Making clean energy commitments in the Kootenays

Two local programs help communities and businesses transition to renewable, low-carbon, clean energy sources.

by Julie Matchett — July 31, 2023

Image of hand holding a lightbulb between thumb and forefinger, with clean energy icons surrounding it.

Programs like the West Kootenay 100% Renewable Energy Plan and the Kootenay Clean Energy Transition program aim to help communities and local governments make the switch to low carbon and clean energy sources. — AdobeStock image

Wildfires, extreme heat events, damaging floods—around the world, the climate is changing and we are not immune to the effects here in the Kootenays. The need to rethink our energy and environmental footprint is crucial. Programs like the West Kootenay 100% Renewable Energy Plan and the Kootenay Clean Energy Transition program aim to help communities and local governments make the switch to low carbon and clean energy sources.

100% Renewable Kootenays is a campaign of Nelson-based Neighbours United (formerly the West Kootenay EcoSociety). The goal is for the Kootenays to phase out fossil fuels and be on 100 per cent renewable energy in all sectors no later than 2050. This transition to clean energy includes electricity, heating and cooling in buildings, transportation and industry.

The West Kootenay 100% Renewable Energy Plan identifies the actions that local governments can take and measures how much impact the actions will have on carbon pollution and energy use in our communities. Some of those actions include:

Retrofitting existing buildings to reduce their energy use
Making our economy more circular by reducing, refusing, re-using and recycling
Generating more renewable energy in our region
Accelerating the switch to electric vehicles

In 2022, the City of Trail officially became the thirteenth community in the Kootenays to commit to 100 per cent renewable energy no later than 2050. The City of Trail joins with Golden, Creston, and Fruitvale, who joined the 100% renewable energy transition local government efforts in 2021. Together with Castlegar, Kaslo, Nelson, New Denver, Silverton, Slocan, Rossland, Warfield and the Regional District of Central Kootenay, these communities are working to maintain health, safety, and security in the clean energy transition.

The Kootenay Clean Energy Transition (KCET) is another local multi-year project helping to build awareness and workforce capacity for a low carbon and clean energy transition in the Kootenays. A tri-regional partnership between the three Kootenay regional districts, Kootenay Employment Services and BC Hydro, the goals of the project are to reduce GHG emissions in the built environment and transportation and support the low carbon and clean energy industries through workforce training, webinars and workshops.

It’s through grassroots efforts and local actions that “big moves” can happen in small communities.

Here’s a list of the thirteen Kootenay governments that have made the commitment to 100% renewable energy by 2050, followed by year adopted:

Village of Slocan, 2017
City of Nelson, 2018
Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK), 2018
City of Rossland, 2019
Village of New Denver, 2019
Village of Silverton, 2019
City of Castlegar, 2019
Village of Warfield, 2019
Village of Kaslo, 2019
Village of Fruitvale, 2021
Town of Creston, 2021
Town of Golden, 2022
City of Trail, 2022

Many small actions create "big moves"

"Big Moves" is part of the West Kootenay 100% Renewable Energy Plan and is essentially a framework focused on community energy and emissions—things that local governments and community members have control over. For each Big Move section, every participating local government identifies specific actions they can take in their own communities to help in the transition to clean energy by 2050. The Big Move sections include:

Transportation: Identifying new strategies and addressing how we get around in our daily lives. Transportation makes up most of the carbon pollution from community members in the West Kootenay Region.

Buildings: Reducing energy waste and carbon pollution from buildings saves money for building owners, makes buildings more comfortable, and reduces the risks of climate change.

Waste: Cutting down on waste can address carbon and methane pollution from organic matter as well as conserving resources by finding new purposes for old items.

Energy Generation: Although the West Kootenays generates lots of renewable electricity from dams, a variety of other sources of renewable energy can make our region’s energy more reliable and cleaner.

Supporting Actions: In addition to the policy, infrastructure, and outreach actions, local governments can also demonstrate leadership in the way they manage assets, perform day to day activities, and interact with other governments. These actions can help shape public behaviour as well as removing obstacles to 100% renewable energy.