There are some minor differences between wind in Denmark and run-of-the-river hydro in B.C.

Run of the river is more predictable that wind. So it should be slightly easier to integrate it into the grid.

But it’s demerits are still overwhelming. It’s expensive. It’s peak comes at the same time as we have plenty of Hydro. Which means it’s expensive, and worthless as part of the BC grid.

Small scale renewables are, generally, just a dumb way of generating grid electricity (with some exceptions as always.)

I think there is a role for renewables to play in the world: but not generally in generating grid electricity. It’s better to use their electricity, mechanical energy, or heat in local industrial process that don’t require a stable source of power. Or in niche processes where the power needed is a small part of the product’s value, or in remote locations which areexpensive to electrify. Or to provide the first, valued megawatts in presently under-electrified societies (like on remote Islands, or in third world countries). There is probably some export business potential there. Little niches we can fill.

Campbell has a vision for our new economy. We’re apparently going to use waterwheels to work our machines and windmills to grind our grain. And the knowledge economy doesn’t need manufacturing or industry. Just enough power to keep our laptops and cellphones running, apparently. We can watch Peter Mansbridge on Vancouver Island only while the tide is rolling in.

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I find it ironic that while B.C. is trying to develop a renewables industrial sector, Canada is selling AECL. Apparently, it’s too small (and, needless to say, won’t grow while our country is run by Albertan oil sheiks). Who needs the one source of concentrated power that can replace coal and gas for industrial heat and power generation, while not emiting carbon dioxide? Not Canada. It can use oil and gas (ha, ha, climate change may even be a scam, read all about it at Globeandmail.SA, err or is that .ca). Or, in the “unlikely” event that scientists, with their knowledge, data and publicly published arguments (which our commentariat largely cannot understand, and therefore ignore), are correct that carbon dioxide is the main culprit in a warming climate, we can buy nuclear from France, US and Japan. Apparently we think they’ll sell nuclear to advanced industrialized countries cheaply … because the nuclear energy business is a charity.

GAAAAAAAAHHHH. I’m angry. Stupid people who can’t think more than five years into the future have been running, and are still running the federal and provincial governments. Canada is going to suffer. And, no doubt about it now, the best place on earth is, fittingly for the times, going to worsen.