Thoughts on BC Politics and More

... In announcing the approvals, the province said it “intends to exempt these wind projects and all future wind projects in B.C. from environmental assessment.” Stamer called that approach “totally irresponsible.” “Yes, there are opportunities to move forward on some of these much-needed projects but to say that [the province] wouldn’t be doing any environmental assessments is totally wrong. It’s unacceptable,” Stamer told the board. “At the same time, we know the process [the government] had was very short. It was very narrow in scope" ... CLICK HERE for the full story

Report says 118 projects affected and 24,000 jobs at risk.   An estimated 24,000 full-time jobs and $33 billion in investments are at risk because of the Alberta government’s seven-month moratorium on renewable energy development, the Pembina Institute said this morning.    Courtney Smith, spokesperson for the Calgary-based clean energy think tank, said Pembina researchers reviewed the Alberta Electric System Operator’s list of electricity generation projects in development in relation to their approval status from the Alberta Utility Commission to determine how many projects are impacted by Danielle Smith government’s freeze on renewable energy development.   “Public data shows that 118 projects are currently in development and are either waiting for permitting approval or could submit an approval application within the next few months,” the fact sheet by Jason Wang and Will Noel released this morning said. “These projects represent at least $33 billion of...

Alberta's seven-month pause on approving new renewable power projects in the Canadian province has caused four major international companies at various development stages to stop work on their plans, an industry official said.   Alberta's surprise move this month has also prompted some domestic companies to consider whether to refocus investment on other provinces and the U.S.   Wind and solar energy producers have criticized Premier Danielle Smith for creating business uncertainty and jeopardizing billions in potential investments ... CLICK HERE to read the rest of the story

We rarely hear about the dark side of renewable energy sources like windmills. Governments and the media are determined to convince us that wind power is part of our future and refuse to admit that there may be problems that affect our ecosystems. Our hysterical approach to climate change as an emergency precludes realistic assessment of the risks that wind farms entail. Hysterical people toss common sense, critical assessment and reason out the window. That is why our government talks of climate change in terms of “ an emergency ”. They don’t want us poking around and finding the multitude of flaws in their policies and positions. Fortunately, we have enough cooler heads to question the government’s motives and their position is increasingly difficult to justify. We will see many governments crash and burn long before pred...