Jim Elliott -
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Saskatchewan needs to take better advantage of our renewable energy resources, writes Jim Elliott.
Minister Bronwyn Eyre and, by extension, Premier Scott Moe need to stop using conservative political and marketing spin , sleight of hand or smoke and mirrors to try to convince us that somehow the federal government is interfering in the economy of this province.
Here is some simple education for the minister and premier to explain the situation they find themselves in today: “Energy is the capacity for doing work. It may exist in potential, kinetic, thermal, electrical, chemical, nuclear, or other forms.” It is not exclusively fossil fuels and energy does not simply equate to the production of non-renewable fossil fuels and the burning of such . And if we leave it in the ground, it will still be there for decades.
If we need to have a warm home or business, we have two steps. One reduces the need for any energy inputs into the home or business to make it liveable and secondly provide that additional source of heat. That heat can be provided by burning biomass or biofuels, using geothermal energy, using photovoltaics to generate electricity and using passive solar energy. All of these are renewable energy supplies. The burning of fossil fuels is not sustainable, nor should it be the first or only choice. There are homes in Saskatchewan today that use one-ninth the energy of current housing in the province, not even using photovoltaics which could be added on later. There are 50,000-square-foot Saskatchewan warehouses that use almost no fossil fuel energy to keep them warm in the wintertime. So, converting homes to this standard could reduce heating bills in Saskatchewan by 85 per cent.
We can do the same for transportation and agriculture.
Secondly, we know that polluting this planet with greenhouse gases is threatening our very existence and we don’t have to pollute to have a sustainable economy in this province. Our economy over the past 100 years has been allowed to pollute the planet’s atmosphere without penalty and as a result, we are experiencing more forest fires, more floods, more heat domes, more famines and less available water. We cannot continue to pollute with impunity. We must stop and allow the planet to reduce the GHG levels in our atmosphere.
The southern part of this province has the best solar gain of any province in Canada. With the use of photovoltaics, we could be that solar energy powerhouse called SaskPower that Premier Moe so desperately wants. We could be exporting solar and wind energy for the next millennium. We have one of the greatest wind regimes in Canada and could easily be exporting that electricity to our northern communities. And we don’t need to build more pipelines or small modular nuclear reactors. The electrical grid ties are already there or are being built.
We need to get down to carbon net zero or below by 2050 and it can easily be done. It will create thousands more jobs, especially in small towns and for those in the fossil fuel industry that will disappear in time. Wouldn’t it be better not to be hostage to the fossil fuel corporations and yet be able to turn on the switch and get heat, light or travel easily?
Jim Elliott is the chairperson of the Regina chapter of the Council of Canadians.
Minister Bronwyn Eyre and, by extension, Premier Scott Moe need to stop using conservative political and marketing spin , sleight of hand or smoke and mirrors to try to convince us that somehow the federal government is interfering in the economy of this province.
Here is some simple education for the minister and premier to explain the situation they find themselves in today: “Energy is the capacity for doing work. It may exist in potential, kinetic, thermal, electrical, chemical, nuclear, or other forms.” It is not exclusively fossil fuels and energy does not simply equate to the production of non-renewable fossil fuels and the burning of such . And if we leave it in the ground, it will still be there for decades.
If we need to have a warm home or business, we have two steps. One reduces the need for any energy inputs into the home or business to make it liveable and secondly provide that additional source of heat. That heat can be provided by burning biomass or biofuels, using geothermal energy, using photovoltaics to generate electricity and using passive solar energy. All of these are renewable energy supplies. The burning of fossil fuels is not sustainable, nor should it be the first or only choice. There are homes in Saskatchewan today that use one-ninth the energy of current housing in the province, not even using photovoltaics which could be added on later. There are 50,000-square-foot Saskatchewan warehouses that use almost no fossil fuel energy to keep them warm in the wintertime. So, converting homes to this standard could reduce heating bills in Saskatchewan by 85 per cent.
We can do the same for transportation and agriculture.
Secondly, we know that polluting this planet with greenhouse gases is threatening our very existence and we don’t have to pollute to have a sustainable economy in this province. Our economy over the past 100 years has been allowed to pollute the planet’s atmosphere without penalty and as a result, we are experiencing more forest fires, more floods, more heat domes, more famines and less available water. We cannot continue to pollute with impunity. We must stop and allow the planet to reduce the GHG levels in our atmosphere.
The southern part of this province has the best solar gain of any province in Canada. With the use of photovoltaics, we could be that solar energy powerhouse called SaskPower that Premier Moe so desperately wants. We could be exporting solar and wind energy for the next millennium. We have one of the greatest wind regimes in Canada and could easily be exporting that electricity to our northern communities. And we don’t need to build more pipelines or small modular nuclear reactors. The electrical grid ties are already there or are being built.
We need to get down to carbon net zero or below by 2050 and it can easily be done. It will create thousands more jobs, especially in small towns and for those in the fossil fuel industry that will disappear in time. Wouldn’t it be better not to be hostage to the fossil fuel corporations and yet be able to turn on the switch and get heat, light or travel easily?
Jim Elliott is the chairperson of the Regina chapter of the Council of Canadians.
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