Local communities could generate affordable, clean power \u2013 and free themselves from fossil fuels. To an energy monopoly, that\u2019s a threat.<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n <\/p>\n
In the New York Times bestseller\u00a0Drawdown<\/a>, groundbreaking research by one of the best scientific teams ever assembled concluded that if we act right now, we have both the time and technology to stabilize our deteriorating climate. Despite the battles we\u2019ve lost, a big reason for their conditional optimism is readily available renewable energy.<\/p>\nThere\u2019s an assumption B.C. is powered by \u2018clean\u2019 hydro, but the reality is most of the energy we use is\u00a0fossil fuel<\/a>: gasoline, diesel, natural gas and furnace oil. Electrifying transport and buildings is our biggest opportunity to cut emissions. It could save households thousands of dollars a year, and create an army of good-paying local jobs.<\/p>\nBut it will require a lot more juice. A pressing question is: do we rely on last century\u2019s destructive meg dam model to create it? If we don\u2019t build new renewable capacity quickly, we could find ourselves charging electric cars with\u00a0coal power<\/a>\u00a0purchased from Alberta or Wyoming.<\/p>\nBut rather than encourage people trying to generate clean, local electricity, BC Hydro is\u00a0cancelling<\/a>\u00a0existing contracts and trying to kill new projects in the cradle.<\/p>\nThe urgent case for renewables<\/b><\/h6>\n
Globally, renewable energy is a game-changer for our climate. In free market settings, it now\u00a0outcompetes<\/a>\u00a0conventional fossil-fuel generation systems like coal-fired or continuous cycle gas turbines. Since power generation is the\u00a0single largest source of GHGs on the planet<\/a>, making the switch to clean energy drastically reduces emissions while stimulating local economies.<\/p>\nIn western Canada, a drop in the cost of photovoltaic cells means large-scale\u00a0solar farms<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0rooftop solar<\/a>\u00a0are now\u00a0the most affordable forms of new power<\/a>. That\u2019s led more than 2,000 B.C. households to join BC Hydro\u2019s\u00a0net metering program<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 where customers use \u2018smart\u2019 meters to connect solar panels on their roof to the grid, earning a credit on their bill that slowly offsets the cost of the equipment.<\/p>\nIt\u2019s a start. But without accessible financing, tax credits or other incentives, most families can\u2019t afford the up-front cost of solar panels. And now BC Hydro is trying to stifle the net metering program, complaining that some customers are generating too much clean power. Yes, you read that right: too much!<\/p>\n
The fight for Indigenous utilities<\/b><\/h6>\n
Meanwhile, Indigenous communities are leading the way in developing ambitious and affordable clean power projects. But BC Hydro has been indifferent at best, and in some cases actively hostile.<\/p>\n
The Tsilhqot\u2019in Nation recently cut the ribbon on a new 1.25 megawatt\u00a0solar farm<\/a>\u00a0west of Williams Lake. Built on an old sawmill site, the project employed an all-Tsilhqot\u2019in construction crew and will provide steady revenue to the nation once BC Hydro flips the switch.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nortonspeaks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/tsilhqotin-solar-farm-1-600x338-1.jpg?resize=600%2C338\")
<\/p>\n
It\u2019s one of\u00a0five<\/a>\u00a0Indigenous-owned projects announced by BC Hydro in 2018, before it abruptly cancelled its Standing Offer Program. Since then, First Nations have had to use whatever leverage they have with the province to negotiate one-off electricity purchase agreements.<\/p>\nThe Upper Nicola Indian Band got BC Hydro to agree to buy power from its\u00a0solar project<\/a>\u00a0near Merritt, but only because the utility wanted to build a major transmission line through the community. The Fort Nelson First Nation is now pursuing a\u00a0geothermal<\/a>\u00a0project with a special permit from the province. But other communities have had the door slammed in their face.<\/p>\nSacrifice and loss<\/b><\/h6>\n
The desire to improve people\u2019s lives and fight climate change inspired Ktunaxa energy champion Marty Williams to propose a large scale solar farm in his home community of \u0294aq\u0313am \u2013 a project he\u2019s been working on for more than 10 years. I listened to his story while attending Clean Energy BC\u2019s\u00a0Generate 2019<\/a>\u00a0conference. I\u2019ll be interested to know if you feel the same conflicting emotions of inspiration and anger after you hear it.<\/p>\nKtunaxa territory encompasses a vast stretch of land in what we call the Kootenays. It\u2019s an almost indescribable place comprising broad valleys and high peaks with beautiful intermontane plains. Ktunaxa territory is where the Columbia, the most important river west of the Great Divide, originates. It\u2019s also the breadbasket for British Columbia\u2019s hydro-electric generation system. Half of all the electrical power produced in B.C. comes from the Kootenays.<\/p>\n
