Officials from the Government of Canada, Government of Yukon, Dawson City and the Klondike Development Organization announced on Aug. 12 that Canada and the Yukon are investing in more reliable and efficient energy generation in Dawson City.
The Canadian government is investing $486,000 through the Arctic Energy Fund and $68,000 through the Northern REACHE program. The Yukon government is contributing $75,000 while the Klondike Development Organization is investing $101,949. The City of Dawson is putting up $11,500.
The Klondike Development Organization, through this project, will build a solar power project on the city’s former land treatment facility.
“The project aims to offset the community’s carbon footprint through the production of renewable energy,” said the press release.
“The opportunity to take an otherwise unusable brownfield site and generate renewable electricity from our famous ‘midnight sun’ was irresistible,” said Klondike Development Organization president Jackie Olson.
“KDO is excited to be building this solar power project to support Dawson’s sustainability.”
Dawson mayor Wayne Potoroka said the KDO has steadily improved “the lives of Klondikers and sought new, innovative ways to transform our community.”
“This latest project is a significant step forward for our town as it increases local capacity for electrical-powered supply and lessens our community’s carbon footprint,” said Potoroka.
Federal Minister of Northern Affairs Daniel Vandal said this type of support “empowers communities and their vision for a green future.”
“This project will bring environmental, social and economic benefits to the people of Dawson City,” said Vandal. “Our shared goal is to have healthier, more sustainable and resilient communities in the North.”
John Streicker, the minister responsible for the Yukon Development Corporation, said projects like these help the territory meet its goals on curbing climate change.
“These projects help the Yukon meet the goals set out in Our Clean Future while reducing the local reliance on fossil fuels, in turn making Dawson City more self-sufficient,” said Streicker.
Once completed, this project is expected to generate 280MWh of energy each year and 91.6 tonnes of annual greenhouse gas offsets, reducing the dependency on Dawson’s diesel generation plant.
Through the Investing in Canada infrastructure plan, the Government of Canada is contributing over $180 billion over 12 years in public transit projects, green infrastructure, social infrastructure, trade and transportation routes and Canada’s rural and northern communities.
Contact John Tonin at john.tonin@yukon-news.com