Renewable energy helps people of Dehcho Region reclaim their power – Pembina

March 31, 2014

Kakisa is a small community in the Dehcho Region of the Northwest Territories (NWT) that is surrounded by natural beauty. Protecting the environment and using renewable energy are not new concepts to the people of Kakisa — we are comfortable living and working in the bush, and gathering wood for the stoves that heat our homes. With the cost of living in Kakisa being very high, it’s important for community members—both youth and elders—to be aware of opportunities that save money and also benefit the environment.

For example, public buildings in Kakisa are heated using fuel oil, which comes at a significant cost to the community — about $42 per Gigajoule. This produces a lot of carbon pollution and risks polluting the land with fuel spills. In comparison, the cost of cordwood is about $17 per Gigajoule, and is renewable, making it better for the climate. Renewable energy options like cordwood and biomass have a lot of potential for the North, not only for the cost savings and the environmental benefits, but because they can help our communities become more self-sufficient.

This was one of the reasons that the Pembina Institute, Arctic Energy Alliance, and Dehcho First Nationsteamed up to organize a Dehcho Community Renewable Energy Forum last month in Fort Providence, NWT. About 60 people from eight Dehcho communities were in attendance: Jessica Jumbo, an Environmental Coordinator with Sambaa K’e Dene Band, and myself, an environmental coordinator with K’ágee Tu First Nation (KTFN), sat on the Planning Committee for the Forum.