Archive for November 13th, 2012
Nov 13
The feudal system is alive and well in Ontario. (*warning* Explicit language — well, just one word)
From today’s Globe and Mail, there is an article discussing the “shared vision” for the land formerly used by the Lakeview Generating Station. The G&M interviewed Mississauga’s director of city strategy and innovations, Gary Kent, to discuss the plans for the city’s waterfront….
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…”the site of the former Lakeview Generating Station, where plans for redevelopment are charging forward. It’s in many ways the waterfront of Torontonians’ dreams: Existing parkland will be beautified and made more accessible for pedestrians and cyclists; a proposed mix of residential and commercial development includes galleries, theatres and markets.”
And, according to Kent:
“We went to the public in 2009 and we engaged over 100,000 [people] in terms of our strategic plan [for Lakeview]. One of the things that came out of that was the desire to create a model, sustainable, creative community on the waterfront.”
“… we signed the memorandum of understanding with [Ontario Power Generation] and the province of Ontario to develop a shared vision by June, 2014. We’re in that process.”
“In 2009, council really threw their arms open and said, ‘Please tell us.’ We had an “Inspiration” introduction where we said, “Let’s talk about possibilities.”
”Two councillors down here – Councillor [Patricia] Mullin and Councillor [Jim] Tovey – they’ve really been the champions of this and that’s really helpful because it brings the community in to us bureaucrats. And then we can do the job and it really becomes a shared vision.”
(To read full story, click here)
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Editor’s note: How LOVELY for Mississauga. They have the kind of democracy that is every rural resident’s dream….the right to have a voice about what happens in your community. The citizens of that city had so much influence, they even got to have a say in getting a gas plant cancelled. In Mississauga, the term “nimby” is worn like a badge of honour.
They’re encouraged to voice their opinions….to have a say as to what is done in their community and how the land is developed. Their city council embraces the input and they’re all working together to create the idyllic Shangri-La that they so richly deserve!
Meanwhile, rural residents are still struggling to have their voices heard as to what happens in their neighbourhoods and communities, but as we all know, our democratic rights were stripped from us in 2009, when McGuinty and company gave us the Green middle finger and said they didn’t give a fuck what we thought or wanted.
Articles like this really drive home the message that to ensure you still have your rights as a Canadian citizen, you must be a card-carrying, flag-waving voter for the Ontario Liberal party. Otherwise, you’re lower than a serf.
Dalton McGuinty’s feudal system in Ontario (from top to bottom, in order of importance)
King (Liberal premier)
Nobles (Liberal cabinet ministers)
Lords (Liberal MPPs)
Vassals (residents of the GTA, Ottawa, or any other large urban centre which could hold the majority vote that the King craves)
Farmers (Landowners who hold wind turbine leases)
Peasants (People who live in small town Ontario)
Serfs (People who live around but close to small towns)
Pond Scum (Anyone who doesn’t vote Liberal)
Water bacteria
Amoebas
Muck dwellers (Rural and Northern Ontario Residents)
Donna Quixote
Tom Adams — Ontario Electricity System Operational Update Part #2
Darkness and Light
Ontario will have the highest power rates of any state or province in continental North America by end of 2013. Increases in 2014 and 2015 will exceed the current pace 8-10% per year.
Low income consumers will be cut off and electricity-intensive employers will shut down.
Ontario is heading for a new dark age.
To stabilize the financial situation of the power system, consumers need a moratorium now on all projects that can be delayed without severe penalties. During a brief moratorium period, all projects should be reviewed to eliminate those that will result in negative overall value.To minimize long-term economic harm, a massive liability transfer from ratepayers to taxpayers will be needed. Public services, such as health care and education, will suffer. However, the overall harm to Ontario citizens will be greater if uncompetitive power rates continue.
Ontario’s power system is structured around central planning. Now, Ontario has central planning without a plan. The Ontario government’s 2010 “Long Term Energy Plan” was a plan in name only. The LTEP was a thin election platform plank riddled with technical flaws. Even if the LTEP had substance when issued, subsequent developments such as the gas plant cancellation in Mississauga and a faster than predicted pace of FIT contracting, have rendered the plan obsolete.
Ontario has already experienced one large green blackout. More are likely.
(To continue reading, click here)
Tom Adams — Ontario Electricity System Operational Update — Part #1
Thunderbay GS Repowering Project Freeze-up
Tom Adams — Tom Adams Energy — November 2, 2012
Welcome to a new series here on tomadamsenergy.com reporting on what appears to be the impending collapse of Ontario’s power system. The scale, scope and timing of the collapse is impossible to anticipate. As part of this project, I intend to present ideas on potential solutions for the issues that arise.
The first report in this series focuses on the current freeze-up of the Thunderbay Generating Station gas repowering project.
A podcast discussing the Thunderbay situation is here.
Turbine fight continues in Wainfleet
Victoria Gray — The Tribune — November 12, 2012
WAINFLEET - David Wyatt is not backing down in the township’s fight against wind turbines.
The alderman intends to deliver a notice of motion at Tuesday night’s council meeting recommending Wainfleet send a letter to the Electrical Safety Authority and the Ministry of Agriculture Food and Rural Affairs urging them to properly study negative effects wind turbines may have on residents, crops and livestock.
“(No studies were) ever done — even by the Ministry of Agriculture,” he said. “Their idea is that health is only one of 10 criteria and they rate health and safety risks low.”
But some people who live near wind turbines claim they cause sleep disorders, headaches, depression, anxiety and blood pressure changes.
The notice of motion states rural townships, including Wainfleet, have inadequate electrical distribution systems that were not designed to handle turbines and they are effecting the quality of electricity flowing to residents causing stray voltage, surges that cause equipment failure, overloads and imbalance issues on the electrical grid.
Wyatt wants the Electrical Safety Authority and ministry to conduct a scientific, third-party investigation.
In April the township passed a bylaw requiring a two-kilometre setback of wind turbines from any residence, even though the province only requires a 550-metre setback under the Green Energy Act.
(To continue reading, click here)
