BCSEA News & Views

When the oil from the tar sands is scooped out of the ground, processed, piped across BC, and loaded onto a ship to China, how much energy is used up in doing so?

And how does it compare to the energy in the oil? 

By Matt Dickson, Renewable Agri-Energy Program Manager, BC Agricultural Research and Development Corporation

Even if you aren’t a farmer or haven’t visited a farm recently, you know that cows produce manure.

Driving along Highway One through the Fraser Valley on a hot, summer day might force you to plug your nose, close the windows and turn on the air conditioning. But cow manure should be treated like gold. All that manure can create renewable energy to power homes and businesses across BC.

“I have never seen such a cool house like Harmony House” wrote Mikaela, after a field trip to the house on January 27th. Mikaela is a Grade 6 student at Suncrest Elementary school in Mark Pierlot’s class in Burnaby.

She was not alone in her admiration, as several of her classmates expressed a similar excitement about the sustainably designed home. Harmony House is one of the winning entries in the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s (CMHC) EquilibriumTM Sustainable Housing Demonstration Initiative – a national initiative to design, build and demonstrate sustainable homes throughout Canada.

The failure of the world’s nations to tackle the global warming emergency combined with Canada’s abandonment of our Kyoto treaty commitments might be enough to make you wince, despair, and reach for the whisky that is sitting wrapped up under the Christmas tree.

The BC Government invites your thoughts and opinions on a number of changes to the BC Building Code as well as several conceptual issues related to the development and construction industry. You can choose to participate in as many of the components as you like. Both consultations will be available online until December 16th at 4:30 p.m.

 By Tom Hackney and Bill Andrews

The big energy policy events this year so far have involved BC Hydro and its rates, and political interventions on electricity policy. The major outcome, likely to become known after cabinet meets this fall, will probably be a change from the current policy of strongly supporting renewable energy development and exports. BCSEA is preparing for a season of policy work defending energy conservation and renewable energy in a new, more cost-constrained environment, where sustainable energy may be valued much lower than other political goals.