The dwindling fossil fuel supply and the possible end of energy systems reliant upon them is of great concern to the world community. And in the midst of the global recession, the economies of individual nations as well as that of the global system are of paramount importance. That these two issues are of moment at this same time invites nations and businesses to to find ways for solutions to one to also provide solutions to the other. As a major global economic player, Canada also plays a role in this crisis of combining green energy and economy.

The combined world investment in natural gas, nuclear and coal powered electricity in 2008 was still smaller than the total investment the world’s nations and multinational corporations and organizations made in renewable energy. In fact, initiatives in green energy solutions attract nearly 148 billion US dollars per year. The largest shares of this money will end up with those nations who invest in and create renewable energy technology and thus nations that commit to green energy will have the advantage in the world economy. Canada is adjacent to one of the world’s economic powerhouses, the United States, and if it decides not to bring in investments in renewable energy, the US will.

The United States Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 invests nearly fourteen times as much in renewable energy than Canada’s Federal Budget of that same year.

Another cause for concern and research and development in renewable energy is the need to reduce carbon emissions in order to halt or slow climate change. The International Energy Agency calculates that the nations of the Major Economies Forum need to spend three to six times more per year than they are currently if they wish to reach their goal of fifty percent reduction in emissions from 2005 levels by 2050.

One notable R&D investment is that of carbon capture and storage. Canada claims to be strongly in favor of this and to be providing robust investment. However, nations who have not evinced a strong commitment to climate change such as the United States and Australia are still outspending Canada’s 19 million by hundreds of millions.

If Canada wishes to enter fully into the renewable energy economy, it already has a strong base from which to develop this capacity. Hydroelectric dams already produce most of Canada’s electricity. Quebec, Manitoba, Labrador, and Yukon produce over 90% of their electricity this way.

It is noted that Ontario, Quebec and the Prairies region of Canada are regions with strong potential for solar power. Canada does not yet use much solar energy to produce electricity, though its government has produced studies showing this could change by 2025, with solar power providing 5 percent of electricity by then. Canada does use solar power more regularly for heating buildings and water as well as drying lumber and crops.

Many areas of Canada are hard to reach and/or sparsely populated. Thus, they do not have easy access to the nation’s energy grid. Here solar power is already put to use through photovoltaic cells. PV cells, when exposed to light, use semiconductor materials to generate directly electric power. In the northern provinces and territory, they have are used as standalone units to distribute electricity, particularly for remote homes, telecommunications equipment and navigational devices. Because they replace the costly diesel fuel systems that used to provide this energy, they also benefit the economy of these areas.

Canada is beginning to increase its reliance on wind power. There are already ninety-nine wind farms generating a little over one percent of Canadian electricity. According to the Canadian Wind Energy Association, the building of new wind farms could allow the country to reach 55,000 MW by 2025. That is twenty percent of Canada’s energy requirements.

Ontario is a demonstrative case of how new energy initiatives in Canada can enhance the economy. They recently passed the Green Energy and Green Economy Act of 2009. One of the provisions of the act is to offer low- or no-interest loans to homeowners in order to pay for the cost of using renewable alternative energy generators and to make their homes more energy efficient.

British Columbia is turning toward a green economy the creation of which has already produced 117,000 full time jobs and makes up over fifteen billion dollars of the province’s GDP. GLOBE Foundation of Canada has estimated British Columbia’s development of a renewable resource economy will make the province worth over twenty-seven billion dollars in ten years.

Canada already has the resources and the systems in place for renewable alternative energy. It remains for the nation to decide how fully it wishes to develop and integrate them into the global green market and economy grid.

Solar Power devices, green energy sources like the field of science is around every day. The children learn with fun optical equipment, telescopes and science lab equipment.

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