Canada - New wind farm boosts national output

Canada is no longer a laggard in wind power development. The new Bear Mountain Wind Park near Dawson Creek, B .C., has boosted the country's wind energy capacity to 3,100 megawatts for a tenfold increase in six years - or enough to power almost a million homes, said the Canadian Wind Energy Association Thursday.

Wind power is now produced in every province and the Federal Government has played a crucial role by encouraging wind energy across the country, said Robert Hornung, CWEA president. "It's disappointing federal support for deployment of clean and climate-friendly renewable energy is about to end."

All the Government's ecoENERGY funds will have been allocated by the end of this year, 18 months ahead of schedule, Hornung said, and there has not been any commitment to renew the program.

Wind energy capacity is concentrated one-third in Ontario, one-third in Quebec and Alberta, and one-third in the remaining 7 provinces.

For more information please contact Trevor Sievert at ts@windfair.net