| March 2 - QUEEN'S PARK RALLY re: Power Plant |
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March 2, 2010: An Outdoor Rally took place at Queen's Park (the Ontario Legislature) to demonstrate against the proposed 900MW gas-fired power plant to be sited in the stressed Clarkson-Oakville Airshed. Citizens from Oakville, Mississauga and beyond made the trip to Toronto in 40 buses provided by Citizens for Clean Air (C4CA), who organized the Rally. TransCanada's Oakville Generating Station (OGS) is proposed to be sited in the taxed Clarkson-Oakville Airshed per the decision by the Ontario Power Authority (OPA). Mississauga residents attended in order to demonstrate that there should be NO Power Plant ANYWHERE in this Airshed. PHOTO MONTAGE: Click here to view photos and speakers' quotes from the Rally. © All photos copyright. YouTube recordings linked in Media Coverage further below. SPEAKERS: Mississauga Mayor This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it was scheduled to speak but was ill with a cold and could not attend. Mississauga South MPP This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and Ward 2 Councillor This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it both spoke on behalf of Mississauga residents. Oakville Mayor This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , Oakville MPP This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , Halton Regional Chair This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and Oakville MP This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it also spoke. Mayor This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it of King Township, Ontario, spoke of her community's battle against a 393MW natural gas-fired generation plant which is proposed for the Holland Marsh (see Toronto Star article below). The opening guest speaker was Oakville resident Michael "Pinball" Clemons. Mississauga South MPP This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , Press Release (March 2, 2010): Charles' Remarks at Queen's Park Rally (also excerpted below). Oakville Mayor This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , News Release (March 3, 2010): Community rallies at Queen's Park to oppose power plant. MEDIA COVERAGE King Township Sentinel article (March 10, 2010): King residents go to fight ‘the good fight’ at Queen’s Park. Excerpt: "Concerned Citizens of King Township (CCKT) ... said that the Independent Electricity Supply Operators [IESO], who oversee electricity supply in Ontario, report that over the next 18 months demand for electricity is expected to show very modest growth. Peak demand, on the other hand, is expected to decline as a result of targeted conservation programs and the deployment of smart meters and time-of-use rates for residential and small business customers. The Township is awaiting the commencement of hearings at the Ontario Municipal Board regarding the legality of placing power generation on protected lands within the Provincial Greenbelt and the suitability of the site which sits on a flood plain." National Post opinion column, by This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , CEO of the Ontario Power Authority (March 8, 2010): Setting the record straight on the Oakville Generating Station. Excerpt: "During last week's protest at Queen's Park against the proposed Oakville Generating Station, unfounded allegations were made about the competitive process used by the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) to select a new natural gas-fired power plant for the Southwest Greater Toronto Area. Those allegations were published in the National Post. As a result, the OPA has a responsibility to set the record straight." Print edition includes colour aerial map of the proposed location. HERE IS THE LINK TO THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE: Below is the YouTube recording of Mayor Burton's remarks: Mississauga News article (Torstar Network - March 3, 2010): Rally fails to nix plant. Toronto Star article (March 3, 2010): Protesters rally against Oakville power plant. Excerpt: "The government showed no sign of backing down on a new natural gas-fired power plant near homes and a school in Oakville as the area's MPP proposed a law forcing a new location and protesters flocked to the Legislature's front lawn. ... Energy Minister
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said the government wants the plant—slated for opening in 2014 by TransCanada Pipelines—to go ahead while the province works to mitigate residents’ fears. ... Outside, Oakville MPP
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said he’ll introduce a private members’ bill next Tuesday saying any such plant should not be within about 1.2 kilometers of homes or schools." National Post article (March 3, 2010): Residents rally against Oakville gas-fired plant. Excerpt: "Oakville Liberal MPP This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it told the crowd he would fight his own government, which awarded the contract for the 975-megawatt plant to TransCanada last fall, and attempt to stop the project. 'Next week, what I will be doing is introducing a private member's bill the first day this house comes back into session that will outlaw this power plant,' he said. Premier Dalton McGuinty told reporters the plant will follow all necessary regulations to ensure safety. ... Mississauga Councillor This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it called the project 'insane,' referring to a recent government study that stated the air quality in the region was stressed. 'This very government is going to put a power plant in the very area that they studied, and indicated that was stressed,' she said. Oakville Mayor This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it alleged that the Ontario Power Authority ran a 'rigged, dishonest, corrupt process,' and called on Mr. McGuinty to shut them down." Below is the YouTube recording of remarks made by MPP Kevin Flynn and Halton Regional Chair Gary Carr: Globe and Mail article (March 3, 2010): Protesters demand Ontario cancel plans for natural gas plant. Excerpt: "The rally, one of the largest in recent memory at Queen's Park, was organized by a group calling itself Citizens for Clean Air. The group has the support of one of Mr. McGuinty's own backbenchers ... This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , Liberal MPP for the riding of Oakville ... promised to introduce a private member's bill next week asking that gas-fired plants in Ontario be located farther from communities. ... He said he is not worried about jeopardizing his relations with the Premier. In fact, he said, he has discussed the project with Mr. McGuinty and said his boss is prepared to take a second look at it." Mississauga News article (March 2, 2010): Power plant fight wages on. Excerpt: "Among the protesters were Mississauga residents who had already fought a successful fight to keep the plant from being built in Clarkson. ... 