British Columbians have derived huge benefits from, and may even feel a sense of pride in, the tremendous amount of stored hydro power we control. That\u2019s probably because it didn\u2019t cost us our land or livelihoods. When we travel through Nakusp, Revelstoke or Nelson today we see majestic lakes, huge slow-moving rivers and impressive dams. Ktunaxa elders like Marty see underwater graves, flooded village sites, unuseable hunting territories and rivers without salmon.<\/p>\n
A chance for climate justice<\/b><\/h6>\n
The proposed 26 megawatt Ktunaxa solar farm could be an affordable source of renewable power twenty times the size of anything built so far in the province. \u0294aq\u0313am has a construction partner signed and ready to go. They\u2019ve selected a site and completed an archeological survey. The project would sit under power lines already running across the reserve. But BC Hydro refuses to sign.<\/p>\n
Adding insult to injury, a visiting bureaucrat told the community at \u0294aq\u0313am they should scale their project down. To dream small. And maybe, they said, hook up some solar panels to the local casino. This in a year when\u00a0reservoirs across B.C. were low<\/a>\u00a0(proving to be a recurring phenomenon) and we imported $55 million worth of dirty energy to make up the shortfall.<\/p>\nAll the Ktunaxa are asking for is a chance to generate the power needed to tackle the climate crisis, which threatens us all. A chance to employ their people in economic development opportunities that don\u2019t pollute or destroy their territory. The flippant response from our government makes my blood boil.<\/p>\n
Fiddling while Rome burns<\/b><\/h6>\n
A couple of weeks before she was replaced by Bruce Ralston, energy minister Michelle Mungall was overheard musing that independent power was on the run and, if we really did need solar in B.C., we could trade California for it.<\/p>\n
Mungall\u2019s backwards take is galling. A joint UVic\/ UBC\/Oregon State study released last fall confirms\u00a0we\u2019ll need twice our current generating capacity to make the transition to electric transportation<\/a>. With\u00a0electric car adoption rates in B.C. already surging<\/a>, I think the government is underestimating the public\u2019s desire to be part of the solution.<\/p>\nPoliticians are not alone in this regressive attitude. We are also up against the entrenched power of BC Hydro, whose monopoly allows it to dictate how energy is produced in the province. The corporation\u2019s mandate is to make as much money as it can today \u2013 not plan for the climate crisis. That\u2019s why they\u2019re swapping hydro power for dirty coal power from Idaho, while refusing to buy energy from local communities.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s an assumption B.C. is powered by \u2018clean\u2019 hydro, but the reality is most of the energy we use is\u00a0fossil fuel<\/a>: gasoline, diesel, natural gas and furnace oil. Electrifying transport and buildings is our biggest opportunity to cut emissions. It could save households thousands of dollars a year, and create an army of good-paying local jobs.<\/p>\n But it will require a lot more juice. A pressing question is: do we rely on last century\u2019s destructive meg dam model to create it? If we don\u2019t build new renewable capacity quickly, we could find ourselves charging electric cars with\u00a0coal power<\/a>\u00a0purchased from Alberta or Wyoming.<\/p>\n But rather than encourage people trying to generate clean, local electricity, BC Hydro is\u00a0cancelling<\/a>\u00a0existing contracts and trying to kill new projects in the cradle.<\/p>\n Globally, renewable energy is a game-changer for our climate. In free market settings, it now\u00a0outcompetes<\/a>\u00a0conventional fossil-fuel generation systems like coal-fired or continuous cycle gas turbines. Since power generation is the\u00a0single largest source of GHGs on the planet<\/a>, making the switch to clean energy drastically reduces emissions while stimulating local economies.<\/p>\n In western Canada, a drop in the cost of photovoltaic cells means large-scale\u00a0solar farms<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0rooftop solar<\/a>\u00a0are now\u00a0the most affordable forms of new power<\/a>. That\u2019s led more than 2,000 B.C. households to join BC Hydro\u2019s\u00a0net metering program<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 where customers use \u2018smart\u2019 meters to connect solar panels on their roof to the grid, earning a credit on their bill that slowly offsets the cost of the equipment.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a start. But without accessible financing, tax credits or other incentives, most families can\u2019t afford the up-front cost of solar panels. And now BC Hydro is trying to stifle the net metering program, complaining that some customers are generating too much clean power. Yes, you read that right: too much!