Alberta’s transition to renewable energy a welco

Toronto, Dec. 13, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- World Wildlife Fund Canada lauds the Government of Alberta for acting to stop climate change and reverse the decline of wildlife. The announcement today to develop four wind power projects , totaling 600 megawatts (MW) of new renewable energy, is an important step in eliminating the use of coal, which currently generates 51 per cent of the province’s electricity.

As Alberta progresses on its commitment to generate 5,000 MW of new renewable energy by 2030, we encourage an approach that ensures development activities do not further stress already vulnerable habitats and species. That’s why WWF-Canada is expanding our Renewables for Nature tool to include Alberta this spring. 

James Snider, WWF-Canada’s vice-president of science, research and innovation, said:

“By eliminating the use of coal in electricity generation and making a significant commitment to renewable energy, Alberta is playing a critical role in Canada’s national climate strategy. Climate change threatens global biodiversity. Wildlife in Alberta, such as woodland caribou, swift fox and greater sage grouse, are already feeling the effects.

“We welcome this important action on climate change and encourage Alberta to consider wildlife and habitat in deciding where to locate projects, in particular to minimize impacts to remaining prairie-grassland habitats that have already been stressed to the point that significant wildlife declines are evident .

“We know that renewable-energy development is often impeded by concerns about wildlife. Environmental assessments come relatively late in the development process and the presence of a vulnerable species can delay and even derail a proposed project. In our fight against climate change, we can’t afford to make decisions that conflict with wildlife. To that end, WWF-Canada has developed a tool that helps identify areas of high energy potential but comparatively low conservation value. Information for Alberta and Saskatchewan will be available to inform location decisions in spring 2018. We look forward to working with industry and government in ensuring a transition to renewable energy that avoids time-and-resource-intensive nature-related conflicts.”

About Renewables for Nature :

• Piloted for New Brunswick and the Bay of Fundy.
• Expanding to include Alberta and Saskatchewan this spring.
• Overlays renewable energy and conservation data on the same map for the first time in Canada.
• The energy layer reveals renewable energy reserves: the resource potential for each energy type across the region.
• The conservation layer captures data on 728 species at risk, as well as detailed information on biodiversity, habitat and other conservation and community environmental uses for the entire area.

For more information wildlife loss in Alberta and the rest of Canada, please visit Living Planet Report Canada.

For more information or media requests, please contact

Rebecca Spring, senior communications specialist, WWF-Canada

rspring@wwfcanada.org, +1 647 338-6274

About World Wildlife Fund Canada

World Wildlife Fund Canada creates solutions to the environmental challenges that matter most for Canadians. We work in places that are unique and ecologically important, so that nature, wildlife and people thrive together. Because we are all wildlife. For more information, visit wwf.ca

Attachments:

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/Attachm...0744a09750

Rebecca Spring WWF-Canada +1 647-338-6274 rspring@wwfcanada.org