Hilton Ventures farms harvest canola on their farm near Strathmore, Alta., on Sept. 25. Farming is just one example where broadband makes a material difference in rural communities.Todd Korol/The Globe and Mail
Gregory Taylor, an associate professor in the department of communications at the University of Calgary, and Michael B. McNally, an associate professor in the faculty of education at the University of Alberta, are co-chairs of the Alberta Rural Connectivity Coalition’s policy committee.
From ruptured water mains to public transit woes, infrastructure has been top of mind for many Albertans in recent months. But there is another foundational challenge playing out in rural areas, where the demand for digital connectivity remains a stubborn issue that has proven resistant to traditional market-led initiatives. In rural Alberta, the lack of high-speed internet access limits the growth potential and economic prospects for small towns and farms. Underscoring the situation, recent CRTC data show that Alberta now finds itself last among Canadian provinces for rural connectivity.
It was not always this way. In 2001, the province was at the leading edge of rural connectivity when it announced the construction of the publicly funded Alberta SuperNet broadband network. The Progressive Conservative government at the time trumpeted that “Alberta has established itself as a world leader in the new global economy.” In 20 years the province has gone from leader to laggard in this key area. Productivity and technology debates are not confined to the cities and oil fields of Alberta, they are also playing out in small towns and in the cabs of tractors and combines.
While often far from urban digital hubs, Canadian farmers are no Luddites; contemporary farm machinery involves a strong component of digital technology and connectivity, using a steady stream of data to maximize crop yields. There are as many as 125 software-connected sensors in a modern John Deere combine harvester, and multiple onboard computer screens are commonplace. In 2024, John Deere announced a deal with SpaceX to connect tractors to satellite internet.
Farming is just one example where broadband makes a material difference in rural communities. Any productivity problem stems not from within the agricultural community, which has traditionally been an early adopter of new technologies, but in the ability of these areas to remain connected to share and utilize the data that is an essential element of modern farming.
According to the most recent (2022) CRTC statistics, just over 40 per cent of rural Alberta households have access to what the commission considers Canada’s definition of high-speed broadband. In British Columbia, which has a much more challenging topography for deploying broadband, 66 per cent of rural households are covered. In Quebec, the largest province, 85 per cent of rural homes have coverage. Alberta has squandered the advantage it once had in rural connectivity.
SuperNet, which connects 429 communities across the province, has clearly not fulfilled its early promise. High connection fees have prevented many small, local internet service providers from using SuperNet as originally envisioned, to provide the accessible fibre backbone to last-mile connections.
Alberta’s connectivity problems have been a growing concern for some time. In the 2021 federal election, rural broadband access was the top priority of the Rural Municipalities of Alberta. A year later, the province introduced a strategy with the goal of having high-speed broadband available in every household across the province by April, 2027. The ambitious plan involves $780-million in combined federal-provincial spending to address the gaps.
But the admirable goal of 100-per-cent coverage is somewhat misleading, as the plan includes low Earth orbit satellites when calculating connectivity. This key detail essentially ensures that the 100-per-cent connectivity goal will be pursued via Starlink satellite internet. It is unsurprising that the plan has been slow to roll out, with approximately only a quarter of the funding allocated in the past two years. Clearly, the Alberta government hopes Elon Musk will do the rest. While Starlink shows promise, it is not a reliable substitute for internet connected to a nearby fibre-optic line.
Failing to act is not without cost. Without rural connectivity, there will be even greater migration to cities, further straining urban infrastructure and weakening productivity in rural areas. High-speed broadband is not a guarantee of success, but poor connectivity ensures a disconnection from the wider modern economy.