New Brunswick is not a have-not province. We are in truth a have province.

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1 1 Presentation to: New Brunswick Energy Commission P.O. Box 6000, Fredericton, NB E3B 5H1 Tel: Submitted by Council of Canadians Saint John Chapter February 17, 2011 New Brunswick is not a have-not province. We are in truth a have province. We are rich in natural resources which we should be using to provide for our own energy needs. Developing and controlling our own energy resources will enable us to control our own economy. As local members of the Council of Canadians, we are concerned with both energy security for ourselves and other Canadians, and stopping climate change in Canada, and around the world. We are especially concerned about the people in poor countries who, although they have done nothing to cause climate change, are suffering its effects. To achieve energy security for us in New Brunswick, as well as stop climate change, we would like to see our energy policy be to decommission Lepreau, reduce the use of fossil fuels, invest more in energy conservation and efficiency, and replace our energy infrastructure with publicly owned NB Power and community-owned renewable energy facilities. To make the best use of expensive, climate-change- causing fossil fuels, the appropriate, most efficient energy source should be used for each purpose. Electric space heating, for example, is very inefficient. Regulations should be put in place to encourage other sources for home heating, such as wood, geothermal, and solar heating. Energy is also wasted on long transmission lines, so more energy should be produced close to where it is needed, for example small hydro, solar and wind

2 2 installations near homes that will be using the power. Feed-in tariffs should be raised to levels that result in communities making their own renewable power. Council of Canadians points out that investment in conservation, energy efficiency, and renewable energy creates 18,000 jobs for every $1 billion dollars invested. The average renewable energy investment creates 4 times as many jobs as the same investment in the fossil fuel economy. Energy efficiency is the cheapest source of energy available, as every dollar spent using less electricity saves $2 in increasing electricity supply. Council of Canadians is also concerned with protecting our fresh water resources, and with achieving food security. We are opposed to hydrofracking because it wastes and damages fresh water resources, and damages rural land needed for our local milk, butter, cheese, turnips, cabbage, carrots, eggs, chicken and beef production. There is no point trying to source fossil fuels locally for energy security if we sacrifice our water and food security. In any case, hydrofracking itself causes greenhouse gas emissions and climate change, before it is even burned as fuel. New Brunswick has been going in the wrong direction with an export-oriented energy strategy. NB is over-reliant on imported sources of energy to meet New Brunswick needs as well as feed electricity and petroleum exports. This is a perilous situation. It has tied New Brunswick to foreign markets and locked the province into a fossilfuel-dependent economy. It has left residents access to basic energy needs at the whims of international markets at a time when conventional energy sources

3 3 are diminishing. Even the International Energy Agency, whose predictions are often criticized for being conservative, now reports that conventional crude oil production peaked in 2006 and is in decline. The Council of Canadians cautions against a regional energy vision directed at export-oriented trade. The business model of focusing on exports and profit potential as opposed to sustainable meeting local and regional needs raises concerns. This can lead to decisions guided by priorities that may not be in the public interest. It can act to justify the expansion of large scale energy projects with serious social and environmental impacts while overlooking the benefits of achieving smaller scale, more diversified and sustainable energy production and consumption (including increased energy conservation and efficiency). Furthermore, we caution against pursuing an export oriented renewable energy electricity sector strategy. This threatens to export all the benefits of renewable energy while New Brunswickers continue to bear the impacts of polluting forms of electricity generation. The Council of Canadians also cautions against any shift towards greater private corporate ownership in the energy sector. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) gives significant rights to foreign investors and limits the ability of Canadian governments to intervene in energy trade, except in extraordinary circumstances. NAFTA's proportional sharing clause obliges Canada to continue exporting energy to the U.S. in the same proportion of total supply sold over the three previous years. Already, much of the oil and gas as

4 4 well as the electricity produced in the Atlantic region are destined for export to the U.S. while Eastern Canadians rely significantly on imports to meet their energy needs. These rights come into play with greater corporate control of energy production and can complicate policy options directed at reducing ecological impacts in the sector and ensuring New Brunswickers energy needs are met. i THE RIGHT DIRECTION The Council of Canadians recommends the following priority areas for policy development in pursuing a long-term energy plan for New Brunswick: ENERGY SECURITY To plan for energy security, the Council of Canadians recommends following the four r s of energy security, as proposed by energy expert Larry Hughes ii : o Review: understanding the present energy mix, the services, and where energy can be obtained in the future. o Reduce: using less energy to meet the energy needs of energy services. o Replace: replacing existing insecure energy sources with ones that are secure, environmentally benign, and sustainable. o Restrict: restricting new demand to energy sources with ones that are secure, environmentally benign, and sustainable. ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND RENEWABLE ENERGY EXPANSION While it is good that the New Brunswick government has indicated commitment to support community ownership of renewable energy through current policy,

5 5 there are much needed improvements which include: restricting provincial renewable energy development to public and community ownership; improving the tariffs allocated under the current feed-in tariff system to ensure community ownership of projects is economically viable. We are happy that the Government of New Brunswick has undertaken this commission to develop an energy policy for our province. It is urgent for the sake of our environment, economy, and social well-being that governments and citizens alike make the right decisions. Our hope is that this commission will result an energy policy that addresses the root causes of fossil fuel dependence and climate change. These real solutions are those that will enable New Brunswickers to control our own rich natural resources, ensure democratic accountability, ecological sustainability, and social justice. i Open Letter Regarding the Proposed Sale of NB Power, (2009), ii Larry Hughes, The Four R s of Energy Security, (2009),