Biosphere Shares Community Solar Project Results
Crag & Canyon | Feb 24, 2020 | By Marie Conboy
The Town of Canmore Waste Management Facility
The Biosphere Institute of the Bow Valley released the results of a feasibility study for a community-owned solar project which started in early 2019 at artsPlace on February 11.
The project goal is to understand the feasibility of creating community-owned renewable energy in the Bow Valley with a focus on solar energy.
Jodi Conuel, Program Coordinator at the Biosphere said that overall the feedback from the event was positive.
“We had over 60 people in attendance and the questions being asked were complex, people were already beyond the basic understanding of the benefits of renewable energy systems. I sensed a lot of excitement for the concept of community generation in the room and engaged in several conversations with interested property owners after the presentations. In addition, almost half the attendees signed up to receive updates about future progress,” said Conuel.
“There are two parts to the project: Is it technically feasible? That is how many solar panels can be installed and how much electricity would they generate and how would they connect to the grid.
“We wanted to identify specific residential, commercial, and industrial rooftops that are suitable for solar panel installation in Canmore. With the help of our project partners, we aimed to identify the best option of these three scenarios, based on potential generation capacity and financial considerations.
“Is it financially feasible? How much will it cost and can we fund it? In addition, we explored community-based mechanisms to finance a solar installation. The goal was to create an Opportunity Development Co-operative, which would be run by community members who invest in the community solar generation project and share its profits.”
The study confirmed that community solar is both technically and economically feasible in Canmore and the Bow Valley.
“In particular when looking at commercial and multi-unit residential buildings which have greater space available on which to install more panels,” she added.
“As a result of the Canmore Community Solar feasibility study, undertaken by the Biosphere Institute, Bow Valley Green Energy is being launched. The inaugural steering committee team is in the process of incorporating as a cooperative and working on confirming viable host sites,” said Jeff Roberts, Chair of Bow Valley Green Energy.
“At this point, the Cooperative is still in the initial stages of development; however, Bow Valley Green Energy is actively pursuing renewable energy generation project development opportunities. To this day over 100 people have said they would be interested in investing in a renewable community generation project,” said Conuel.
People are encouraged to visit the website, www.bvgreenenergy.org and learn about the organization.
“They can contact us if they want to be involved, and sign up to receive updates on our progress as well as upcoming membership opportunities,” said Sue Hayduk, with Bow Valley Green Energy.
The Town of Canmore recently announced their 2020 rebates for solar installations. A limited number of solar incentives are available in 2020 to residents and businesses to help offset the cost of purchasing and installing a solar electric system in Canmore. Applications are due before March 6.