Indigenous communities on Vancouver Island and the central coast are heading clean-energy projects with B.C. government funding, which will lower utility costs and contribute to more economic opportunities and stable telecommunications in emergencies.
Indigenous communities are partnering with the Province to develop projects that align with the CleanBC plan to reduce climate-changing emissions. Through the First Nations Clean Energy Business Fund (FNCEBF), the Province is providing three communities in the region with nearly $900,000.
The FNCEBF supports clean-energy projects led by Indigenous communities, such as harnessing solar energy, installing heat pumps and energy-efficiency planning. In this round of funding, nine First Nation partners provincewide received more than $1.4 million through the fund, which includes nearly $1 million of one-time funding for projects.
New projects from this round of funding in the regions:
Tseshaht First Nation will install a new heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system in the Tribal Multiplex and Health Centre, which will improve comfort for people with an automated control system and reduce operating costs ($500,000);
Heiltsuk Nation will add heat pumps to 75 community members’ homes, providing clean and affordable heating systems ($350,000); and
Huu-ay-aht First Nations will develop a community energy plan to address regular power outages and inefficient heating for community members, improving costs and quality of life ($49,639).
Indigenous communities can benefit from economic opportunities in their territories by participating in the clean-energy sector and the FNCEBF program.
Quick Facts:
Since the FNCEBF began, more than 150 Indigenous communities have benefited from more than $20 million in capacity and equity funding for projects focused on clean energy, energy efficiency, fuel switching and feasibility studies.
Currently, 46 First Nations benefit from 71 clean-energy revenue-sharing agreements with B.C. that are based on new incremental revenues to government derived from water rentals and land rents.
