When it comes to green energy, it might be time we looked north for inspiration; in British Columbia, an increase in the production and use of clean, renewable energy has invigorated the local economy, not to mention the green energy industry.

British Columbia has long been a leader in the field, but it wasn’t until the Clean Energy Act was signed into law on June 3, 2010, that BC’s clean energy initiatives truly took the lead in North America.

The law detailed several goals for the province, including electric self-sufficiency by 2016, a clean and renewable energy target of 93 percent (the highest in North America), specific electricity exportation goals, and mandated reductions of greenhouse gases.

The progressive law is the product of the government’s long-standing commitment to clean energy, laying the foundation for what has now become the reality in BC: a renewable, green energy industry that is an economic, environmental, and socio-political driver in the province.

Green Energy Creates Jobs and Boosts the Economy

Clean Energy BC is a 25-year-old association that calls itself “the voice of British Columbia’s Clean Energy industry.” Executive director Paul Kariya claims that their operations are responsible for more than $8.6 billion in investments, as well as about 16,000 construction jobs across the province.

And those numbers are only increasing. The 160 members of Clean Energy BC currently produce 14 percent of BC Hydro’s energy supply via thermal, hydro, solar, and wind power, helping the province approach its alternative energy goals.

Green Energy Can Have Socio-Political Benefits

First Nations communities, suffering from the collapse of the oil market, have found a new niche in the BC green energy industry.

While oil producers and transporters continuously neglect to consult with First Nations people, for example with regards to the controversial Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline, intended to bring Alberta oil to the BC coast, renewable energy producers have sought to create an important bond with these communities.

“Over the course of a decade, clean power producers have forged deep relationships with indigenous leaders,” Kariya told CTV News.

The Clean Energy Act made the First Nations Clean Energy Business Fund possible, not only promoting dialogue about this important issue but also increasing First Nations community participation in the sector.

The People of British Columbia Continue to Fight for Green Energy

But perhaps the biggest thing that we can learn from BC is that the fight is never over. Even with these laws in place, the people of BC never stop demanding for more: more awareness, more accountability, and more responsibility.

In May 2016, members of the Climate Leadership Team published a demand in the Times Colonist for BC to increase its efforts by bolstering its carbon tax and strengthening climate leadership. If these demands are met, BC could create a projected 270,000 new jobs within the next 10 years, all thanks to the green energy industry.

“If the provincial government heeds the advice of its own Climate Leadership Team, then we’re going to need plenty of clean electricity,” said Kariya. “We’re ready to deliver the goods.”

Although BC had been taking steps toward a cleaner, more progressive energy policy for years before the CEA was signed, having a true, complex piece of legislation, as opposed to a handful of regulations and good intentions, has helped to make British Columbia one of the most progressive clean energy locales in the world. The work being done by the people and government of the province are inspirational for states and provinces throughout North America.

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Wind turbines image via Shutterstock

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Granville Island in Vancouver is home to one of the North American continent’s great public markets: visitors love British Columbia’s progressive, green capital, which boasts an eclectic, multi-cultural dining scene. For regional produce and other edibles, Granville Island is a must-visit.

Granville Island was settled in the late 19th century, along with the rest of Vancouver (which was originally known as Granville). By the 1970s, Granville Island had become, according to its official tourism website, “a declining 37-acre industrial wasteland” of former sawmills, factories, and shantytowns. Its location on False Creek didn’t help, and typhoid and sewage issues further contributed to the island’s decline.

Fortunately, city officials had the foresight to reclaim the polluted land and creek, and turn it into a public space with parkland, housing, and public exhibition space.

Today, the island has been restored and renovated. There are cobbled streets, renovated factories, performance spaces, galleries, boutiques, restaurants, a lovely hotel, boat tours and a ferry dock, and the Public Market, which was built in 1979. The market is full of rotating “day vendors” selling edibles and crafts, as well as permanent eateries, and there’s a Thursday farmer’s market, that runs from June to October.

Image: Dominic Schaefer

I’ve long been obsessed with public markets, and have been fortunate enough to help open two of America’s best: the San Francisco Ferry Building, and Seattle’s Melrose Market. Yet I’d never been to Granville Island. On a recent layover, I decided to spend the time scouring the market to stock up for a 20-hour journey I was making on VIA Rail Canada. I love nothing more than hitting a farmers or public market, bakery, or regional grocery store before departing on a trip, so I can try the local cuisine in transit.

I arrived at the market ravenous from my flight, and the first place I visited was Siegel’s Bagels. For years, I’d heard about Montreal bagels and smoked meat (similar to pastrami), but never having been to Quebec, I hadn’t had the opportunity to try them. The owner of Siegel’s is a Montréalais, hence the focus on his native cuisine. And now, after eating a chewy bagel stuffed with the juicy, tender, lightly smoked meat, I understand what all the fuss is about.

