Maureen Bader: B.C.'s Green Energy Advisory Task Force is a sham

The B.C. government has created a Green Energy Advisory Task Force to review B.C. Hydro regulations and to look for ways to expand “green” power projects to create jobs and keep electricity rates competitive. A tall order and one that is unlikely to be achieved. If international experience is any indication, we’re likely to get nothing more than a new shade of corporate welfare, bringing fewer jobs, higher taxes, and higher energy costs.

The Green Energy Advisory Task Force is divided into four subgroups. The subgroup reviewing B.C. Hydro regulatory reform includes no one from B.C. Hydro and more importantly, no one from the current B.C. Hydro regulator, the B.C. Utilities Commission. The absence of the current regulator creates a great deal of concern because BCUC’s mandate is to keep B.C. Hydro rates competitive. If that mandate is now off the table because the government is more interested in promoting a “green” agenda, it could leave families shivering in the dark in the face of skyrocketing electricity costs.

Yet, higher-priced electricity is only part of the problem. The three other subgroups are stacked with representatives from renewable energy companies and environmental groups. If they push the government to force B.C. Hydro to purchase electricity from the companies these groups promote, as the experience from Spain shows, people may not have jobs to pay for escalating electricity costs.

The “green” job-creation experience in Spain is touted by U.S. president Barack Obama as an example for the U.S. to follow. However, a Spanish study shows that the U.S. would lose nine jobs in the productive sector for every four jobs created in the subsidized renewable energy sector.

The Study of the Effects on Employment of Public Aid to Renewable Energy Sources shows that in Spain, green job creation destroyed jobs in metallurgy, non-metallic mining, and food processing, beverage, and tobacco industries. Not only that. Most of the renewable energy jobs in Spain were temporary and created in the construction of the renewable energy projects. Only one-in-10 jobs in the “green” energy sector were permanent jobs, and included those in the operation and maintenance of the renewable sources of energy. The study found it cost almost $900,000 to create each “green” job in Spain.

But we don’t have to look as far away as Spain to see how green corporate welfare fails to create permanent jobs and wastes tax dollars. We have our own made-in-B.C. example: Ballard Power. At its height in 2001, employment at Ballard Power reached about 1,400, but by April 2009 it had fallen to about 400. In August 2009, it announced the elimination of another 85 jobs. Ballard Power took $22 million from B.C. taxpayers by 2000, and tens of millions more from federal corporate-welfare programs. Despite these generous Canadian taxpayer-funded handouts, Ballard abandoned its fuel cell business in 2008 and left the Japanese energy cogeneration market in 2009 because the Japanese government declined to subsidize it. Ballard has never made an operating profit in its 25 years of existence.

The Green Energy Advisory Task Force is stacked against the taxpayer to promote a green corporate welfare scheme that, if experience is any guide, will be an expensive failure. Unfortunately, the B.C. government doesn’t seem all that interested in hearing from anyone who might bring that up. It has given the public only the month of December, which includes the Christmas holidays, to provide input to the task force. The task force then has until sometime in January to provide its findings to government. This process is a sham, and as in most cases when the government picks winners, it makes losers out of competitors, taxpayers, and consumers.

Let the task force know what you think. Go to its Web site to add your input.

Maureen Bader is the B.C. director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.

Comments

6 Comments

Arlo Bundsen

Dec 14, 2009 at 11:17am

I've read many of Mrs. Bader's commentary on this website before and I would like to congratulate her on the improved nature of her exposition: providing references, instead of citing magical numbers that apparently support her arguments, helps engage in a meaningful and open debate.

Although I disagree with much of her opinion, I would like to congratulate her on providing a substantiated argument. Hopefully future diatribes will also utilize relevant research, instead of appealing to her usual fears of increased taxation and rampant job loss.

Maureen you suck!

Dec 14, 2009 at 6:56pm

Who does Maureen know at the GS to keep getting her ignorant commentary posted? Essentially, Maureen wants to live in a dog eat dog world where the fittest survive and the ones who can't make it are left to perish. Maureen you greedy, dumb #$^^, go $#%$% yourself!

