Archive for Portlands development

Well, the Portlands Energy Centre (PEC) Community Liason Committee (CLC) has met for the first time, and as we should have expected, it’s an exercise of PEC facing off against the community under the cover of “talking”.  It was disappointing.     Read more »

Tomorrow [Friday, February 2] is the deadline for submissions to the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corporation regarding visions for Toronto’s Lower Don Lands.  The TWRC is holding a design competition and wants input from the public about what they’d like to see at the mouth of the Don.  Please submit your vision.

I want to point out that I believe that this move has been prompted in no small part because of the courage and determination of people like Sharon Howarth, Karen Buck, Terry Fahey, Michael Rosenberg, David Hanna, Daniel Matmor and others who persisted in demanding a broader vision than what the City appeared to be offering.     Read more »

The government’s reaction to concerns raised by Environmental Commissioner Johanne Gelinas?  Replace her.

Ted Gruetzner, the public relations man for the PEC, wrote me a lovely note just as he was announcing the solar research park that’s been so bandied about in the last few days.  He told me that I had been instrumental in making this happen as he had met the solar researcher, Nazir Kherani, at a seminar I organized in May of 2006.

I like Nazir.  His research is critically important and I’m delighted that he has a place to do it.  I’m not so delighted if this somehow greenwashes the PEC, which remains an expensive and environmentally reckless approach to a problem we shouldn’t have.  Our emissions should be going down.  Our demand should be going down.     Read more »

One of the folks at Post Carbon Toronto sent around this clip about North American oil and gas supplies.  It is an interview with David Hughes, a geologist with Natural Resources Canada.     Read more »

The Young Environmental Professionals are hosting a debate between the PEC‘s exceedingly polite Public Relations guy, Ted Gruetzner, and our own Greg Bonser.

YEP Debate on the Portlands Energy Centre
Tuesday, 2006 November 28, 6 pm
Duke of York Pub
39 Prince Arthur Ave
(1 block North of Bloor at the Bedford exit of St George Station)
$5, food will be provided
RSVP events.yep@gmail.com

Greg was one of our young locals who immediately understood the problem the PEC posed.     Read more »

Peter Tabuns has organized a panel, consisting of Ralph Torrie and Keith Stewart to talk about why we don’t need the Portlands power plant.

Peter Tabuns’s energy forum
Wednesday, 2006 November 1, 7 pm
Ralph Thornton Centre
765 Queen St East (east of Broadview)
Free

See Peter’s flyer for more info.     Read more »

Don’t miss the YIMBY Festival this Saturday.

YIMBY Festival
Saturday, 2006 October 28, 11 am – 5 pm
Gladstone Hotel, 2nd floor
1214 Queen Street West
Family-friendly event
Free

On Wednesday, October 11, there was a second public consultation on what is being called a pipeline “reinforcement” for the line feeding the Portlands power plant (in reality a massive expansion, with a substantially larger pipe and increased pressure).  This meeting generated a far smaller crowd than the first and the following day, we learned why.  Most local residents received their notices regarding the event the day after it happened, including a number of Green supporters who contacted me.

Because of the number of public complaints, Stantec, the consulting company which is organizing these consultations, arranged for a third public consultation, and has just announced the date.     Read more »

At the next Port Lands Action Committee meeting we will be hearing from the Outer Harbour Sailing Federation and other groups.

Port Lands Action Committee meeting
Thursday, 2006 November 16 at 7pm 6pm.
Ralph Thornton Centre, 765 Queen St E
(just east of Broadview). Free.

All welcome.

Update 2006 November 14:

Please note the time change.  The meeting has been rescheduled to 6 pm instead of 7 pm.

Yesterday, I went to the Port Lands Action Committee (PLAC) meeting at the Ralph Thornton Centre.  Ed Chin was there, too.  It’s a bit of a misnomer, as no actions are ever taken, as far as I know.  In order to encourage the participation and input of industry and builders, organizer Dennis Findlay treats these meetings as information sessions.  It’s a great place to go to find out what’s being built and planned for the Portlands.     Read more »

Monica Oscilowski prepared this 8-minute video for the Toronto Energy Coalition, the coalition working to stop the Portlands power plant. Click it to watch.

The second open house for the natural gas pipeline expansion to feed the Portlands power plant will be held on Wednesday.

Wednesday, 2006 October 11 at 6pm to 9pm.
Toronto Fire Academy, 895 Eastern Ave.  Free.
(east of Leslie, south side)

The proposed route has been altered but basically the idea is the same.  We’re investing money to expand the pipe to feed the plant nobody wants.  The costs will be covered on your gas bill.

