Kevin Brown - Climate Action Coordinator for OMVC and Charlie Lewthwaite from Hedgehog Technologies during the geotechnical study. | PC Haida Nation

This past February, the Council of the Haida Nation and host Sean Brennan, Haico’s Energy Coordinator, presented a Haida Gwaii Clean Energy Zoom webinar. The focus of this Indige-nous Off-diesel Initiative (NRCAN) looks to further ways to:

• fight climate change by supporting community-driven clean energy solutions that will help reduce diesel use,
• look at local renewable energy options – wind, solar, hydro, tidal, biomass, geothermal – to replace diesel,
• reduce the environmental and health impacts of diesel use, and
• create local jobs and economic opportunities for our remote communities.

As seen on the various post-it notes placed in this article, webinar participants gave their feedback answering two ques-tions: “How do you see Haida Gwaii’s Clean Energy Future,” and, “What role would you like to play in Haida Gwaii’s clean energy future?”

Post-it note participant comments were shared during the Haida Gwaii Clean Energy webinar via a Jamboard Web session.

Sponsored by Indigenous Clean Energy and an Impact Canada/Indigenous Off-diesel Initiative, work has been conducted, as Sean described, to explore “all the different types of renewal energies that are available to Haida Gwaii, the amount of energy each option would produce, how much it would cost, how viable they would be and the difficulties and challenges of making them happen.”

One of the most eye opening facts that Sean shared was that “if Haida Gwaii was to get off diesel energy 100% we would reduce BC Hydro’s diesel emissions by 50%!” This actuality highlights the need for our urgent move to clean energy. After reviewing the history of energy production on Haida Gwaii, as seen on the timeline listed at the bottom of this article, Sean then went on to describe the various types of clean energy production- wind, tidal, hydro, geothermal and biomass – all having been considered, but none are being developed at this initial stage.

And then there’s solar power and the news that the Solar North Project (SNP) is moving forward. Financed through federal and provincial grants and initiatives, the SNP’s goal is to advance Haida sovereignty and independence through renewable energy development. “Over the last ten years, the price has gone down maybe to about a third of what it used to be ten years ago,” Sean states, “making solar power a much more viable option for energy production these days.”

Details of the project were then explained by Peter Atwal who works with Burnaby, BC-based Hedgehog Tech-nologies (hedgehogtech.com), the consultation company hired to help with the SNP. Although it will only produce two megawatts of power (plus a 1.5MWh battery for energy storage), this northern grid energy project could provide up to 8.7% of the north’s energy needs (equivalent to 178 homes’ total annual energy use). Consump-tion of diesel fuel will be reduced up to 660,000 litres (322 vehicles taken off the road) and up to 1780 tons of carbon removed annually (1816 acres of forest).*

Want some tips on how to lower your energy consumption? Check out these websites : anspblog.org and ecofriendlyhabits.com.

The SNP project is in the exploratory stage and four sites have been targeted. Eleven acres of 20-year lifespan solar panels are needed and Masset Air-port is one of the sites being considered for its proximity to the power generating station. The aim is to have this project up and running by January 2023. It will create jobs, for which locals have been and will continue to be trained. “Our public engagement process isn’t over,” Sean says,” “keep your eye out for more events coming up later this year.” He goes on to clarify that these projects are Haida owned and operated (install, maintain and repair) and that the Haida Nation aims to take control of the islands’ energy production in order to bring clean energy on Haida Gwaii.

If you have any clean energy feedback or questions, send them to Sean at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

*Figures from the United States Environmental Protection Agency

Clean Energy Production Options

Wind – This is being considered for future projects. As with solar, costs have also come down quite a bit in the past 10 years. A wind farm would be located on land and not in the Hecate Strait.

Hydro – This is being used in the South and it supplies 80% of the South grid’s needs. The remaining 20% is covered by a diesel plant in Sandspit, for the months when the water level is too low to produce enough energy.

Tidal – Yourbrook Energy Systems Ltd (yourbrookenergy.com) is working on a tidal project. There are two types of tidal energy production: tidal range and tidal stream.

Geothermal – The feasibility of this energy source is being researched.

Biomass – This involves heating with residual wood products from sawmills; it produces emissions so is not considered environmentally friendly.