I think big dam money would be better spent subsidizing residential and community solar panels and battery banks. Spread out additional electricity generation and storage capacity across the province, instead of concentrating generation in more mega structures which could easily be destroyed if Mango Mussolini decides to be stupid and violent in our direction.
It would allow communities to be more energy independent.Â
I haven’t looked at any studies about this. But I think a sustained campaign of solar panel installation across BC would create tons of jobs, way more than we’d get from the construction of a dam. And after the panels/batteries are installed, I bet maintenance/repairs/capacity expansion would keep a lot more people employed than we’d get from of a dam once it’s fully constructed.Â
Opposite-Cranberry76 on
And before anyone thinks EVs or data centers or population growth: No, it’s overwhelmingly due to LNG plants.
LNG is a form of bulk electricity export, like aluminum smelting.
PolloConTeriyaki on
Solar wouldn’t be a bad idea as summer is increasingly longer. Also the battery storage is so much better than it was ten years ago now.
Imminent_Extinction on
BC has at least 16 sites each with 1,000 MW geothermal potential, and it takes about 4 years and $4 billion to build a geothermal plant.
4 Comments
I think big dam money would be better spent subsidizing residential and community solar panels and battery banks. Spread out additional electricity generation and storage capacity across the province, instead of concentrating generation in more mega structures which could easily be destroyed if Mango Mussolini decides to be stupid and violent in our direction.
It would allow communities to be more energy independent.Â
I haven’t looked at any studies about this. But I think a sustained campaign of solar panel installation across BC would create tons of jobs, way more than we’d get from the construction of a dam. And after the panels/batteries are installed, I bet maintenance/repairs/capacity expansion would keep a lot more people employed than we’d get from of a dam once it’s fully constructed.Â
And before anyone thinks EVs or data centers or population growth: No, it’s overwhelmingly due to LNG plants.
LNG is a form of bulk electricity export, like aluminum smelting.
Solar wouldn’t be a bad idea as summer is increasingly longer. Also the battery storage is so much better than it was ten years ago now.
BC has at least 16 sites each with 1,000 MW geothermal potential, and it takes about 4 years and $4 billion to build a geothermal plant.