ATHABASCA - Keepers of the Athabasca continues to look for partners for its new program called “Where’s My Power? Energy Champions Call to Action.”
The program is part of a workshop that includes giving homes and businesses the tools they need to conduct an energy audit, as well as looking at the needs and wants for energy use.
“How many staff in Athabasca have training in conducting energy audits?” founding member Bruce Jackson asked Town of Athabasca councillors at their Feb. 18 meeting. “Would it be useful to engage with staff as a skill that they can use during a transition period in the future? I’m asking those questions because it’s important to know where you can find ways to produce more energy efficiency.”
Jackson added that once you get people paying attention there are opportunities to provide incentives.
“It would be a one to four-hour workshop where we would meet with staff and show them what to do,” Jackson said.
The Keepers are set to conduct energy audits April 23-24 at the Alice B. Donahue Library in Athabasca and at the old Athabasca Landing Pool building that now houses the Athabasca Flips Gymnastics Club.
Executive director Jule Asterisk said they have currently partnered with 12 organizations, but are still searching for about eight more.
“We are looking for partnerships with First Nations, businesses, municipalities and schools,” Asterisk said. “It’s funded by Energy Efficiency Alberta, and it’s all about power and energy and why we need them and how to save money and energy consumption.”
She stated some of their partners include the Town of Athabasca, Bigstone Health Holdings Ltd., Bigstone Fire Department, Fishing Lake Métis Settlement and Beaver Lake Cree Nation.
“We also have 11 other partners who are pending, including other First Nations, municipalities, businesses and churches,” Asterisk continued. “We did a couple of churches, including one in Slave Lake last month. We are also going to be doing an old bingo hall in High Prairie and possibly in Edson as well.”
She added they will also be approaching the Barrhead Outreach School about this program.
“We may even decide to approach the Town of Barrhead as well while we are there,” Asterisk said. “But other than that, we are conducting audits around the six communities where we are conducting our workshops, including in Athabasca.”
Coun. Mike Arychuk moved at the Feb. 18 meeting to have the Keepers do an energy audit at the old pool, while Coun. Warren Griffin moved at the Feb. 26 Athabasca County meeting to support an audit at the library. Asterisk said the workshop is an opportunity to get a free energy audit for a facility within the community.
“We started doing our outreach for this program in January, and we have to have all of the energy audits booked by May 1, as the last audits need to be completed by May 31,” she explained. “We’ve already started our first audits in February, and we have a whole bunch coming up this month and in April.”
She said anyone interested in having one of their workshops can call her at 780-805-1709, or e-mail [email protected].
“The Athabasca Native Friendship Centre already had their audit done last year through Energy Efficiency Alberta,” Asterisk said. “As I said, we are still taking applications for the workshop and anyone interested can just give us a call.”
She added while they don’t have as much visibility in Westlock and Barrhead, they would love to provide this program there.
“We already travel for school presentations,” Asterisk continued. “We could absolutely come to present our workshop and provide a free energy audit for a business, church, municipality, or other organization that is interested.”
Bryan Taylor, TownandCountryToday.com
Follow me on Twitter @BryanTaylorNews
