The Town of Cochrane’s proposed stance on renewable energy, more specifically not allowing a 20-metre wind turbine to be put up at Cochrane High School (CHS), has spurred a reaction from former student and sustainable energy advocate Logan Parker.
“I don’t think Cochrane has ever made a bigger mistake,” Parker said in an email sent to Ivan Brooker, the mayor of Cochrane, and the Cochrane Eagle. “The wind turbine movement in Cochrane has just taken a huge blow. I don’t think the problem is that the wind turbine won’t be going up, but rather the effect that will have on the spread of information.”
The Town’s Renewable Energy Framework (REF) proposed to council March 9 would not permit a 20-metre wind turbine to be erected on CHS property, but would permit, if all guidelines were met, a maximum 12-metre turbine.
Turbines between 12 and 30 metres in height would be allowed in certain areas of town, primarily along the Bow River in low-density residential areas.
Parker, who is attending the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, said he was surprised to find out several students at his university had heard of Cochrane, and the reason was because of the town’s initiatives on sustainability.
“CHS’s Sustainable Development Committee is famous across the country,” Parker said, “and had been paving the way for inspiring sustainability in young adults.”
Parker said he even met a student from Norway who had heard about what CHS had been doing with sustainability.
Brooker responded to Parker’s concerns, saying all sides had to be taken into consideration and implemented into the REF.
“The final decision couldn’t just be based on the work done by the school and we had to, as a council, look at all the factors including concerns from the surrounding residential community,” Brooker said. “There are always many sides to the issues that council deals with and we make the best decisions we can for the betterment of the community as a whole.”
Parker said he felt the driving factor behind the school’s wind turbine project was to educate, while if a similar scale turbine (between 12 and 30 metres in height) were to be installed off school property, the driving factor would be to generate power.
Parker also pointed out that with a project that involves a significant amount of capital, the height and size of the turbine should be chosen to optimize efficiency. He said when he was part of the CHS committee, certain metrics were chosen so the turbine would be able to pay itself off faster.
“By compromising on such integral factors of a project of this scale, I think is nearly the same as a rejection of the proposal,” he said.
CHS science teacher Stephanie Bennett, who also acted as leader of the school’s Sustainable Development Committee, said she understood and appreciated Parker’s point of view, as he was an integral part of the wind turbine proposal three years ago.
But the committee’s feelings on the matter are now somewhat different.
“We are pleased and satisfied with the results of Monday’s (March 9) announcement,” Bennett said. “For the past three years, our students have exhibited exemplary behaviour towards the entire process.”
Bennett commended CHS students’ dedication to the wind turbine proposal, saying she is ‘very proud of their performance.”
“As a result of everyone’s efforts,” Bennett said, explaining that included the perseverance of members of the No Turbine In Town group, “Cochrane now has guidelines with which to plan, implement and operate renewable technology.”
Parker’s main contention was his fear that thousands of students could be negatively affected by the Town’s proposed REF and no longer be inspired to make the world a more sustainable place.
Brooker said he appreciated Parker’s comments and understood his frustrations, and commended students for doing great work for years at CHS.
“That has not gone unnoticed,” Brooker said, pointing out the school could consider a smaller scale wind turbine “more appropriate to the area,” and that students would still learn the science behind the project.
“It would likely get better support in the community.”
