Promoting Green Power in Canada - Centre for Human Settlements

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Promoting Green Power in Canada Pollution Probe1995 and will probably exceed 4% in 2002[BWE 2002], a 0.5% per year increase. Basedon capacity data in Chapter 3.3.3, Denmark,which now produces 18% of its electricityfrom wind (from about 4% in 1995), hasseen an increase of 1.8% per year, not takinginto account energy from biomass. BothGermany and Denmark are not using anRPS, but use feed-in tariffs to increase theirrenewables share. In Canada, only voluntaryrenewable portfolio goals have so far beenestablished. BC Hydro wants to green 10%of its new generating capacity by 2010 38 andNova Scotia Power has committed to add 50MW of green power to its portfolio, which is2.5% of its current generation capacity[Moomaw 2002, p.6]. Hydro Québec hascommitted to bringing 1,000 MW of windpower on-line over the next ten years, plusanother 200 MW of power produced usingforest biomass [HQ 2002c]. This can beestimated to be about 2.6% of Hydro Québec’scurrent electricity production for consumptioninside Québec (154 TWh in 2001). Thesevoluntary targets are very limited in theirimpact, and their influence on Canada’spower portfolio will be small. WisconsinEnergy has committed to a voluntary shareof green power sources of 5% by 2011 — inaddition to generation created for its energyfor tomorrow green power marketingprogram, which is one of the largest in theUS [REF 2002a].An RPS could also help direct renewablepower development in a way that helps tosecure power production in the long term. Inthe Netherlands, a maximum of 10–15% ofintermittent power production through windand solar can be accommodated by the gridwithout special compensation measures,such as storage or other ways of peakshaving. 39 Wind energy is currently takingthe lead in new renewable powerdevelopment as it is the cheapest of allavailable sources. Through an RPS, separaterequirements can be defined for intermittentand less intermittent sources of energy inorder to maintain the right balance amongenergy sources. Finally, a RPS will reducedemand for fossil fuels, especially naturalgas, which in turn leads to lower prices forthese fuels. A recent study found that thiseffect offsets the increased cost forrenewables with respect to electricity priceprojections [EIA 2002, p. 19].4.8.2 Optimizing RPS DesignRenewable Portfolio Standards could bedefined for each province, or even a nationaltarget for the whole of Canada. Due tomarket power considerations and Canada’slow population in comparison to othercountries, a system that includes all provincesmay be the preferable option for Canada, asopposed to separate provincial RPS’, especiallyif green power certificate trading is to occur.Another issue to be considered is whetheronly Canadian or also non-Canadian(probably US) electricity should be eligibleto fulfill RPS obligations. There are threemain concerns linked to this subject. First,tracking and verification can be problematicacross jurisdictional lines whencomplementary information disclosure andtracking systems are not in place. Severaltracking systems for green tags are currentlybeing developed in the United States, but thebest way to track across-the-border greenenergy deliveries would be throughcomplementary certificate trading systemson both sides of the border. Secondly,allowing out-of-country resources increasessupply and likely lowers the price for RPSrelatedelectricity. This may be good forconsumers and possibly bad for domesticrenewable power generators unless ajurisdiction depends on resources across theborder to fulfill its quota. Finally, allowingout-of-country resources makes it moredifficult to capture the environmental benefitslocally, although this depends heavily on theparticular jurisdiction’s geography andresource distribution [NWCC 2001a, p. 51f.].112
