Uploaded May 2024 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
FULL INTERVIEW - Alberta unpaused its moratorium on renewable energy. The province had the fastest-growing renewable energy industry in the country when it was paused. Will new rules help resume $33 billion in investment or drop a poison pill on the industry?
We talk to Dr. Sara Hastings-Simon Associate Professor, Department of Earth, Energy, and Environment, and School of Public Policy, University of Calgary and an expert in renewable energy.
GreenEnergyFutures.ca FULL INTERVIEW
Episode 377
Also see our blog at GreenEnergyFutures.ca and our Unpause CKUA story, also on YouTube
Chapters
00:00 - Alberta's Moratorium on Renewable Energy Unpauses
00:37 - Unpausing the moratorium on renewable energy
01:13 - Overview of changes coming
02:47 - Isn't regulating the energy industry a good thing?
04:12 - Protecting agricultural land
05:33 - By 2035 solar will occupy less than 1/10th of 1%
06:10 - Prohibit renewables on classes 1 & 2 agricultural land
06:36 - No existing renewable development on class 1 land
07:09 - About 15% are on class 2 lands
09:15 - Liabiliity and reclamation
10:42 - Oil and gas wells present very different liability than wind at end-of-life
12:41 - Isn't renewable energy unreliable?
15:23 - Are we adding storage or smart grid technologies to support renewables?
18:17 - Why are we not adding smart grid technologies?
20:55 - New no-go zones for renewable energy
22:44 - Pristine viewscapes - what are those?
23:45 - Don't we need renewables?
25:48 - New rules a poison pill for renewable energy in Alberta?
27:05 - Impact on investment in Alberta?
29:16 - How well could Alberta do if they actually supported renewables?
FULL INTERVIEW - Alberta unpaused its moratorium on renewable energy. The province had the fastest-growing renewable energy industry in the country when it was paused. Will new rules help resume $33 billion in investment or drop a poison pill on the industry?
We talk to Dr. Sara Hastings-Simon Associate Professor, Department of Earth, Energy, and Environment, and School of Public Policy, University of Calgary and an expert in renewable energy.
GreenEnergyFutures.ca FULL INTERVIEW
Episode 377
Also see our blog at GreenEnergyFutures.ca and our Unpause CKUA story, also on YouTube
Chapters
00:00 - Alberta's Moratorium on Renewable Energy Unpauses
00:37 - Unpausing the moratorium on renewable energy
01:13 - Overview of changes coming
02:47 - Isn't regulating the energy industry a good thing?
04:12 - Protecting agricultural land
05:33 - By 2035 solar will occupy less than 1/10th of 1%
06:10 - Prohibit renewables on classes 1 & 2 agricultural land
06:36 - No existing renewable development on class 1 land
07:09 - About 15% are on class 2 lands
09:15 - Liabiliity and reclamation
10:42 - Oil and gas wells present very different liability than wind at end-of-life
12:41 - Isn't renewable energy unreliable?
15:23 - Are we adding storage or smart grid technologies to support renewables?
18:17 - Why are we not adding smart grid technologies?
20:55 - New no-go zones for renewable energy
22:44 - Pristine viewscapes - what are those?
23:45 - Don't we need renewables?
25:48 - New rules a poison pill for renewable energy in Alberta?
27:05 - Impact on investment in Alberta?
29:16 - How well could Alberta do if they actually supported renewables?
