Government of Canada invests in Low-Head Dams for Farms
By Amanda Brodhagen, Farms.com
The Government of Canada announced today that they are investing in agriculture for farm alternative energy projects such as small scale hydro-electric dams energy for farm use. The government has committed $52,000 through the Canadian Agricultural Adaptation Program (CAAP), a five-year initiative agreement that aims to help the Canadian agricultural sector to adopt energy initiatives to remain competitive. GreenBug Energy Inc. based out of Norfolk County will be spear heading the first-in-Canada scale low-head dam for on-farm use that will produce an estimated 60,000 kilowatt-hours of renewable energy.
"Our government is committed to helping producers find ways to boost their bottom lines by identifying new energy sources," said Minister Finley. "Initiatives like these have the potential to lighten the environmental footprint of farms across Canada, while also saving farmers money” says Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development.
This is pivotal because until now low-head dams aren’t a mainstream source for on farm hydro-electricity due to the cost of the technology. The GreenBug Energy Inc. project will be powered off of the river using natural water flows and will be an example for farmers to determine the opportunity for their own dams given their surrounding resources. In the future this could be applied to a large-scale initiative for a number of farmers to capitalize on water flows that pass through their property to aid in water flow management practices.