An Alberta environmental group opposes a solar energy challenge over considerations it will injury antelope habitat and block their migration.
Householders within the province are combating a renewable pure gasoline proposal over fears it will damage air high quality and strengthen already highly effective odours.
As Alberta slowly builds a local weather change-friendly power grid, conflicts between completely different environmental values are going to develop into extra frequent, consultants say.
“All power growth has impacts,” mentioned Sara Hastings-Simon, a professor within the College of Public Coverage on the College of Calgary.
“As we see extra growth taking place, there will probably be extra conflicts.”
One instance is the Aira photo voltaic challenge close to the city of Bow Island in southern Alberta.
The challenge would supply 450 megawatts of carbon-free electrical energy to the provincial grid, however opponents concern its location would injury native grasslands and block herds of antelope as they migrate north from the U.S.
“Antelope can’t migrate by chain-link fences,” mentioned Cliff Wallis of the Alberta Wilderness Affiliation.
The corporate has promised to construct lanes for the animals to go by. However Wallis mentioned antelope are unlikely to make use of them.
“All we’re doing is opening up the door to those tasks and never determining the place is the perfect place to place them,” he mentioned.
Additional north, close to the city of Excessive River, Benita Estes has been combating a big biodigester challenge that may flip manure into sufficient pure gasoline to energy 6,000 houses.
Benita Estes is against the event of a biodigester plant 200 metres from her house close to Excessive River, Saturday, April 6, 2024.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
Proponent Rimrock Renewables concedes the plant’s odours would generally exceed provincial pointers, even with the upgraded management mechanisms it just lately introduced.
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“Biogas (tasks) are nice, in the event that they’re in small areas,” Estes mentioned. “This one is a monstrosity.”
The Alberta Utilities Fee, which licenses renewable energy tasks, is tasked with weighing environmental considerations in opposition to one another. It just lately turned down a photo voltaic challenge over considerations about impacts on native grassland.
Ryan Fournier, spokesman for Alberta Surroundings Minister Rebecca Schulz, mentioned the fee is as much as the job.
“Every challenge proponent sends the division a submission that identifies wildlife species and very important habitats, assesses species concern, particulars how they may meet wildlife directive requirements and proposes methods to reduce the dangers,” he mentioned in an e mail.
However Alberta must unpack extra of the instruments it already has to handle such conflicts, mentioned Jason Wang of the clear power think-tank the Pembina Institute.
He factors out Alberta has been divided into seven areas for land use planning. Two of these plans have been accomplished and one – the South Saskatchewan plan, the place most renewables growth is concentrated – is about to face a 10-year evaluation.
“The intention of those regional land use plans was to try this type of long-term planning with communities,” mentioned Wang. “They are often difficult, however (the province) ought to end that strategy.”
A part of the problem is differentiating authentic considerations from these with a not-in-my-backyard mindset, mentioned Hastings-Simon.
“Among the objections to renewable power will be traced again to teams attempting to stop renewable power,” she mentioned.
“If carried out effectively, renewable power has important much less influence,” she mentioned. “However we do want to consider the place that’s going to be.”
Wallis, with the Alberta Wilderness Affiliation, mentioned environmental impacts must be understood extra broadly than simply local weather change.
“We’re dealing with two crises,” he mentioned. “We don’t need to commerce off biodiversity to mitigate solely local weather change.
“We will do each if we’re sensible about it.”
Estes mentioned tasks such because the biogas one she opposes needs to be regulated for what they’re.
“They’re attempting to promote these tasks as agricultural once they’re really industrial. It’s not being placed on industrial-zoned land.”
Craig Snodgrass, who’s in the midst of such quarrels as Excessive River’s mayor, mentioned conflicts are prone to improve as Alberta’s inhabitants grows.
“Everyone’s attempting to do extra renewable issues, however there’s a unfavourable facet to it as effectively,” Snodgrass mentioned.
“A greater approach to handle that, that our authorities may very well be doing a greater job of, is placing folks first — wanting on the human being first slightly than placing trade first.”
© 2024 The Canadian Press
