaps and climate-change concerns is for government to invest heavily in massive subsidization of high-risk nuclear plants, high-cost “ new coal” technology, or high-impact large hydro facilities. If Canada locks into continued reliance on these outdated and polluting energy options, we will be committing our country to more expensive electricity rates, more health impacts and security risks, more greenhouse gases (when “embodied emissions” from the production of these power plants are considered), and a less-resilient and less-reliable power supply. Worse yet, the huge amount of resources needed to fund these polluting and dangerous energy options would divert investment funds and market-supply opportunities away from new renewable energy plants, undermining Canada’s ability to benefit from developing renewable energy and efficiency technologies – today’s most promising new industrial-development and job-creation strategy. As with any other large installation, government policies must ensure that unacceptable environmental impacts are avoided during the construction or operation of renewable-energy generation facilities. There is no question that renewable-energy generation facilities produce vastly lower environmental impacts when they are properly sized, sited, built, and operated, even compared to the best-performing fossil fuel or nuclear plants. However, a full-scale commitment to a sustainable-energy future in Canada needs to be made in conjunction with a complementary commitment to minimizing the impacts of all energy developments, through the implementation of standards and procedures and adequate resources to ensure low-impact outcomes. -----------------------------------
12006 National Inventory Report 2Calculation uses AWEA (265 homes per MW) and CanWEA (300 homes per MW) factors for homes served per MW of installed capacity. Questions for candidates: 1. What will your party do to ensure that Canada obtains 50 per cent of its energy supply from renewable energy sources by 2030? 2. What will your party do to ensure low environmental impacts (i.e., no greenhouse gas emissions, no air-contaminant emissions, and the lowest possible impacts to wildlife and communities) while ensuring adequate electricity supply in Canada? BACK TO ISSUE SHEETS |