Promoting Green Power in Canada Pollution ProbeAllowing out-of country resources to competemay be necessary in a NAFTA context, as ithas been alleged that an RPS may otherwiseconstitute a trade barrier. Obligations on thechoice of fuels for energy production areallowed under GATT rules, as long as thesame restrictions are applied to both domesticand foreign products [UCS 2002, p. 9]. Thissituation has been found to exist in theUnited States, where an RPS restrictionrequiring in-state production, such as thenew California RPS (Senate Bill 1078), wouldmost likely be declared unconstitutional ifchallenged [RADER 2001, p. A-1]. Texas hasattempted to circumvent this threat byrequiring that RPS-eligible renewableelectricity be physically metered inside thestate (requiring a dedicated line as it mustnot be mixed with conventional electricity),which de facto limits the location ofgeneration to in-state sources [ibid., p. A-2].This provision could be challenged asdiscrimination without a substantial basis,and another approach has been recommendedto deal with this issue [p. A-3]: eligibilitycould be defined as depending on whetheror not the benefits of renewable power actuallyreach the people inside the jurisdiction.Benefits might include the displacement ofmore polluting energy sources, increasedenergy diversity, or the advancement of newtechnologies, including job creation.Figure 4.19 — Electricity Production inCanada by Fuel Type [CCPA 2000]4.8.3 Canada’s Current EnergySituation and Future PotentialCurrent Energy Mix and PlanningCanada is the world’s leading producer ofelectricity from large-scale hydropower —61% of total Canadian electricity productionis derived from this source (see Figure 4.19).In addition, there are more than 500 hydrofacilities in Canada of less than 50 MW each,many of which could be defined as smallhydro facilities (= 30 MW). The next majorsource of Canadian renewable power, afterlarge-scale hydro, is biomass, mainly used inthe pulp and paper industry. This industrymeets 54 % of its energy needs for heat andelectricity from forest waste. Wind energy,geothermal and solar energy provide only asmall fraction of Canada’s energy needs[Moomaw 2002, p. 2].Canada’s wind potential is substantial. Muchof it occurs in the Prairie Provinces and alongthe Atlantic coast. The Québec governmenthas recommended bringing on 1,000 MW ofwind power over the next nine years. A majorbarrier to the development of large-scalewind electric projects in western Canada andthe US is that the best wind resources of theprairies are located far from population andindustrial centers. Developing longtransmission lines adds to the economic andenvironmental costs of bringing this resourceto market. However, this problem is nodifferent than that faced by many large-scalehydroelectric projects in the past, which haveovercome their location challenges. Utilizingagricultural lands to simultaneously produceelectricity from wind, grain or livestock andcellulosic alcohol fuels could, for example,substantially raise living standards in ruralagricultural regions [Moomaw 2002, p. 2].Figure 4.20 shows that Canada’s electricitysupply has increased substantially over thepast two decades, and is projected to rise byabout 13% from 2000 through 2010. NaturalResources Canada estimates that energy113
Page 1 and 2:
Promoting Green Power in Canada Pol
Page 3 and 4:
Page 5 and 6:
Page 7 and 8:
Page 9 and 10:
Page 11 and 12:
Page 13 and 14:
Page 15 and 16:
Page 17 and 18:
Page 19 and 20:
Page 21 and 22:
Page 23 and 24:
Page 25 and 26:
Page 27 and 28:
Page 29 and 30:
Page 31 and 32:
Page 33 and 34:
Page 35 and 36:
Page 37 and 38:
Page 39 and 40:
Page 41 and 42:
Page 43 and 44:
Page 45 and 46:
Page 47 and 48:
Page 49 and 50:
Page 51 and 52:
Page 53 and 54:
Page 55 and 56:
Page 57 and 58:
Page 59 and 60:
Page 61 and 62:
Page 63 and 64:
Page 65 and 66:
Page 67 and 68:
Page 69 and 70: Promoting Green Power in Canada Pol
Page 119: Promoting Green Power in Canada Pol
Page 171 and 172:
Page 173 and 174:
Page 175 and 176:
Page 177 and 178:
Page 179 and 180:
Page 181 and 182:
Page 183 and 184:
Page 185 and 186:
Page 187 and 188:
Page 189 and 190:
Page 191 and 192:
Page 193 and 194:
Page 195 and 196:
Page 197 and 198:
Page 199 and 200:
Page 201 and 202:
Page 204:
Page 207 and 208:
Page 209:
show all

Promoting Green Power in Canada - Centre for Human Settlements

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?