| It’s commendable that our government is working towards using more so-called "green energy," but before we go patting the city and province on the back for a job well done, let's consider what "green energy" actually means to them. While wind farms and co-generation are viable, clean, renewable energy sources, there is also something more sinister hidden in these plans.
According to Amy Steele's article ("City sets sights on 100% green power operations," News. June 24 — June 30, 2004), the provincial government is aiming to use "90 per cent green energy in all of its facilities by 2005. Fifty percent of that will be wind energy and the other half will be biomass energy." Fortunately I know what biomass energy really means.
Biomass energy is the burning of organic matter, mostly trees and other forestry byproducts and waste to produce electrical power. Not only does the practice threaten our forests but biomass electricity production releases CO2 gases which as we all know by now are a contributor to the greenhouse effect.
The use of biomass electrical generation is hardly the environmental boon it’s made out to be. Just because trees grow back a century after being cut down doesn't mean this is a renewable energy source. Really, the government should be trying harder to do right by our planet instead of trying to pull the wool over our eyes.
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