Canada has achieved a new milestone, as wind-generated electricity is now being produced in every province, with the recent opening of Bear Mountain Wind Park, located near Dawson Creek, British Columbia. This new wind development has also increased Canada's total wind energy capacity to more than 3,100 MW.
According to the Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA), all provinces now see wind energy as an important source of new electricity generation, and current provincial targets and policy objectives would result in a further quadrupling of installed wind energy capacity in the next six years.
‘The federal government has played a critical role in encouraging wind energy across Canada through its ecoENERGY for Renewable Power program, which has provided support for renewable energy deployment in the absence of any form of carbon pricing that would provide a market value for renewable energy's environmental benefits,’ says Robert Hornung, president of CanWEA.
CanWEA's Wind Vision 2025 – Powering Canada's Future estimates that wind energy has the potential to be one of the country's next great economic opportunities while providing environmental benefits. Achieving this goal will also create C$80 billion in new investment and at least 50,000 new jobs, as well as provide economic development opportunities for rural communities throughout Canada, according to the report.
SOURCE: Canadian Wind Energy Association