Image: Dominic Schaefer

Other stalls worth checking out include Benton’s Fine Cheese, where you’ll find a case full of French and Canadian cheeses. At The Lobster Man, get Dungeness crab and lobster cooked to order; Longliner Seafoods has BC salmon and halibut. There are delis with stuffed saucisson,  and various produce stands (don’t miss Okanagan Valley fruit: depending upon season, berries, stonefruit,or  apples or pears are available. I sprang for two pints of luscious raspberries). At South China Seas Trading Co, you’ll find everything from fresh wasabi and shiso leaves to dim sum wrappers. Don’t forget to pick up some pastry (like the decadent caramel bars) at Stuart’s Bakery, and smoked or candied salmon at the Salmon Shop.

Image: Granville Island

For souvenirs, lunch, or dinner, check out Edible Canada’s bistro and retail shop, across from the market. There, I scored some Noble Bourbon-barrel-aged maple syrup and maple sugar candy, but there’s also a jewel-like array of preserves, oils, and vinegars. Before you leave the island, drop by Liberty Wine Merchants for some spectacular BC Wines (I’m loving Blasted Church Vineyards’ Hatfield’s Fuse).

Granville Island is easily accessible by taxi, bike, boat, foot, or the #50 False Creek bus from downtown Vancouver, and is approximately 20 minutes on public transit from Vancouver International Airport.

Tours of the Granville Island Public Market can be arranged through Edible BC.

Top image: Granville Island

Related on EcoSalon:

Food by Boat: The Appeal of Floating Farmers Markets

7 Lessons from Canada’s Environmental Pragmatism

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Got a hankering to see the continent, but short on time/funds/without wheels? Travel by train is a lower-impact, relaxed, and budget-conscious way to go, especially in Canada.

Serious travelers have likely logged time on the rails, be it  sleek, high-speed European or Japanese trains, or the clapped-out versions found throughout parts of Latin America and Southeast Asia.  Here in the states, unfortunately, long-distance rail travel can be time inefficient and pricey. 

In general, however, train travel  is a greener way to go. Recent freak accidents in Spain and Quebec notwithstanding, trains are statistically much safer and less expensive than driving (when you factor in gas and depreciation), and far more efficient if you’re not in a hurry. After all, you can nap, read, or work.

Personally, I just like to zone out and  stare out the window, taking in the  scenery. Having traveled by train on four continents, I’ve experienced the good, the bad, and the seriously fetid. So it’s with good authority that I say VIA Rail Canada—the country’s national passenger rail system—rocks. Another eco-plus: Vancouver’s Pacific Central Station is just a 20-minute ride from the Vancouver National Airport on the efficient Canada Line rapid transit system.

VIA recently underwent a $22 million dollar renovation and eco-consciousness is notably a part of their promotional campaign  (Canadians are impressively on the ball when it comes to green practices and ethics). Perhaps being an enormous country with a low population, fragile ecosystem, and massive foodshed is a good thing?

The VIA website addresses environmental issues and cites statistics, such as this: “Last year, 4 million VIA rail passengers traveled more than 851 million miles (1.37 billion kilometers)? Despite all these trips, they produced only 0.03% of greenhouse gas (GHG)  related to transportation, while motorists alone have produced 13% of GHG emissions.”

This isn’t to say that you should believe everything you read, but the fact that travel by train is environmentally cleaner than plane, car, or cruise ship is nothing new. I’ve always loved taking the train, so for me, VIA’s makeover was an excuse to go to British Columbia for a week, and travel two of the province’s most famous routes.

The Canadian line runs from Vancouver to Toronto, but I chose to travel from Vancouver to Jasper (which is actually just over the border in Alberta), home of the largest national park in the Canadian Rockies. Because the Canadian travels trans-provinces, it offers both Economy (which includes a sleeping berth) and Sleeper Plus class, which includes full-service dining, and by far the sweetest room I’ve ever seen on a train.

VIA isn’t the Orient Express, so don’t expect bells and whistles, but the cushy chairs fold down into a full bed with a duvet, and there’s a private bathroom; showers are shared. There were even functional electrical outlets (are you listening, Amtrak?), but Wi-Fi capability depends upon route; in the heart of the Canadian Rockies, forget about phone and internet…which I gladly did. In fact, I was so cozy in my room, I had to force myself out and into the glass-ceiled and -sided Dome and Panorama cars (access may depend upon route and travel class).

During daylight hours, if you’re lucky, you’ll have an engineer who slows the train for photo ops of stunning visuals, like the towering Pyramid Falls, visible only from the tracks en route to Jasper.

The 20-hour overnight journey offers distinctly beautiful scenery. There are jagged peaks, meadows of wildflowers, farmland dotted with bales of hay, and usually, loads of wildlife (I seemed to be napping or peeing every time someone saw a moose, Grizzly bear, or bald eagle, but they’re out there, I promise- there were plenty of animals in Jasper). You’ll see crystalline glacial lakes, and cruise alongside the milky jade waters of the Fraser River.

