I must admit, I did not expect the opposition I have encountered on our Squamish Alternative Energy Group initiative to make Squamish the next Canadian Solar City, even if this opposition has come from a very small contingent. According to the non-profit Canadian Solar City Project (CSCP), this is the first time a third-party group (not the municipality) has launched this initiative in Canada. I now know why.
In her Nov. 12 editorial, “Take the spotlight off solar,” editor Christine Endicott makes some interesting points. It’s true we don’t get as much solar incident radiation as places like Saskatoon, Regina and Calgary. But her comment, “Squamish should focus its energy on promoting other renewable and alternative energies, such as geothermal and perhaps tidal. The proof is already on the rooftops here, where there is a lack of solar panels; even the most forward-thinking homeowners have already determined that photovoltaic technology is currently too expensive for the meagre energy it generates,” is misleading.
First of all, a casual count of solar panels on rooftops is hardly an accurate way of determining use. And although Saskatchewan has more solar radiation than Squamish, only 180 homes and businesses there produce solar power, according to Sask Power. That’s less than 0.05 per cent of homes. Renewable energy use depends on many factors including government incentives, actual energy production, etc., but as we have learned from the German example, community support and adoption are of paramount importance.
Solar makes good economic as well as environmental sense on our home – we will significantly reduce our hydro rates (projected to continue rising at five per cent per year). In 15 years, rates will double at this pace.
And according to real estate studies, we will also be adding more than $5,000 to the value of our home per kilowatt of panels. That’s a good investment by any financial metric.
I agree, solar shouldn’t be the only focus of our alternative energy efforts. Tidal power or geothermal, as Ms.Endicott suggested, are options, but there are no tidal systems operating or planned here and I am aware of only of one commercial geothermal plant in Squamish (at Quest University). In the list of the 10 Canadian Solar Cities criteria to be a “solar city,” only two points reference solar. (For the complete list of the 10 criteria go to http://goo.gl/sI1ari.)So this effort is not just about solar. Solar just happens to be the method that most Canadians (including me) are able to afford and practically utilize today. If another form of renewable energy makes sense in your case, go for it.
Matt Blackman
Squamish Alternative Energy Group
