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Welcome to PURE Community-Based Sustainable Energy Strategies for Dufferin County and the Headwaters Region
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Media Release FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - January 12, 2004 Shelburne Renewable Energy Co-op For Headwaters Country Our ancestors before us pioneered this land, fueling their homes from the surrounding trees. You too can be a modern-day pioneer, by getting involved in the next evolution of power generation. It’s a natural. As one of the highest and windiest regions in Ontario, with plenty of flat, wide-open windswept spaces, where better to introduce wind power generation than Dufferin County. Power-Up Renewable Energy Co-Op (PURE) has been established to do just that, and more. A not-for-profit co-operative, "PURE" is being developed by an enthusiastic group of Dufferin County and Headwaters area residents, first brought together at a seminal workshop with the Ontario Sustainable Energy Association, in May 2003. PURE’s mission is to encourage local businesses, government and individuals to engage in energy conservation, phase out the use of fossil fuels and adopt renewable energy technologies such as wind turbines, solar panels, small-scale hydro and ground source heat pumps. The group is focusing on a variety of awareness-raising campaigns and local renewable energy projects. Membership is open to anyone who would like to be a part of this green energy initiative. Since the summer of 2003, PURE’s founding members have been holding meetings, usually every other Thursday at 7:00 p.m., at Jelly Craft Bakery, in Shelburne. All interested parties are welcome at these organizational gatherings. Stay tuned: coming later this Winter, PURE plans to host a major open-house Saturday-afternoon meeting for the public, offering information, expert speakers and welcoming new members. To find out how to be part of the change in Dufferin County and nearby areas, contact one of these PURE members: Chris Kotwas, 519-925-1710, chriskotwas@onelec.com
BACKGROUND Earth’s climate is changing, and our atmosphere is currently warming at the fastest rate in recorded history. Mounting scientific evidence presented by The David Suzuki Foundation points to the burning of fossil fuels as being the greatest human contributor to climate change. As climate change progresses, human communities, particularly rural and agricultural communities, are threatened by increasingly intense storms, more frequent episodes of flooding and severe drought. These processes could make many of our planet’s unique ecosystems uninhabitable in less than two generations! As one gazes over the bucolic beauty of Dufferin County, surely one of the landscape gems in Ontario, if not in all of Canada, such a scenario may seem unimaginable and/or too overwhelming to deal with. Rather than giving in to doom and gloom, grassroots organizations such as PURE encourage citizens to join the rapidly growing post-petroleum revolution to reduce smog, acid rain and climate change by helping their region make the necessary transition away from coal, oil and natural gas toward clean, renewable energy systems. According to a recent study by Canadian Institute for Environmental Law and Policy (CEILAP), in 2001, Canada installed mere 190 mega watts (MW) of wind-generated electricity generation as compared to Germany’s more than 6,000 MW, 5250 MW in the US and almost 3,000 MW in Denmark. The Canadian Wind Energy Association estimates that this country could install 10,000 MW of wind power generation by 2010. Ontario, which currently has only three megawatts of wind power generation capacity, has the potential to generate 24,700 MW, according to Ontario Power Generation. Although Dufferin County is currently renowned for its good air quality, smog and acid rain know no boundaries. The Ontario Medical Association reports that poor air quality kills more than 2,000 Ontario citizens a year and costs the province’s economy millions of dollars annually. A major contributor to air pollution are Ontario’s coal-fired plants that spew out the equivalent of exhaust from 6.2million cars. In addition to the obvious advantage of cleaner air, green energy projects offer potential economic benefits to rural and small town communities, from saving consumers money on their energy bills to job creation and training in a burgeoning new field. The American Corn Growers Foundation reports that on-farm wind generation is fast becoming a valuable source of income for cash-strapped farmers. Local power supplies also mean greater efficiency by eliminating long-distance fuel transportation and the reduction of hefty infrastructure costs. As opposed to filling the coffers of remote multinational energy companies that pour billions of tax dollars via government subsidies into nuclear and coal plants (the federal government spent $16 billion over the past 50 years on Canada’s nuclear industry, more than $40 billion over thirty years on fossil fuels), smaller–scale green energy delivers power directly to its region at far less cost, monetarily and to the environment. For instance, according to the Ontario Clean Air Alliance, re-commissioning the Pickering A nuclear plant cost Ontario electricity consumers around $1.25 billion, or $2,400 per kilowatt. Energy from a new wind turbine costs $1,500 per kW, the fuel is FREE, and it presents no hazardous waste disposal issues. One of the issues slowing the progress of wind turbines in Ontario is the misperception that they kill large numbers of migratory birds. Recent evidence, however, suggests that when compared to other common hazards such as office buildings, electrical towers and chimneystacks, the number of birds killed by wind turbines is miniscule. Studies by the Toronto wind power organization WindShare estimate that while tall buildings kill on average 10,000 birds per year, the mortality rate due to wind generation is approximately 2 birds per turbine per year. Conventional forms of electricity generation often pose a far greater threat to wildlife. Consider also that today’s larger, slower-turning more powerful turbines have further reduced the threat to birds. Indeed, efficient, effective technologies to generate and distribute wind power, and other alternative energy sources, are evolving rapidly and are being implemented across Europe, Japan, India and to a lesser degree across North, Central and South America. All that is needed to make this a true revolution here at home is public commitment, enlightened education and government policies that offer incentives to schools and businesses to place greater emphasis on training in green energy and conservation while facilitating individual access to alternative power sources. Governments tend to lead by following the voice of the people. By joining a local renewable energy co-op such as PURE and speaking up for green energy, more and more individuals are becoming part of the solution for a healthier future for our children and our planet. PURE joins in a larger Ontario alternative energy co-op movement that includes Toronto Renewable Energy Co-op (TREC) and Hamilton-Wentworth’s Positive Power. Co-ops tend to attract a broad range of citizens and are appealing for their voluntary, open membership, independence and reliance on democratic co-operative decision-making process. They encourage member economic participation and promote community building, and there are thousands providing alternative products and services to millions of Canadians. Some Links Ontario Sustainable Energy Association Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA) Canadian Association for Renewable Energies PlanetFriendly: wind generation and green energy Pollution Probe’s new "Primer on the Technologies of Renewable Energy" Canadian Co-operative Association |