Anne-Raphaëlle Audouin
President & CEO, WaterPower Canada
If you’ve ever looked at a map of Canada, you’ll know that there’s a lot of water. But what you may not know, is that among these bodies of water are over 500 electricity generation facilities. Together, these waterpower sites provide more clean, renewable electricity to Canadian homes and businesses than any other source of energy.
Waterpower currently makes up over 60 percent of Canada’s total electricity generation, making Canada the second-largest generator of waterpower in the world, only behind China. And though Canada currently produces an immense amount of clean electricity with flowing water, we could still more than double our production with a mix of redevelopment and refurbishment of existing, and development of new projects.
This abundance of untapped waterpower in our backyard presents Canadians with an enormous opportunity to help meet Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets and clean the country’s electricity grid. Because climate change requires strong and meaningful actions now, the need for renewable, clean energy has never been greater. And waterpower, Canada’s most abundant source of clean, renewable energy, is poised to play a large role in our country’s fight against climate change.
Waterpower is woven into the fabric of Canada’s history and will continue to be an instrumental part of our future as we strive to create a greener and cleaner nation. From the first Canadian waterpower site commissioned in 1891, to the more than 500 facilities distributed across Canada today, water is truly one of our natural treasures.
