Finavera Wind Energy Project Gets Environmental Certificate
Tumbler Ridge, B.C.- The Finavera Wind Energy Inc. has received an environmental assessment (EA) Certificate for the proposed Tumbler Ridge Wind Energy Project located within the District of Tumbler Ridge .
The proposed $125-million project will be located eight kilometres southwest of the townsite of Tumbler Ridge. Once completed, the project will produce up to 49.6 megawatts of wind energy, enough to provide energy for up to 18,000 homes.
BC Hydro awarded Finavera Wind Energy Inc. an Electricity Purchasing Agreement (EPA) in March 2010. Under the conditions of the EPA, the project is expected to start delivering electricityt to the BC Hydro grid this November.
The project will include up to 33 wind turbine generators, approximately 19 kilometres of new access and connector roads, the use of and upgrades to existing roads, underground and above-ground electrical collector cables connecting the wind turbine generators
and 100 metres of new transmission line connecting to the BC Hydro electrical transmission system.
The EAO assessment report concluded that the project is not expected to result in any significant adverse effects, based on the mitigation measures and conditions of the EA Certificate. Those measures and conditions include:
* Implementation of a Monitoring and Adaptive Management Plan for Birds and Bats (MAMP), approved by EAO, including establishing a Technical Advisory Committee with First Nation representation to oversee the implementation of the MAMP.
* Implementation of Environmental Management Plans and Environmental Protection Plans to be reviewed by First Nations, and approved by EAO, prior to construction. Environmental management plans include conducting specific pre-construction surveys and establishing
buffers and mitigation measures should sensitive ecosystems and/or habitats be encountered.
* Implementation of a third-party agreement reached between the proponent and a guide outfitter to mitigate potential effects from the project on the guide outfitter.
* Continuing to work with other tenure holders in the proposed project area to minimize potential resource conflicts.
* Submission of reports to EAO, at specified intervals (annually, before construction, operation, decommissioning, and once decommissioning is complete), indicating the status of compliance with the conditions of the EA Certificate.
The project is expected to have a life span of 25 years.
Comments
Heavily taxpayer subsidized. Wind power very expensive. Cannot make it on its own without taxpayer money and Hydro forced to buy the power at a very high rate. Why are these points not mentioned.
Another point not mentioned the yearly output of a wind farm averages about 25 to 30% of its total rating which is about 13 MW’s. not the jazzed up 49.6 MW’s in the press release.
A few years back the greenies where all upset when ducks where killed up at the oil sands. The death toll in the states of birds and bats including raptors is in the tens of thousands and hardly a peep from greenies. Also how much wild life disturbance is there on the ground?
Hydro does not release the generation output of current wind farms, at least not what I can find, saying because these are private the information cannot be publicly released. A convenient why for the fibs to hide the truth.
Wind farms and run of the river plants and their contracts to Hydro are a big reason why our power rates are going up. Just look at what happened in the UK, Germany, Denmark.
Site C has to be built to back up these plants with base load for when the wind don’t flow and the water does not flow.
A windfarm is not all roses by any means.
Windfarms are paid by output (kwh) not capacity (kw) so not sure why their output matters. If their output is as low as 0%, they cost us nothing.
Site C is needed for more than just balancing renewables. In fact, the province admits that even with Site C, there will not be enough power to meet expected power demand over the next ten years (alot driven by LNG).
BC Hydro’s best estimate is that Site C will cost about $.09/kwh. And that doesn’t include the risk of a likely cost overrun which will be paid for by BC tax/rate payers.
Why don’t we just offer contracts to any IPP who can provide incremental power to the grid for cheaper than BC Hydro?
When windfarm output is high, Hydro is forced to back off much cheaper hydro electric output. They are forced to do the same with run of the river plants.
They do not cost us nothing, think subsidies.
Once site c is built it will be very cheap to operate unlike a maintenence intensive windfarm. $.09 is cheap compared to a windfarm.
Wouldn’t a nuclear reactor down around Abbotsford be able to provide cheap power to the lower mainland population? It wouldn’t require the flooding of thousands of acres of prime farm land and wildlife habitat. But I guess not many people put any value on BCs wildlife resources.
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