<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Indigenous communities are leading the way in developing ambitious and affordable clean power projects. But BC Hydro has been indifferent at best, and in some cases actively hostile.<\/p>\n The Tsilhqot\u2019in Nation recently cut the ribbon on a new 1.25 megawatt\u00a0solar farm<\/a>\u00a0west of Williams Lake. Built on an old sawmill site, the project employed an all-Tsilhqot\u2019in construction crew and will provide steady revenue to the nation once BC Hydro flips the switch.<\/p>\n It\u2019s one of\u00a0five<\/a>\u00a0Indigenous-owned projects announced by BC Hydro in 2018, before it abruptly cancelled its Standing Offer Program. Since then, First Nations have had to use whatever leverage they have with the province to negotiate one-off electricity purchase agreements.<\/p>\n The Upper Nicola Indian Band got BC Hydro to agree to buy power from its\u00a0solar project<\/a>\u00a0near Merritt, but only because the utility wanted to build a major transmission line through the community. The Fort Nelson First Nation is now pursuing a\u00a0geothermal<\/a>\u00a0project with a special permit from the province. But other communities have had the door slammed in their face.<\/p>\n The desire to improve people\u2019s lives and fight climate change inspired Ktunaxa energy champion Marty Williams to propose a large scale solar farm in his home community of \u0294aq\u0313am \u2013 a project he\u2019s been working on for more than 10 years. I listened to his story while attending Clean Energy BC\u2019s\u00a0Generate 2019<\/a>\u00a0conference. I\u2019ll be interested to know if you feel the same conflicting emotions of inspiration and anger after you hear it.<\/p>\n Ktunaxa territory encompasses a vast stretch of land in what we call the Kootenays. It\u2019s an almost indescribable place comprising broad valleys and high peaks with beautiful intermontane plains. Ktunaxa territory is where the Columbia, the most important river west of the Great Divide, originates. It\u2019s also the breadbasket for British Columbia\u2019s hydro-electric generation system. Half of all the electrical power produced in B.C. comes from the Kootenays.<\/p>\n British Columbians have derived huge benefits from, and may even feel a sense of pride in, the tremendous amount of stored hydro power we control. That\u2019s probably because it didn\u2019t cost us our land or livelihoods. When we travel through Nakusp, Revelstoke or Nelson today we see majestic lakes, huge slow-moving rivers and impressive dams. Ktunaxa elders like Marty see underwater graves, flooded village sites, unuseable hunting territories and rivers without salmon.<\/p>\n The proposed 26 megawatt Ktunaxa solar farm could be an affordable source of renewable power twenty times the size of anything built so far in the province. \u0294aq\u0313am has a construction partner signed and ready to go. They\u2019ve selected a site and completed an archeological survey. The project would sit under power lines already running across the reserve. But BC Hydro refuses to sign.<\/p>\n Adding insult to injury, a visiting bureaucrat told the community at \u0294aq\u0313am they should scale their project down. To dream small. And maybe, they said, hook up some solar panels to the local casino. This in a year when\u00a0reservoirs across B.C. were low<\/a>\u00a0(proving to be a recurring phenomenon) and we imported $55 million worth of dirty energy to make up the shortfall.<\/p>\n All the Ktunaxa are asking for is a chance to generate the power needed to tackle the climate crisis, which threatens us all. A chance to employ their people in economic development opportunities that don\u2019t pollute or destroy their territory. The flippant response from our government makes my blood boil.<\/p>\n A couple of weeks before she was replaced by Bruce Ralston, energy minister Michelle Mungall was overheard musing that independent power was on the run and, if we really did need solar in B.C., we could trade California for it.<\/p>\n Mungall\u2019s backwards take is galling. A joint UVic\/ UBC\/Oregon State study released last fall confirms\u00a0we\u2019ll need twice our current generating capacity to make the transition to electric transportation<\/a>. With\u00a0electric car adoption rates in B.C. already surging<\/a>, I think the government is underestimating the public\u2019s desire to be part of the solution.<\/p>\n Politicians are not alone in this regressive attitude. We are also up against the entrenched power of BC Hydro, whose monopoly allows it to dictate how energy is produced in the province. The corporation\u2019s mandate is to make as much money as it can today \u2013 not plan for the climate crisis. That\u2019s why they\u2019re swapping hydro power for dirty coal power from Idaho, while refusing to buy energy from local communities.<\/p>\nThe urgent case for renewables<\/b><\/h6>\n
The fight for Indigenous utilities<\/b><\/h6>\n
<\/p>\nSacrifice and loss<\/b><\/h6>\n
A chance for climate justice<\/b><\/h6>\n
Fiddling while Rome burns<\/b><\/h6>\n