From today’s Financial Post, Tom Adams and Kathy Hamilton on the latest Big Ideas for renewable power in Ontario.

Ontario’s latest electricity scheme: Pumped energy storage

Tom Adams and Kathy Hamilton, Special to Financial Post | Published: 10/10/13 9:31 AM ET

Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

As the Ontario government’s $1-billion gas plant relocation scandal slips into history, the province’s electricity ratepayers should not assume that the era of big-ticket rate-boosting power projects of questionable value is a thing of the past. Now comes the “Smart Grid” and a host of other projects.

None of these ideas comes cheap, including pumped electricity storage, a plan making its way through…

Parker Gallant: Who really sets Ontario’s Energy Policies?

(October 7, 2013)

In Ontario it’s a well-known fact that the Green Energy and Green Economy Act (GEA) was developed because a small group of people convinced a past Energy Minister, George Smitherman, it was needed. That group, the Green Energy Act Alliance (GEAA), even claim they helped him write the Act!

Several ministers later and things haven’t changed even though current Energy Minister, Bob Chiarelli has talked a lot about engaging communities, smaller municipalities and other stakeholders in revisions to the siting of gas, wind and solar generating plants. Minister Chiarelli has even invited input on revisions to the Long-Term Energy Plan (LTEP). Despite the rhetoric however, it still appears that the time spent by all but the environmental non-government organizations (ENGOs) will fall on deaf ears.

The writing was on the wall from the first announcement by Minister Chiarelli on…

Coalition of ‘Unwilling Host’ Municipalities

Press Statement October 6, 2013

Over the past week, the total number of ‘Unwilling Host’ municipalities grew to 71 as South Dundas and Bruce County endorsed resolutions removing support for more wind turbines in their municipalities. This number has more than doubled since the provincial government announced in late May that they were going to address municipal concerns with the wind turbine program.  Two more Councils, Greater Napanee and West Elgin, are expected to consider related resolutions at meetings this week.

This growing opposition is a response to activities by wind turbine companies in areas not previously affected by projects and an understanding that Ontario does not need more electricity at this time.  Municipalities are seeing the impact of existing turbines on their communities or their neighbours and do not want the same things to happen in their municipality.  The government’s proposals for community benefit…

Here, from The Wellington Times, is Rick Conroy’s update on the fight to save the environment at Ostrander Point in Prince Edward County.

Reloading

Eric Gillespie speaks to a gathering of the Prince Edward County Field Naturalists last week in Bloomfield.

PECFN readies for courtroom battle to defend Ostrander Point from MOE and developer

It was an evening to celebrate—to recognize a most improbable win against two powerful adversaries. It was also time to begin preparations for the next battle to save Ostrander Point from the development of industrial wind turbines.

The Prince Edward County Field Naturalists (PECFN) gathered last week at a hall in Bloomfield for a feast of homemade casseroles, salads and squares to rejoice in the Environmental Review Tribunal decision to revoke the approval of a nine industrial wind turbine project on Ostrander Point on south shore of Prince Edward County. The Tribunal ruled that…

We reported yesterday that Gilead Power is actively prospecting for landowners to lease 10,000 hectares of land for a wind power project. The citizens of Greater Napanee held a public information meeting last night. Note the comments from a landowner who has been approached numerous times by the aggressive wind power developer.

Here is a report from local resident Bill Daverne.

Greater Napanee says “No”

Tuesday night, the Town of Greater Napanee held an open council meeting dedicated to public input on the proposed Gilead Power 40-80MW Dorland wind power project.

Dorland is to be sited in a 10,000-hectare swath of properties south and east of Hay Bay in the waterfront community in which Sir John A. Macdonald lived as a child, and which is today a mix of farms, residences and recreation properties.

Lease acquisition is well underway, but no Feed In Tariff or FIT contract has been…

Up today on Energy Probe is Parker Gallant’s analysis of Ontario’s Green Energy Act. Read on for who benefits (hint: it’s not you).

Parker Gallant: Ontario’s Ministry of Energy creates Canada’s biggest Ponzi scheme

The press release on September 24, 2013 from the Attorney General’s (AG) office was headlined: “Attorney General recovers $17 million for Victims of Ponzi Scheme” and went on to describe how the money had been seized and sent to the American authorities in respect to a US-orchestrated “Ponzi Scheme.”

The definition of “Ponzi Scheme” from the “Legal Dictionary” is:  “A fraudulent investment plan in which the investments of later investors are used to pay earlier investors, giving the appearance that the investments of the initial participants dramatically increase in value in a short amount of time.”

In the case of Ontario’s Ministry of Energy those “investments of later investors” is the billions of dollars extracted from…

Gilead Power sets sights on 10,000 hectares of land for wind power

Wind power means natural gas

Gilead Power, whose Ostrander Point project is stalled pending an appeal of the Environmental Review Tribunal decision rescinding approval of the project in a fragile environment in Prince Edward County (the company also has plans for a wind power project on Crown land in the Algoma region), is currently prospecting for willing landowners to lease land for another wind power project.
According to the company’s website, the proposed Dorland project is in Lennox-Addington, near Napanee. There is potential for 40-80 MW of wind power.
With the conversion of the Lennox plant to natural gas, the Dorland project will be close to the REAL source of power for wind power facilities: natural gas.
The company’s website is here.
According to a joint presentation made earlier this year by the Professional Engineers of Ontario and…

Ontario’s “voodoo math” and electricity system

From Sarnia area local business paper First Monday, an opinion piece by Brian Keelan. (Who needs correcting on the notion that wind power generation is “carbon free—wind needs a real source of power such as natural gas behind it.) We especially appreciate Mr Keelan’s observation that the Liberal government’s energy policies have effectively resulted in “civil war” in Ontario. Read on…

I am furious green

Here in Sarnia Lambton we have been hearing that Nova is considering building a new polyethylene plant to go along with the three plants they already have (and which employ about 830 of Sarnia/Lambton’s taxpayers in what are widely believed to be great jobs). But… that polyethylene plant is also being considered for the Gulf coast of the USA due to a much better energy price; instead of paying 3.5 to…