This is written as an imaginary conversation between Maddie the Motorist and Byron the Bicyclist.
Dear Byron:
I noticed that BC Hydro just put out a call for more clean power, in a province blessed with a lot of mountains and rivers!
Byron, I noticed that we had to import about 20 per cent of our electricity last year. They say it was due to drought. This year is not looking any better.
Signed; Maddie the Motorist.
Dear Maddie:
I looked into it. In 2019, 87 per cent of our electricity production was water-generated. Five percent was geothermal, four per cent was natural gas, 2.6 per cent was from wind, 0.5 per cent from petroleum and less than 0.1 per cent from solar. Site C is expected to supply an estimated eight per cent of BC Hydro’s power supply when it is operational in 2025, according to Hydro’s website.
Meanwhile, BC is encouraging the switch to heat pumps, hybrid and electric cars, ebikes and electric kick scooters.
Why? To reduce our pollution and carbon emissions by contributing to global warming.
Critics will use this information to lampoon carbon pricing. But do they also account for the cost of climate change in lives and money? The November 2021 atmospheric river cost an estimated $696 million in insurance claims, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada. The flooding also cost five people their lives. A study from the Canadian Center for Policy Alternatives estimates extreme weather in BC in 2021 will cost BC’s economy more than $17 billion.
While we could produce more electricity, we also need to reduce our use of all energy sources. This includes in personal transportation, which accounts for about 25 per cent of our greenhouse gas emissions. Using human power is an option that takes us further, with the least carbon output.
For our next trip out of our home, what is the most considerate to our children’s future?
Signed; Byron the Bicyclist.
Bert Groenenberg is a motorist, a bicyclist and a pedestrian.
