The long road for 2 northern Quebec towns to break a dependence on diesel

It’s a challenge many northern communities face: how to get a cleaner source of power and heat. 

Remote communities in Canada are still overwhelmingly reliant on diesel fuel for heating and electricity generation, according to a 2020 report by the Pembina Institute, and are responsible for the burning of more than 682 million litres of diesel each year. 

Three million litres of that is burned annually by the small, twin Cree and Inuit communities of Whapmagoostui and Kuujjuarapik, in northern Quebec.

Now, with a joint renewable energy project in the last part of an environmental assessment, they are moving closer to significantly reducing