Whereas in alignment with section 2 of British Columbias Clean Energy Act, geothermal energy is capable of providing British Columbian municipalities, Indigenous Peoples, residents, and businesses with emissions-free, renewable, and baseload heat and electricity, for the health and socio-economic benefit of the Province; And whereas shallow exploratory drilling to determine temperature, stratigraphic, or hydrologic information a fundamental tool in the exploration for geothermal resources, is now regulated by the Oil and Gas Commission under the Oil and Gas Activities Act as per the 2017 amendment of the Geothermal Resources Act, which unnecessarily increases shallow exploratory drilling costs by as much as ten 10 times as compared to the previous versions of the Geothermal Resources Act: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM urge the provincial government and its relevant ministry the Ministry of Energy, Mines Petroleum Resources, to amend the Geothermal Resources Act andor direct the Oil and Gas Commission to allow for the cost-effective use of shallow exploratory drilling for geothermal energy development in British Columbia.
Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovations The BC Oil and Gas Commission is committed to ensuring public and environmental safety, and that applies in its role as regulator of geothermal resource development. BCs established regulatory requirements for geothermal resource development are designed to enable cost effective geothermal development and operation, while mitigating potential environmental and safety risks, impacts to the environment, and impacts to natural resources. The Commission and the Province are working with the geothermal sector to address issues and work through any concerns they may have.