Six wind projects at risk from Alberta's proposed ban on new renewables
Six wind projects at risk from Alberta's proposed ban on new renewables | Windpower Monthly
Alberta’s planned ban on some renewables projects could affect six wind farms out of the 34 proposed in the province, according to a new study by the Pembina Institute.
Last month, the government of Alberta said it would ban wind or solar projects in certain agricultural areas as well as those in areas with "pristine viewscapes".
The province is home to most of Canada's oil production and the country is the world’s fourth-largest crude producer.
According to the report, five of the wind projects are proposed and one is awaiting approval from the Alberta Utilities Commission. They include projects by EDF and TransAlta.
Alberta accounted for more than 90% of new renewable energy in Canada last year, according to the Canadian Renewable Energy Association.
Related Knowledge Center: ENERGY BASICS: renewables
Renewable energy sources — once the fuel of the future, then practical in specific, narrow applications — are increasingly economic mainstream sources of power generation. Hydropower was long the mainstay of U.S. renewable electricity generation, although wind power surpassed hydro for the first time in 2019, and solar continues its rapid growth. The continued growth of wind and solar, with their fluctuations, is tied in part to improvements in storage technology: batteries.