 |
Happy New Year! We intend to post regular electronic news and views to our members and supporters in a new format starting with this edition. We also hope to maintain a regular schedule of news updates. If you have any comments, questions or would like to contribute to our effort, please contact us at ceaadmin@cogeco.net. |
Ontario Pesticide NewsWhile some Ontario municipalities moved to limit the use of cosmetic pesticides, such as the city of Windsor which implemented its bylaw beginning in April 2006, the provincial government sat on the sidelines. However, following the provincial election, the provincial government announced its intention to ban the cosmetic use of pesticides on November 20, 2007. Further to this, a proposal notice describing the government commitments has been posted to the Environmental Registry in order to seek comments from the stakeholder community and the general public as the government moves forward with the policy development related to this initiative. You may view the Environmental Registry - Proposal Notice 010-2248. Submit your comments, on or before February 17, 2008, to: Robert Bilyea Nuclear WoesIn March 2004, John Manley, the Chair of the Ontario Power Generation (OPG) Review Committee, recommended that OPG should return its shutdown Pickering A Unit 1 nuclear reactor to service. Mr. Manley’s recommendation was based on the following two key assumptions: a) the incremental cost of restarting the reactor would be $500 million (OPG had already spent $325 million on the restart); and b) the rebuilt reactor would be able to operate at an 85% capacity utilization rate for 12 years. Unfortunately, neither of these targets has been met. First, the incremental cost of restarting the reactor was $691 million or 38% higher than Manley’s forecast, which means that the total cost of the Pickering A restart topped $1 billion. Second, as of Novemebr 30, 2007 the average capacity utilization rate of the reactor since its November 2005 restart has only been 62%. As a consequence of the poor operating performance of this reactor, OPG has had to increase the output of its dirty coal plants to keep the lights on. The resulting increase in air pollution has been equivalent to putting 385,000 more cars on the road for one year. Please tell Energy Minister Gerry Phillips that it’s time to choose what works for a change – energy conservation, renewable energy and high-efficiency combined heat and power plants. Minister Phillips can be reached at gphillips.mpp@liberal.ola.org . February 16 - Join Us For A Tour of the Largest Gas-Fired Power Station in CanadaWith so many resources currently being allocated to energy production in the province and the largest infrastructure project in the history of the province planned for future energy production, we thought a tour of a local energy production facility would interest folks. On Saturday, February 16th, you are invited to tour the Brighton Beach power plant. The Brighton Beach power plant, located in west Windsor, is currently the largest combined cycle gas fired power station in Canada. The tour will take in the Detroit River water intake and outfall, the gas turbines, heat recovery steam turbines, steam turbine hall and the control room. Plan to bring sensible footware and hard hats will be provided. Total time of the tour is approximately 1.5 hours. Location: Brighton Beach Power Plant (located on the former J. Clark Keith Generating Station site) February 23 - Please Join Us: Climate Change Mitigation: How to Take Action in Your Home, Conserve Energy and Save MoneyConcerned about climate change? What can you do about it? Join us in February for a seminar on climate change mitigation and adaptation techniques. Presenter: Date: Saturday, February 23, 2008 – 11:00AM For further information on any of the above, please contact us at 519-973-1116. |