Solar-power development gathers energy around the world
Scott Simpson, Vancouver Sun
Published: Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Even a storm-swept coastal climate can't stop British Columbia from becoming Canada's foremost proponent of solar-powered heating, says a leading spokesman for solar energy.
Canadian Solar Industries Association executive director Rob McMonagle says the B.C. government's recent commitment to solar-powered heating could help the green power sector flourish here.
Believe it or not, even B.C.'s cloudy climate is no disadvantage -- Japan and Germany enjoy even less sun than Canada's rain-swept Pacific coast, and they are among the world's top users of solar energy.
Across the world, solar power development is growing at 35 per cent per year. Developed and developing nations are setting ambitious targets.
Japan wants 100,000 megawatts of solar power by 2030. California is offering $3.2 billion in consumer rebates on an ambitious project to install solar energy gathering units on one million roofs in the sunny state.
China has emerged as the world's largest solar market -- and manufacturing base -- through a renewable energy law requiring every new building to include solar hot water heating units.
Meanwhile, Canada, once a world leader in the development of solar resources, is almost entirely out of the loop -- with only four solar manufacturers compared to 10,000 in China.
Companies moving into the solar sector are finding plenty of willing customers.
Morgan McDonald, design
manager of Taylor Munro Energy Systems, says the Delta-based solar research and installation company is looking for a bigger workspace.
"In the past, the business has been seasonal. But this past winter it didn't stop. We were actually hiring through the winter, and we hired more installers for the spring," McDonald said.
B.C. recently took the lead in development of Canadian solar resources when Environment Minister Barry Penner played host to Canada's first-ever solar power summit.
Penner committed to a groundbreaking initiative that would see solar panels installed on the roofs of 100,000 homes -- an unprecedented move among Canadian provinces.
B.C. is also assisting in the establishment, at Northern Lights College campus in Dawson Creek, of Canada's first college program to train and certify plumbers to install solar hot water heating systems. Classes will commence in October.
"We will teach people how to install the systems and also teach homeowners how to install their own systems," says Northern Lights continuing education coordinator Bob Haugen. "We've also had expressions of interest from other colleges around the country. They are facing the same challenges we face, with a cold climate and high natural gas costs.
"These systems are becoming more and more mainstream as energy costs go up."
It's a similar story with so-called geoexchange energy systems that exploit temperature differences between surface air and underground pipe systems to make homes warmer in winter and cooler in summer.
An alternative to conventional hot air furnaces, air conditioning units and hot water heating, the systems are increasingly used in downtown office buildings in Greater Vancouver -- and in major subdivision developments around the province where the comparatively high installation costs can be shared among a number of homeowners.
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