Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.
When you think about renewable energy sources on the Prairies, your mind may go to the wind farms in southern Alberta, or even the Travers Solar Project, southeast of Calgary. Most of the conversation around renewable energy in the province is dominated by advancements in solar and wind power. But what about Canada's main source of electricity — hydro power?
Canadian electricity generation company TransAlta has agreed to acquire a 50% interest in an early-stage 320MW pumped-hydro energy storage project in Canada. The Tent Mountain Renewable Energy Complex is located in south-west Alberta and is currently owned by Montem Resources. TransAlta will pay Montem around $8m upon completion of the deal, as well as up to $17m if certain development and commercial ‘milestones’ are met.
Calgary-based electricity producer TransAlta Corp. is suing the Alberta government and the Alberta Energy Regulator to prevent oil and gas companies from fracking near its largest hydroelectric dam in the province because the technique can cause earthquakes. The court action, which was filed in September in the Court of King's Bench of Alberta, takes place as two oil and gas companies have applied to frack within five kilometres of the dam. TransAlta is concerned about possible seismic activity causing damage to the Brazeau power plant, near Drayton Valley in central Alberta, as well as the loss of wildlife, habitat and human life.
A planned water release at the spillway of the Bighorn Dam will raise the water level of the North Saskatchewan River and affect downstream communities, TransAlta said Tuesday. TransAlta is scheduled to begin releasing water on Thursday as part of a "proactive operation to manage water elevation" at Abraham Lake. The spillway flows into the North Saskatchewan River west of Nordegg in north-central Alberta.
