Increasing renewable energy sources to create more conflicts between environmental values

An Alberta environmental group opposes a solar project it suspects will harm antelope habitat and block their migration.

Homeowners across the province are struggling with renewable natural gas supply that is harming air quality and exacerbating already strong odors.

As Alberta slowly builds a climate-friendly energy grid, conflicts between different environmental values ​​will become more common, experts say.

“All energy developments are affected,” said Sarah Hastings-Simon, a professor at the University of Calgary's School of Public Policy.

“As we see more development happening, there will be more conflict.”

One example is the Ira Solar Project near Bow Island in southern Alberta.

The project would provide 450 megawatts of carbon-free electricity to the provincial grid, but opponents fear its location would harm native grasslands and prevent antelope from migrating north from the US.

“Antelope cannot migrate through chain link fences,” said Cliff Wallis of the Alberta Wildlife Association.

The company promised to build animal lanes. But Wallis said it was unlikely the antelope would use them.

“What we're doing is opening the door to these projects and not knowing where the best place to put them is,” he said.

To the north, near the town of High River, Benita Estes is tackling a huge biodigester project that will turn manure into natural gas to power 6,000 homes.

A proponent of Rimrock Renewables admits the plant's odors sometimes exceed provincial guidelines, even with recently announced updated control mechanisms.

“Biogas (projects) are great if they're in small areas,” Estes said. “It's a monster.”

The Alberta Public Utilities Commission, which licenses renewable energy projects, is tasked with balancing environmental concerns. It recently abandoned a solar project due to the risk of impacting local grassland.

Ryan Fournier, spokesman for Alberta Environment Minister Rebecca Schultz, said the commission is ready to go.

“Each project proponent submits a proposal to the department that identifies wildlife species and critical habitat, assesses the species' concerns, details how they meet the Wildlife Directive standards, and suggests ways to mitigate risks,” he said in an email.

But Alberta needs to open up the many tools it has to manage such conflicts, said Jason Wang of the Pembina Institute's Clean Energy Think Tank.

He noted that Alberta is divided into seven regions for land-use planning. Two of those plans have been implemented, and one, the South Saskatchewan Plan, which has a major focus on renewable energy development, is awaiting a 10-year review.

“The purpose of these regional land use plans was to do long-term planning with communities,” Wang said. “They may be difficult, but (the province) needs to complete this approach.”

Part of the challenge is separating the legitimate concerns from those who have the mindset that I'm not in my backyard, Hastings-Simon said.

“Some of the opposition to renewable energy can be traced back to groups trying to prevent renewable energy,” he said.

“Renewable energy, if done well, has a significantly lower impact,” he said. “But we have to think about where it's going to be.”

Wallis, along with the Alberta Wildlife Association, said environmental impacts need to be understood more broadly than just climate change.

“We are facing two crises,” he said. “We don't want to trade biodiversity just to mitigate climate change.

“If we're smart about it, we can do both.”

Estes said projects like biogas, which he opposes, should be regulated.

“They are trying to sell these projects as agriculture, they are actually industrial. It will not be placed in an industrially zoned area.”

Craig Snodgrass, who has been at the center of conflicts like the mayor of High River, said that as Alberta's population grows, conflicts will increase.

“Everybody's trying to do more renewables, but there's a downside to that,” Snodgrass said.

“The best way to manage it that our government can do well is to put people first – to put people first rather than industry first.”

This Canadian Press report was first published on April 12, 2024.