Grassroot_Sally

Dec 15, 2009 at 12:10am

Maureen has this "Task Force" pegged... (and whoever wrote the "you suck" comment above...)

It's no secret that numerous appointees on these four advisory task forces are not impartial experts on clean energy developments but are in fact, on the record promoting private power. Many have already profited or are positioned to receive direct financial benefit from the predictable endorsements yet to be made by these committees and not surprisingly, 12 out of 29 task force members have made substantial financial contributions to the Liberal Party since 2001.

In this era of climate change and shrinking natural resources, the fate of our water and energy are too important for the people not to have a say. The obfuscated facts served up by the provincial government and private energy companies to date is in direct contradiction to static science, evidence and personal experience put forth by many first nations, academics, biologists, and environmentalists. And yet again Campbell treats his constituents and the last of this province's natural resources like a virtual ATM machine...

This task force is as fake as Pam Anderson's rack. It is clear that this committee lacks genuine representation from ratepayers, taxpayers, labour, or anyone who represents the public interest... This committee is not transparent or accountable as members have signed confidentiality agreements which prevent the public from knowing what is truly discussed in their meetings nor does it offer the public a realistic opportunity for public participation to be involved in the development of energy policy for our Province.
Gordon Campbell's green energy task force is nothing but an exercise in pure green-wash.

tell the Premier what you think: www.action.saveourrivers.ca

dj

Dec 15, 2009 at 7:33am

The "green" in the "green energy" debate is supposed to be the green of earth, not Premier Cambpell's green of money. If Ms Bader is rich but the earth is sick or dead what good is that? It is clear to most of us that its easier to create jobs of greed that harm the world, (i.e. walmart jobs with no healthcare and bad pay), the paymasters get rich and the earth loses out. I want to live, not "own" things.

seth

Dec 15, 2009 at 5:51pm

Here is an example where Bader and her employers at the CTF are getting hosed by a bunch of grifters with political connections in a scam that will remembered by all a few years down the road as the crime of the century. It goes to show the level of incompetence of business in this province when they let themselves get hustled like this - played by con men exploiting the belief system of corporate management in the great efficiency of private enterprise. It may be too late for them to even exert influence as Pirate Power is getting so much revenue from BCHydro that they can afford to kickback all the campaign donations Canwest/Gordo needs.

There are no recognized environmental groups or representatives on the committee just money hungry Astroturfers who sold out to Bader's corporate cronies. - what is happening here is the result of business neglecting their political responsibilities believing Canwest/Gordo was on their side.

Media people who were such prolific writers on fast ferries and politicians on both sides of the house will be vilified because of their willful inaction on this subject. The fast ferry scandal was like a rainy Saturday at a schoolgirl's lemonade stand compared to the financial malfeasance exhibited here.

$55 billion dollars in 40 year contracts to buy a little over 1 gigawatt baseload equiv of power, BC Hydro doesn't need and must sell for a 80% loss on the springtime spot market. For the same amount of power, nuclear would cost $3.0 billion today and $1.2 billion when mass produced reactor builds begin - 2 to 5% the cost of the 40 year contracts with party friends and insiders. These contracts triple BC's public debt but because of slick accounting procedures are reported as a financial footnote rather than on the balance sheets. Cowardly BC pundits with the exception of Rafe Mair refuse to touch the issue.

Gordo's $55B in power will be worthless in a little as ten years – 30 years left on the contracts - with ultracheap new nuclear fusion and nuclear waste burning Gen IV reactors coming on line.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/steve-kirsch/climate-bill-ignores-our_b_22...

Look for a more than doubling of power rates within 3 years now that BCHydro has effectively been privatized and see how BC Business likes that. Long term look for a BCHydro bankrupcy as industrial electricity users move to low cost nuclear powered Washington state and Alberta.

seth

Tom Rankin

Jan 24, 2010 at 4:05am

Wow. That is unbelievable! Maureen Bader from BC Gov Finance Ministry official to private "Taxpayer Foundation " BC spokesperson speaking truth to power !
Congratulations Ms Bader.
Please go on.