Wind and solar energy are not new, but they've newly come into the forefront of the energy markets in North America, and in particular in Ontario, Canada. This presentation will explore some of the challenges in developing these projects, and how to overcome them.
Ontario is a problematic province, with a diversity of strengths and weaknesses, a huge provincial budget, a multimodal economy, and a voracious appetite for energy. The provincial energy system is one of the largest items on the Provincial budget, and is a growing concern. Ontario's Green Energy Act has begun the process of decentralizing Ontario's energy system, opening up opportunities for local communities and local individuals to generate energy for themselves. What Ontario's government and ENGO sector did not expect was the degree of opposition and localized social friction that locally owned renewable energy projects would face. That opposition has had mixed competence, but has become increasingly well organized, and has been very damaging to Ontario's nacent green energy economy. Comparable and contrasting experiences will be assessed from other parts of Canada as well, from Alberta's wind farms to Nova Scotia and PEI. This paper will focus on transformation of Canada's energy markets, and on what Ontario's experience with the Green Energy Act can teach us all about social and market forces that are actively and passively opposing the transition to ICES'. Comments/recommendations will be made on effective vs. ineffective policy change, strategies and methods for increasing market acceptance and engagement, and risks that need to be managed (and how).
Picture from http://www.bcenergyblog.com/tags/ontario-wind-farms/
Listed in order of Mindscape’s expertise, and loosely of CREW’s preference: we know wind the best, and biomass/biogas the least. Wind has the greatest impact per dollar spent
First things first: planning municipal energy should preface conservation over generation. Moral of the story: grab the low hanging fruit first. Less invasive = less resistance.
Image: Wind turbines and solar panels outside Wal-Mart in McKinney, Texas Whether retrofitting buildings or street lighting, the same principles apply: Use Less: Know your turn-down ratio (50-70% is not uncommon from what we’ve been told by our colleagues) Consider controls to improve turn-down: lighting controls, PLC/BAS controls, etc. Turn-off stuff not in use (eg: motion sensors in bathrooms) Turn-off stuff that’s not required (eg: daylight sensors, moisture sensors on irrigation) Eg: don’t spend electricity on lighting when the sun is doing fine Eg: don’t spend water and electricity irrigating when it’s raining Eg: economizers for fresh air Recover the energy you’ve already used: ERV’s, DWHR, steam flue heat exchangers, etc. Incentives: (see later slides)
Step 1: Scoping – determine technology options Step 2: Feasibility assessment(s) Step 3: Research permitting requirements Step 4: Research grants and incentives Step 5: Hire RE consultant or turn-key OEM/distributor Mindscape provides renewable energy resource assessments to determine which forms of renewable energy will best fit your needs and location Mindscape also has partners involved with many different renewable energy technologies
Conserve! Then think about generating: Best financial returns are on the commercial scale: if you’re looking to invest, put your money in a wind coop. Biomass has some attractive opportunities, but … CREW focuses on mature technology that’s ready for mass market
Social friction is emotional: fear, uncertainty & doubt
Bottom line: There are some legitimate drawbacks to wind energy, but they’re extremely minor compared to the alternatives, or even compared to the risks we take when we get into the car and drive to work every morning. Note: wind is not unreliable – it’s intermittent. Important difference. Turbines are the most reliable generators around – far more so than nuclear. “ unfounded and unprovable silliness”: Ask for recent reports based on recent data – note that the industry has advanced significantly over the last few decades, and every year counts. All of reports against wind that actually have valid concerns are very obsolete. 20 yrs. of reports in Europe, Canada (yes local), and around the globe that deal with all the concerns raised thus far. “ There is nothing new under the sun”, especially with wind energy antagonists. Bird kill stats from CanWEA (per 10,000 avian fatalities): <1 from wind turbines 50 from communication towers 710 from pesticides 850 from vehicles 1060 from cats 1370 from high tension lines 5820 from collisions with buildings / windows
POOL eg: coastal farm community in Germany whose gross revenue increased >40x after turbines arrived. They call the off-shore turbines beautiful. NIMBY eg: certain rural farmers in Ontario that got bad land deals from large out-of-province developers.
Social friction is emotional: fear, uncertainty & doubt
Social friction is emotional: fear, uncertainty & doubt
Diversity in corporate revenue: eg John Deer Other benefits: -Land lease revenue for rural land owners (eg: wind) -farmer claims: energy is most reliable crop (over any agricultural crop) Rural economic development (new jobs for design, construction, maintenance, …)
Debatable: Wind as only method of electricity generation that fully recovers embodied energy Diversity in corporate revenue: eg John Deer Other benefits: -Land lease revenue for rural land owners (eg: wind) Rural economic development (new jobs for design, construction, maintenance, …)
Boundaries, Scope limitation, & Public Engagement Know what you’re actually asking vs. sharing Know that ppl can tell if your asking is genuine vs. selling
- key points for builders
Image from http://www.caribbeanelections.com/education/images/library_books_5516.jpg Prefer personal power instead of community owned (eg: coop)? Contact Mindscape. Keep brief: <1 min. Mindscape Innovations, the 2008 Gowlings "New Business of the Year", which provides core enabling services to both the green building sector and the renewable energy sector: from feasibility studies to renewable energy system solutions to processing grants and incentives to certifying ENERGY STAR or LEED buildings.