Scott Hayes, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter | [email protected]
The Performing Arts Theatre was abuzz with industry exhibitors and attendees during the first-ever Hinton Energy Festival on Sept. 23.
A joint effort of the Hinton Chamber of Commerce and host Novus Earth Energy Operations, the day-long event started by receiving approximately 150 attendees who brought their own form of energy with them: schoolchildren.
“We had seven different school groups come through from different grades,” said Emily Olsen, community development liaison with Novus.
“They received presentations on geothermal, vertical farming, geology, and other presentations that were tailored to their age group, and also their curriculum.”
While there, the students got first look at the trade show portion of the festival before the adults had their turn at the booths featuring the Trans Mountain Pipeline, TC Energy, Iron and Earth, the Vista Mine and more, not to mention Novus’s own Latitude 53 project that will combine geothermal energy extraction with vertical farming and aquaculture.
The students met Hinton and Jasper’s municipal energy manager Faraz Khan, and they learned about coal testing from NAVANA Labs. They also met with representatives of the worker-led not-for-profit Iron and Earth whose mission is to “empower fossil fuel industry and Indigenous workers to build and implement climate solutions,” according to its website.
They also had the opportunity to hear some very enlightening stories about the importance of “knowing where the line is” from Terry Emslie, community awareness ambassador with the Edmonton Area Pipeline and Utility Operators Committee. Its utility safety campaign offers a perennial message of workplace hazard prevention.
The Hinton Energy Festival was designed to celebrate the diversity of the regional energy industry while educating the public about energy-related activities and connecting people to local and regional businesses.
Olsen considered it a big success with lots of room for growth as planners start looking forward to the second event in 2023.
“We exceeded all of the targets that we had for our first year. Next year, we're looking at possibly a multi-day event and welcoming more people from the region as well as Hinton. I think we're looking to continue the things that worked well, which were the presentations and the involvement of the school groups, and extend the hours for the public to come by and learn about what is happening in our region.”
