The proposed undersea hydroelectric cable linking Newfoundland and Labrador to this province would help Nova Scotia reach its goal of getting 40 per cent of its power from renewable sources by 2020, the provincial energy minister says.
Charlie Parker introduced the Clean Energy Act on Friday, a bill that would include hydroelectricity as one of the sources counting toward the green energy targets set for the next nine years.
"This target . . . represents (the) transformation of our energy sector from one that is largely dependent on imports of dirty coal to one built on the foundation of clean, renewable resources from our own backyards," Parker said in his speech.
The proposed $6.2-billion Lower Churchill development could produce about 10 per cent of Nova Scotia’s electricity, if the project is completed on schedule by 2017, the minister said. That would account for about a quarter of the 40 per cent renewable energy commitment.
The hydroelectric power project is now undergoing an environmental evaluation.
Several members of the Senate energy committee questioned whether the project could realistically be finished by 2017, The Canadian Press reported when the committee met in Halifax last month.
Nova Scotia Power CEO Rob Bennett said then that the timeline could be met because Newfoundland’s Crown utility has been developing the project for more than 20 years.
The Liberal party’s energy critic found fault with the act.
"There is no goal in this legislation," Andrew Younger said. "It adds the word ‘hydroelectricity’ to the act. In terms of the goal, they’re going to put it in a cabinet order, which they can change at a whim if Churchill Falls doesn’t come through."
The Lower Churchill development would not be the only way to meet the 40 per cent target, but it would be the most affordable, Nova Scotia Power’s vice-president for sustainability said.
"There’s always renewable resources, (but if) it’s a question of the cost . . . we think (Churchill) is the best thing for customers," Robin McAdam said.
Nova Scotia Power has a 20 per cent stake in the Lower Churchill project, which guarantees it receives 170 megawatts of firm and flexible power annually for 35 years. The power will be delivered from the hydroelectric dam in Labrador through an undersea cable.
Progressive Conservative Leader Jamie Baillie said Parker’s bill would help the province move from coal-powered electricity to more sustainable forms of energy.
"Having said that, the legislation is silent on economic goals and I think it’s important that we not lose sight of the economic opportunity that Lower Churchill presents," he said.
Parker’s bill still has to be debated in the legislature before it becomes law. Even then, the change to the act would not hold Nova Scotia Power accountable to the 40 per cent target. To do that, the province would have to amend the province’s renewable energy regulations; currently, there are only regulated targets for 2011, 2013 and 2015 — at five, 10 and 25 per cent.
An Ecology Action Centre spokesman commended the province for setting the 40 per cent target but said he wonders if the required infrastructure will be in place to meet it.
"Relying heavily on renewable energy projects in other provinces to meet those targets could come back to be a problem here," Brennan Vogel said.
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