Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
According to a poll released on December 28, 2012, 62% of Canadians
surveyed rated current economic conditions in Canada as either
very good
or
good
.
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his beneits wind power development in two ways. First, it has
engendered a positive investment climate that improves inancial access for
wind power developers. Second, it potentially creates a degree of economic
resilience, engendering a greater propensity for electricity consumers to
accept higher prices in exchange for cleaner energy.
8.4.3 Technological Landscape
here are two distinctive geographic features that enhance technological
potential of wind power in Canada. First, wind quality in Canada is compar-
atively favorable. Coastal areas in Canada's East and West tend to enjoy high
quality wind thanks to the conluence of temperate and Arctic air masses
and continental-oceanic temperature disparities. Canada's central prairies
also exhibit high-quality wind proiles, thanks to large expanses of unbro-
ken plains, which reduce wind turbulence. Second, Canada boasts immense
tracts of undeveloped land and agricultural areas. his presents numerous
options for wind farm siting and allows project developers to select sites
where community opposition can be least expected. For example, the town
of Halkirk, Alberta (population 122) was recently chosen as a site for an 83
turbine, 150 MW wind farm largely because of citizen support. In embrac-
ing the project, the town experienced a mini-economic boom during the
construction phase, enhanced town revenues and has since seen 14 perma-
nent jobs created in the community.
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On the downside, Canada's geographic size also poses some technical
challenges for wind power development. Many of the most attractive wind
power sites are geographically separated from the major demand centers,
and in many cases the most attractive sites are a long way from existing
power grids. Connecting remote sites to the electricity grid can undermine
the inancial viability of a given project. Moreover, transmitting electricity
from remote wind farms to demand centers results in leakage (the dissipa-
tion of electricity as it courses through conduits), which can further inlate
transmission and distribution (T&D) costs.
In terms of technological infrastructure, there is one factor that could
signiicantly hinder widespread wind power development in many prov-
inces. he grid connections between provinces have capacity limits. hese
grid connections have been designed to share relatively small amounts of
surplus electricity or to top up supply during periods of high demand or
system malfunction. However, in order to support wind power development
