The Newfoundland and Labrador Environmental Industry Association has released a series of recommendations to help the province’s renewable energy sector grow – as the public discourse on needed action to combat climate change continues.
NEIA Executive Director Kieran Hanley says the province is blessed with an abundance of natural resources, but we haven’t even “scratched the surface” when it comes to renewable energy.
“Untapped Potential in Our Natural Resources” outlines the difficulties created by what NEIA calls “The Muskrat Falls Conundrum.”
It says the choice to pursue the development of Muskrat Falls was at the expense of other renewable energy technologies and applications. The unintended consequence says NEIA, is that there are missed opportunities in developing other forms of renewable energy including wind and tide.
The report recommends exploiting current export capacity, and the use of renewable energy in the mining, aquaculture, oil and gas and agriculture industries.
It also recommends pursuing more opportunities through hydrogen to address peak load challenges as well as supporting diesel dependent remote locations with community-based energy plans.
