More Reasons to Conserve Energy | Tuesday, May 31, 2011

You may be aware that we are adding a third turbine to our Aishihik hydro plant. As a result, it is necessary that we shut down that plant for the next few weeks, starting this afternoon, while we do the installation.

While our Aishihik plant is off line, we will need to run some of our diesel generators both in Whitehorse and Faro to meet the demand for electricity. We are asking Yukoners on the Whitehorse-Aishihik-Faro transmission system to try to conserve energy as much as possible during this time period (June 1st to 21st).

The Aishihik shut-down is just part of the juggling we'll be doing this summer and fall. We must have our Aishihik plant back on line by the end of this month and we need to have Stage 2 of our Carmacks-Stewart transmission line also hooked up by the end of this month, so that we can then shut down our Mayo hydro generating plant to do some necessary work on the Mayo B project. With the Carmacks-Stewart line in service it will allow us to continue serving Mayo and Dawson City with hydro, as opposed to having to rely 100 percent on diesel during the Mayo shut-down.

Throughout this entire time period we encourage Yukoners to be as careful as possible with their electricity usage. Many thanks.

Energy Saving Tips for Businesses and Local Governments | Thursday, May 19, 2011

Looking to save your business or local government some money on energy? Yukon Energy Corporation, Yukon Electrical Company Ltd., and Natural Resources Canada are hosting a series of energy management workshops for Yukon businesses and First Nation and municipal governments. You can find details and registration forms here.

How Do You Use Electricity at Home? | Tuesday, May 17, 2011

We know that Yukoners are being asked to fill out a lot of surveys lately, what with the 2011 Census and the National Household Survey. However we're hoping that while you're in "survey mode" you'll be kind enough to fill out one more. The purpose of the survey we are doing is to find out how you use electricity in your home. The information will help us in our work with Yukon Electrical Company Limited and the Yukon government to design energy conservation programs for the territory.

If you fill out the survey by June 12 you'll be eligible to win a $500 VISA gift card. If you submit the survey by May 26 you'll also be eligible for one of two $250 Early Bird prizes (if you enter early you'll have a shot at winning both a $250 and a $500 prize).

Many thanks!

Feathered Friends Offer Lesson in Energy Conservation | Friday, May 13, 2011

We humans probably weren't the only ones surprised by the unseasonable dump of snow we received over the last couple of days. The migrating birds must be shaking their heads as well. Here's the sight that greeted us this morning as we entered our Whitehorse office building.

These sparrows are good energy conservation ambassadors. In the photo to the far right, see how they're using every bit of shared body heat to stay warm.

The Latest on Marsh Lake | Wednesday, May 11, 2011

You're invited to read our latest newsletter about a concept we are looking at for increasing hydro production at our Whitehorse dam. We welcome your questions or comments.

Another Step Forward for a Yukon-wide Energy Conservation Plan | Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Close to 30 people representing a variety of interests recently gathered in Whitehorse for a workshop held as an exercise for a Conservation Potential Review that ICF Marbek will be conducting on behalf of Yukon Energy, the Yukon government and Yukon Electrical Company Limited. The review will involve gathering information about how people use energy, data that the three organizations need to develop a territory-wide energy conservation plan.

At the workshop, participants learned more about the vision for an energy conservation plan and how the Conservation Potential Review would support such a plan. They also shared their knowledge about what information already exists in the territory that could be used in this work. We want to thank all those who took the time to attend this workshop.

The Conservation Potential Review is set to begin within the next month or so and will start with a survey of how residential customers use electricity.
 

Yesterday’s Outage | Tuesday, May 10, 2011

A squirrel too smart for its own good was the cause of yesterday's power outage in the Southern and Central Yukon.

Although Yukon Energy has squirrel guards (also known as animal protectors) on our equipment and assets, one rodent managed to chew its way in to the Whitehorse substation and cause an outage just before 12 noon yesterday. Power was restored to some areas in less than one hour while in other places it was out for as much as an hour and 45 minutes.

Repairs are now being done to the damaged equipment and Yukon Energy is looking at what more it can do to prevent rodents and other small animals from coming in contact with its equipment.

This is Yukon Energy's third outage on our Whitehorse-Aishihik-Faro transmission system this year. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and trouble this may have caused you.

A Successful Week-end | Monday, May 2, 2011

Photo: www.archbould.com

A big thank you to all those who stopped by our booth this past week-end at the Lion's Trade Show. We gave away hundreds of packages of wooden clothespins, plus we held draws for some clotheslines and clothes drying racks.

The winners are:

Clotheslines
Michael Bendall
Amanda Younker
Nita Collins

Drying racks
T. Skjonsberg
Tanya MacIntosh
Deneen Tizya

If you didn't have a chance to make it to the Trade Show, we do still have some clothespins left, and we will be setting up a booth at another location in the near future. Watch this blog for details shortly.

Remember that air drying your clothes can save you on average about $100 a year and reduces greenhouse gas emissions significantly.