For more information, go to http://biketoronto.ca/topic/show/564.htm

On Monday, the Portlands Energy Centre announced that they had signed a deal with the Province to begin construction of the 550 MW power plant.  Transcanada issued its own press release as well.  This was widely reported in the Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail, the Toronto Sun, the National Post and others.     Read more »

There are serious environmental and health concerns related to the Portlands power plant. As part of my work for TEC (Toronto Energy Coalition, the citizen’s group working to stop the Portlands plant), I wrote a letter and sent it to Minister Broten, outlining these concerns, and requesting that the plant be elevated to a full Environmental Assessment. I also wrote a simpler version, which TEC is urging citizens to copy and send to the Minister as well.

A couple of days ago, I received a response from the Minister’s office,     Read more »

I’d like to thank Steve Downie, Susan Crofts and Dave Toderick for alerting me to the Toronto Star article about the sale of Canadian flow batteries to an Irish wind-power developer to even out the variations in wind electricity generation.  This is exciting news, and supports what the Realistic Energy Plan for Toronto, which I coauthored, proposed.     Read more »

Lana MacInnes has sent a link to an online petition requesting a full Environmental Assessment on the Portlands power plant as well as the gas pipeline reinforcement that it requires.  You can find this petition at http://www.petitiononline.com/PECPipe/petition.html.

Councillor Fletcher and our provincial and federal representatives, Peter Tabuns and Jack Layton, have also prepared a paper petition.  Paper petitions have greater credibility than online petitions, so if you have time to print one out and collect signatures for it, it’s worth the trouble.  If it troubles your Green conscience to have their names on the top, you can just take that part out.

Thank-you, Lana!

I met with the Toronto Energy Coalition Steering Committee last night. David Donnelly, a lawyer who has done a great deal of work for environmental causes, was there to offer his advice. There is some momentum.     Read more »

While the Portlands Energy Centre has not had a full environmental assessment, it turns out that building the gas pipeline to supply the power plant may require more public consultation than the plant itself.

This is Ontario, where you need an EA for a speed bump, but not for a nuclear power plant.  Your government, at work for you.

So this is a public meeting to discuss the impacts of the pipeline.  Let’s get a crowd out there. Get enraged.  As this is one of the only meetings that actually involves a public consultation, it is imperative that we make a scene.  Call any friends you have who might be interested.  Let’s show some real opposition if we want to kill this plant.

Portlands Energy Centre Public Meeting.
Wednesday, 2006 September 6 at 6pm.
Matty Eckler Community Centre, 953 Gerrard St East
(at Pape, opposite Gerrard Square).  Free.

Stop the Plant, the website for the Toronto Energy Coalition, is up and running.

Minister Cansfield suggests that “It takes time to change a culture” when explaining why the Liberals believe that the people of Ontario can not conserve energy. I am sure that this has little to do with virtually no government investment in helping the economy become more efficient, nor would the active manipulation of electricity prices to manage political sentiment create disincentive to conserve.  It’s “the culture’s” fault.

If it is in the culture I would suggest to the Minister, the candidates in Toronto-Danforth, journalists and energy users to recognise that responding to peak electrical demand in the summer in Toronto has little to do with keeping lights on. It’s all about keeping air conditioners running. So let’s change the language and alleviate the fear of blackouts. At least that way, the culture can start to make an informed decision about turning their houses into refrigerators when it’s 25 degrees outside.

Greg Bonser
Toronto, Ontario

We will be maintaining updates on developing events surrounding the  construction of the Portlands Energy Centre, a 550 MW gas-fired generator about to be built at the base of our riding. The latest updates can be found by clicking on the  topic Portlands Energy Centre, which is always available in the sidebar on the right.

Stop the Portlands power plant

The website for the Stop the Plant coalition is up and running.

Two coalitions to oppose the construction of the Portlands Energy Centre have formed, and now appear to have combined.

A coalition to oppose the construction of the Portlands Energy Centre was created at a meeting of community-group representatives on Thursday, February 16. This coalition was created as a broad umbrella group specifically so that it could embrace existing alternative plans: both those that were for and those that were against a smaller plant on the same site.

At this first meeting, two dozen representatives of a dozen associations and community advocacy groups agreed on the following four principles:

1. The 550 MW gas-fired generator known as the Portlands Energy Centre and proposed by the Province must be stopped.
2. Residents of the City of Toronto must be engaged in a meaningful discussion of alternatives.
3. The primary response must be demand reduction.
4. Harm reduction (to environment and human health) should be the measure used to compare competing alternatives.

Councillor Paula Fletcher held a meeting in opposition to the Portlands Energy Centre on Wednesday, February 22. At this meeting, the supporters of the smaller plant agreed to broaden their coalition to include all who are opposed to the large plant being pushed by the province.

Given that the steering committee formed at the February 22 meeting significantly overlaps with the steering committee formed at the February 16 meeting, it looks very much like the coalitions are coalescing.