In Jasper, I boarded the famed Jasper-Prince Rupert line, formerly known as “The Skeena” because it follows the dramatic river of the same name. This two-day, 720-miles run heads west, going from the Rockies to the rugged Pacific Coast. There are no sleeper cars on this route; instead, the train stops overnight in the sleepy city of Prince George (recommendation: the stylish Sandman Signature Hotel).

While the first day has attractive, pastoral scenery, the second day is money. From the jagged, glacier-swathed peaks of the Coast Mountains to the misty sandbars of the swift, wide Skeena, it’s Canadian wilderness at its best.

Prince Rupert itself is a delightfully quirky little port, and a great place to kick it for a couple of days. The highlights of the region (besides the views of the Alaskan Coastal Range, just 40 tantalizing miles away) are the stellar humpback whale watching and grizzly viewing.  I took a six-hour round-trip boat ride up the Northern Inside Passage with the excellent, family-owned Prince Rupert Adventure Tours.

We watched humpbacks “lunge-feeding” just yards away from the boat, spotted porpoises and harbour seals, and watched bald eagles snatching fish scraps out of mid-air. The highlight of  the week, however, was seeing grizzly bears in the Khutzeymateen Valley.

Although completely wild, the bears live in a protected region known as a “sanctuary,” how close to shore the boats can get to the animals, which spend summers foraging onshore for dandelions, grass, and clams, depends upon their mood. Many of the passengers on the boat were the same folks I’d spent the last two days riding the rails with. It had been a running joke amongst us  that we’d ask for a refund if we didn’t see any whales or bears on our trip. It turns out that traveling to the edge of the continent is worth every cent.

All images: VIA Rail Canada

Related on EcoSalon :

10 Things to Love About Rail Travel

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At Free Spirit Spheres you can literally hang out in a Canadian forest.

How often do you stay in a handcrafted room? Not furniture wise, strictly speaking. But in an entire, spherical handcrafted structure (capsule, really) made from wood and fiberglass, which is then suspended from trees in a coastal rainforest on Vancouver Island? Never, you say. Well, it’s time to plan your next glamp-out in a circular porthole of your own.

Like something out of a surrealist Spanish movie, these convex structures look like giant eyeballs.

There are three Free Spirit Spheres: meet Melody, Eryn and Eve (whose details page is, naturally, called All About Eve). Well, they’d have to be female, offering such curvy, womb-like accommodation. Be warned: since they’re suspended, they do sway.

Designed with comfort and compactness in mind, rather than high style, each pod has a double bed and a small table for two. It’s a tight fit. Measuring three metres diameter, Eve (cedarwood) is on the cozy side, while Eryn (spruce) is slightly roomier, at 3.2m, with a second bed on a loft gallery, plus fridge and sink. Melody is the deluxe version, in yellow fiberglass with a walnut interior. She also features a drop-down bed.

Get back to nature when nature calls in the mushroom-shaped composting outhouse.

As if it needed mentioning, there’s no WIFI here, although there are speakers fitted for you to plug in your iPod: the very definition of surround sound. In a separate nearby building are bathrooms with showers, a sauna, and a barbeque deck.

Rates from $269 including tax, arrival snacks, and the gentle croaking of Pacific Tree Frogs.

Images: Free Spirit Spheres

Places & Spaces is a travel guide that will inspire you to carve out a vacation on your calendar. All of the gorgeous locations and accommodations in our guide share our concern for the environment. From tent glamping to lavish built environments, fair warning, you’ll feel compelled to pack your suitcase.

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“It is difficult to realize how great a part of all that is cheerful and delightful in the recollections of our own life is associated with trees.” – Wilson Flagg, Naturalist

There’s a sadly familiar pattern that comes with environmental news stories about the world’s great forests. “Here’s why they’re too precious to squander. Here’s why we’re squandering them. Go see them while you still can.” But take heart – because on Thursday, the trees won.

The boreal forest of Canada is a natural marvel on a staggering scale. Covering well over half of the entire country and storing twice as much carbon per acre as tropical forests, it’s – you guessed it – way too precious an environmental resource for us to squander. Yet that’s exactly what some people have been trying to do – with oil and gas exploitation, hydroelectric development and loosely regulated logging galore. Thankfully, these efforts have to date been too puny to make much of a dent in this 1.3-billion acre behemoth. Given time, this story might change for the worse.

For any unscrupulous developers casting an avaricious eye over all this natural wealth – time may have just have ran out. On Thursday, members of the Forest Products Association of Canada and nine environmental organizations, including ForestEthics and Greenpeace, announced their backing for the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement. First up – the suspension of 29 million hectares of logging to protect caribou habitats (and as a trade-off, environmental groups are dropping a number of “Do Not Buy” campaigns.)

So yes, go see the stunningly beautiful boreal forests of Canada. But don’t feel in any great hurry. Because thankfully, they’ll still be here tomorrow.

Images: pentaboxes and axiepics.

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