In the new year, SaskEnergy will be continuing to focus in on sustainability goals.
As the Crown Corporation continues to march into a more efficient and sustainable future, it's looking back at the success had over this last year.
In a release, it was revealed that in 2023, SaskEnergy will be continuing to work toward a 35 per cent reduction in emissions by 2030. This goal is well underway after the work done in 2021 and 2022.
"This past year, SaskEnergy made significant progress in developing a viable plan to achieving its emissions-reduction goal," said Don Morgan, the minister responsible for SaskEnergy. "Several initiatives are already underway to cut emissions by integrating renewable electricity at SaskEnergy facilities, reducing the amount of vented gas from operations, and optimizing operational practices and infrastructure."
Over the previous year, SaskEnergy managed to eliminate 22,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent. That's a 7 per cent bump over the year prior.
Part of the plan for helping to reduce emissions is to continue implementing energy-reducing and saving practices with their clients.
"We've worked hard to increase the reach of our customer efficiency programs, proving $1.2 million in additional funding in 2021-22, for a total of more than $3 million," said Mark Guillet, acting president and CEO of Sask Energy. "We increased this funding again in 2022-23, allocating $5.1 million to help customers be more energy efficient, with the goal of reducing their end-use emissions by 25,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent."
Currently, 35,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent are being saved by customers making use of SaskEnergy energy-saving programs. These programs have been in place since 2017.
In an effort to generate more renewable energy, the Crown Corporation has installed solar panels at 40 of its facilities over the last year. The 85-watt units have a 7-day battery capacity. Over 200 SaskEnergy locations now have solar power, with another 40 scheduled for the upgrade in 2023.
In the realms of farming and environmental, SaskEnergy has committed $10 million to biosecurity mitigation measures. This money was used to help reduce the operational impact on farming and environmental sites where work was conducted.
Here in southwest Saskatchewan, SaskEnergy will be entering into the second half of its two-year agreement with the Nature Conservancy of Canada to support biodiversity in the Southwest Sandhills.
In recognition of their efforts to install more renewable and environmental practices, Sask Energy was awarded three stewardship awards from the Canadian Gas Association.
For anyone looking to help reduce the environmental impact they have themselves, SaskEnergy has a tool that allows you to check how much of an impact different appliances have. Click here to compare and learn more.