Solar Show shines a light on renewable energy
St Albert Gazette | February 3, 2023 | Kevin Ma
Albertans can learn all about green power and electric transportation next week by logging into one of the province’s biggest online solar shows.
COMMUNITY SOLAR — Hundreds of Canadians will get to learn about community solar projects next week during the 2023 Solar Show. Shown here is the Bow Valley Green Energy Cooperative's array atop Ralph Conner Memorial Church in Canmore. BOW VALLEY GREEN ENERGY COOPERATIVE/Photo
The 2023 Solar Alberta Solar Show runs this Feb. 6 to 10 at a computer near you. Presented by Solar Alberta, this annual online conference features a mix of free and paid sessions related to renewable energy and aims to accelerate the clean energy transition.
High energy prices have supercharged interest in rooftop solar as a way to reduce utility bills, said Solar Alberta executive director Heather MacKenzie. Falling prices and rising federal rebates have also made solar more affordable.
This year’s conference features sessions on solar installation and solar panel recycling, MacKenzie said. There will also be a session on heat pumps, which have become increasingly popular as ways to heat and cool homes when paired with rooftop solar. About 600 people are expected to attend the conference.
Co-ops and EVs
Jodi Conuel of the Bow Valley Green Energy Cooperative will give a free talk Feb. 9 on community generation in Alberta at the conference.
Not everyone can afford to put solar on their roof, and not everyone has a roof that can support solar, Conuel said. In 2019, the Biosphere Institute of the Bow Valley worked with Canmore-area residents to create a co-op to build large solar arrays atop community buildings.
“It’s all about being very local and very tangible,” Conuel said, with local investors able to physically see their funds at work in local solar.
Big commercial solar farms don’t benefit their communities, as all the profits go to the investor, Conuel said. With community solar, investors direct a portion of the array’s profits toward local community projects.
“The economic benefit of community generation stays in the community,” Conuel said.
Conuel said the Bow Valley co-op has so far invested about $250,000 to install 138 kW of solar atop a church and a mixed-use development in Canmore. The panels have generated some 19.3 megawatt-hours of electricity and prevented about 15.5 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions.
Conuel said the Biosphere Institute is working on a guide to help Albertans create community solar groups of their own, as it is not a simple process. Albertans who want in on community solar could invest with groups like the Bow Valley co-op or offer up their buildings to host solar panels.
William York of the Electric Vehicles Association of Alberta, who has logged some 95,000 kilometres of in-town and international travel in his Tesla Model 3 since 2018, will discuss the basics of electric vehicles during his free session at the conference on Feb. 10.
York said people always ask him the same three questions about EVs: how much range do you get, where do you charge, and how does it work in winter?
“Every cold snap I get people asking me, ‘How’s your car doing today?’” York said.
“And it’s the same answer as last year: absolutely fine.”
York said his car gets about 500 km per charge, which is enough for local commutes and international trips. Winter cuts that range by 20 to 30 per cent, but you see similar drops with gas-powered cars.
While most EV owners charge at home, York said there’s still a lack of public chargers in Alberta for those who can’t, especially north of Edmonton. However, that is changing and the Calgary Parking Authority has already done a great job of deploying chargers in that city’s downtown.
Visit solaralberta.ca/solar-show/2023-solar-show to register for the conference.