Cascadia Report

Hurdles block more power from wind

Wind is one of the keys to developing more renewable energy, but a series of hurdles stand in the way:

Wind isn't constant, the power can't be easily stored in the current energy distribution network and it is often more expensive than sources such as coal or oil.

Washington voters recently approved new mandates for energy from renewable sources but the law leaves many difficult issues for the future. Already a coal producer in southwest Washington has forecast more demand for power from traditional sources.

For one thing, the law doesn't seem to address siting complications. In places like the Columbia River Gorge there is resistance to allowing more wind farms that would generate the power in the first place.

Another gap that hasn't been much discussed is allowing utilities ways to control demand for power. In Australia, residential water heaters can be shut off remotely to save energy. How could this be used to change the power equation in Cascadia?

Economic growth shifts power in Canada to the west

The balance of power in Canada shifted westward in 2006, with the population of British Columbia and Alberta surpassing Quebec for the first time.

The booming oil and construction industries, as well as robust trade and the lead-up to the 2010 Olympics pushed people westward. B.C. and Alberta had 7.69 million people compared to Quebec's 7.65 million.

The booming oil business pushed Alberta's economic growth to the highest-ever level for a province, according to Statistics Canada, and is forecast to continue pushing unemployment down to 2.9 percent by 2008.

New big-box stores a big draw in B.C.

A pair of new big-box stores in Squamish are a big hit with residents from Whistler, Pemberton and farther inland. Town officials hope the development will spur a retail hub and keep area residents from traveling to the Vancouver area to shop. The hope the new stores don't damage existing retail in downtown Squamish.

Seattle-area newspaper to close next month

The suburban daily King County Journal newspaper will close next month. The new owners, Victoria's Black Press, apparently couldn't find a way to make the unionized operation profitable.

Meanwhile the company is expanding production of six smaller area newspapers from twice a month to twice a week. It's not clear what will happen to its printing press in Kent, which may have excess capacity.

Update: To compete with Black Press, The Seattle Times may add weekly newspapers in the area.

Urban growth squeezes local-food industry

The craze for locally grown food in Cascadia supports an industry of suppliers. But it's being squeezed by urban growth.

Consider three Vancouver markets that serve 5,000 customers per week and are on track to break sales records, according to this story in The Tyee. British Columbia reportedly is the only area of Canada where the number of organic farms rose in 2005, though pressure to convert farmland and the difficulty of maintaining a supply chain for meats is a threat.

The Seattle area has seen a similar trend, with an increasing number of community farmer's markets in King County -- 27 this year, up from 7 a decade ago. The demand for locally grown farm goods competes with transportation costs and land conversion. Even the Pike Place Market has converted some space for tourism-related businesses.

Vancouver's markets reportedly hope to find permanent, covered locations to accommodate customer demand -- if they aren't pushed out by construction staging for the 2010 Olympics. It will be interesting to see if corporate retailers help the cause. Organic home delivery is increasingly available and once-rare Whole Foods has grown from two stores in Cascadia to at least 13 open or planned.

Reports: Chances better for Sonics, worse for NASCAR

Prospects to keep pro basketball in Seattle appear to be improving, while a proposed NASCAR track faces more hurdles.

The News Tribune reported that the owner of the Sonics is leaning toward building a new stadium in Renton. The site, which the city would give to the team at a steep discount, is close to Eastside corporate customers and near several highways. The team is expected to ask the state legislature for a subsidy of about $300 million.

The request likely further complicates plans for a 83,500-seat NASCAR track on the Kitsap Pensinsula. According to the newspaper, no legislator in the area supports a public subsidy for the project, which supposedly would bring a development boon to the region. Yet State Sen. Derek Kilmer of Gig Harbor, who holds an economic development PhD from Oxford, says financing the project should at least be considered.

Two B.C. industries may face better year ahead

Lest anyone ponder the durability of British Columbia's economic boom, the province's main newspaper weighed it with forecasts of a rosy year ahead for segments of both the old and new economies.

Rising global demand for commodities will continue to propel the mining industry in B.C., according to the head of a trade group. The province has 25 of Canada's 52 viable mine projects and growth is likely to continue, despite land claims from native groups or concern that new mining could spoil fisheries, he said.

Meanwhile several B.C. video game companies are expanding, thanks to the popularity of new game platforms. The sector employs only about 3,000 but apparently hopes for growth are high. One reason for buoyancy: the federal government is giving 10 game companies a total C$2 million in development funds.

What's changing the coastal economy

Most of the counties in the Olympic Peninsula area have seen their population remain flat or fall since the early 1990s, despite phenomenal growth statewide.

Still, the coastal economy is gradually shifting as retirees and other newcomers make up for some of the reliance on the harvest and export of trees and fish, according to this report in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

The trend is in line with the shift happening across the region in formerly natural resource-dependent areas such as Vancouver Island and the Oregon Coast. Retirees who like a damp, overcast climate are being joined by those who can work remotely. Pacific County, on Washington's coast, advertises DSL service as a lure for both retirees and Internet-related business.

Realtors say Kitsap County's market began to take off about a decade ago when it was first included in the Northwest multiple listing service for the Seattle area, according to the article. Retail is an attraction for Aberdeen, but the mostly low-wage big box stores won't power the economy. More significant potential engines of growth include the alternative energy plant being built nearby.

B.C. report predicts bonanza from Asia trade

A British Columbia government report says Canada could see a bonanza of another C$230 billion a year in trade and as many as 500,000 new jobs by 2020 -- if the country gets behind plans for massive new port and transportation projects.

The report, leaked to the Vancouver Sun, is likely to stoke the upcoming federal election campaign and encourage examination of B.C.'s ties to Asia. Completing the projects on the government's wish list could eclipse the planned trade-related development in Washington and Oregon.

The report assumes constant growth in Asia and no disruption in trans-Pacific trade. B.C. would gain 55,000 direct jobs by 2020, with the rest indirect or in other provinces. According to the report, B.C. would see about $76 billion of the additional trade in goods and services, the equivalent of 50 percent of B.C.'s current trade activity.

Legal challenges, costs could topple B.C. Ferries

B.C. Ferries, already under fire for fare increases and service cutbacks, reportedly may not survive a series of legal challenges stemming from its safety record.

The quasi-private company faces lawsuits and negative publicity after one of its boats sunk earlier this year. Under current law, the province owns the ferry assets and pays a private operating company for service on less-profitable routes. That arrangement hasn't prevented fares from climbing, at a time massive road projects around B.C. continue to subsidize car transportation.