In the renewable energy game of wind and solar farms, little wiggle room between farms, ranches and acreages and the energy regulators in Edmonton and Calgary populates the moving-forward department.
Little, until recently, when the Government of Alberta published new policy and regulatory changes for renewable power developments.
“We are glad,” said Wind Concerns Kneehill County rep Kelly Tainsh, “to see the Government of Alberta amending renewable energy project policies.”
A recent Alberta government memo is abundantly clear.
“The new Electric Energy Land Use and Visual Assessment Regulation takes an agriculture-first approach. This means renewable energy developments will not longer be permitted on Class 1 or Class 2 lands unless the applicant can prove that crops and the project can coexist on that land.
Also, if a municipality doesn’t have Class 1 or 2 lands, Class 3 lands are treated as if they were Class 1 or 2.”
“That’s really good news,” said Tainsh. “We are encouraged by the policies surrounding development on specific land classifications.”
If one listens to hearsay and the rumour mill, it’s easy to believe that landowners get stuck with site reclamation and recycling defunct equipment, including turbine blades and exhausted solar panels.
The government memo has a strongly worded reclamation security rule: expect a security requirement for projects on private land.
This means developers, not landowners, are responsible for reclamation costs and that the reclamation security is paid to the province or by negotiation with landowners “if sufficient evidence is provided to the Alberta Utilities Commission”, the province’s regulatory body for all things energy.
“Most notably,” said Tainsh, “we are very pleased to see the rule about mandatory security for reclamation.”
Rural Alberta is more than tilling, ranches, and confinement operations. Almost as important, and sacred in the mind of many rural residents is their view of the vast prairie—skies, clouds and land.
Not infrequently, elevated temperatures and petitions flourish when black solar panels or massive wind turbines commercialize what is sacred to rural residents.
The government’s Electric Energy Land Use and Visual Assessment Regulation ensures that pristine viewscapes are conserved by buffer zones and visual impact assessment zones, as designated by the province.
Tainsh said, “All projects should be required to submit a visual impact assessment, not just those in buffer areas. Every household deserves the right to protect its valued landscapes.”
Wind Concerns Kneehill County has stated numerous times it is not against renewable energy, but that such projects need to be developed prudently, being mindful of all who reside nearby.
While farms, ranches and acreages may mean “out here”, and while government offices, regulators, and bureaucrats might point to distant Edmonton or Calgary, there may be more wiggle room between out here and energy regulators as the government develops a policy for setbacks “which,” said Tainsh, “has yet to be included in an AUC policy change.”
David Nadeau
ECA Review