'But [according to MIRANET] it’s not over yet by a long shot. The message is that we’re still affected...that there’s no safe place in this stressed airshed for a power plant.' Mississauga South MPP Charles Sousa, who also attended the rally, promised to continue fighting for emissions cuts." Mississauga South MPP This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Press Release (March 2, 2010): Charles' Remarks at Queen's Park Rally. Excerpt: "What brings us together is the concern we all share about our air quality and our desire to improve it. ... I know that for many years our community has had concerns about the Cumulative effect of emissions and their impact on our health. ... That’s why I celebrated the demolition of the coal plant at Lakeview. ... I appreciate that my colleague, [Oakville MPP] This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , is also very engaged on this issue. However, my community is concerned about any proposal that, while excluding Oakville as a site for a new power plant, would allow, or even encourage, the siting of one in south Mississauga. As I and many in our two communities have often said, the issue is about the quality of our airshed. ... I would never suggest, as I am sure my colleague agrees, that such reductions should come at the expense of another community. ... Bottom line: we want, and I support, reductions in emissions, not more emissions." Toronto Star article (Canadian Press - March 2, 2010): Protesters rally over Oakville gas-plant plan. Excerpt: "The plant is needed to meet the province's growing energy demands, [Ontario Premier Dalton] McGuinty said, adding that he will follow all the rules and regulations required to ensure Ontario facilities are safe. ... His comments did little to appease Oakville Mayor This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , who called the plan a 'dumb' idea that must be scrapped. ... Despite the premier's comments, [Oakville MPP This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it said he believed McGuinty would take a second look at the plans, and maybe consider building a different facility near an existing generating station in Nanticoke." Citytv - CityNews (March 2, 2010): Residents Protest Oakville Power Plant At Queen’s Park. Includes video report. Toronto Sun article (March 2, 2010): Protesters deride proposed power plants. Excerpt: "Vowing to stop the province’s plan to build natural gas-fired power plants in Oakville and King Township, a throng of concerned citizens rallied at Queen’s Park Tuesday. ... With drums beating, Raise a Little Hell playing on a loudspeaker, and the support of numerous politicians from all levels of government, more than 1,000 people sent a message to Premier Dalton McGuinty." Oakville Beaver article (March 2, 2010): Two thousand join protest: Power plant opponents storm Queen's Park. Excerpt: "In a scrum with media at Queen's Park, the Minister of Energy and Infrastructure This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it said he was listening to residents, but offered little assurance those concerns would be addressed. 'There are tough decisions that need to be made ... I think it's important that we are sure that there's no concerns that are being raised that should lead us to reconsider any decisions that have been made. So, I am open to hearing their concerns.'" Citizens for Clean Air (C4CA), Press Release (March 2, 2010): Regulation to Ensure Safer Power Plants Needed in Ontario, Representatives from All Levels of Government Say. Excerpt: "C4CA is a coalition of concerned citizens and organizations calling for an immediate reconsideration of the proposed 975 megawatt gas fired power plant in the Oakville/Mississauga community in view of apparent safety, health and other risks. The plant would be located extremely close to many homes and schools alongside critical railway lines and highway arteries in an already unfairly burdened community suffering from toxic air according to provincial and federal government studies." Oakville Beaver article (March 1, 2010): Queen’s Park power plant protest organizers rallying for support. Excerpt: "Can one demonstration make a difference? The residents’ group Citizens for Clean Air (C4CA) is hoping a large enough one can ... at the heart of the matter is the pollution many believe the power plant will bring to the already polluted Clarkson/Oakville airshed. ... size will definitely matter on the day of the Queen’s Park Rally [March 2 @ NOON]." NASDAQ News Online (Feb. 25, 2010): Sithe Keeps Gas-Fired Canadian Plant On Back Burner. Excerpt: "Sithe Global still has hopes of developing its 820 MW gas-fired Southdown plant, though it was not the chosen bidder in the Ontario Power Authority's bid to supply power to the Toronto area." Town of Oakville, Office of the Mayor - News Release (Feb. 24, 2010): Oakville Mayor Rob Burton urges concerned residents to attend Tuesday's power plant rally at Queen's Park. Excerpt: "Mayor
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is urging residents to join him and other members of Town Council Tuesday at Queen's Park [on March 2] at a rally to show opposition to the 900 megawatt power plant planned for Oakville. ... 'Everybody who believes power plants don't belong where they can cause harm needs to come to this rally,' Mayor Burton said. 'The Province has to know that the people of Ontario expect them to protect their safety and health. Power plants must be in safe places, period. This government needs to take a leadership role in protecting its citizens.'" Oakville Beaver article (Feb. 12, 2010): Power plant opponents will march on Queen’s Park. Toronto Star article (Jan. 20, 2010): "King Township tries to derail power plant". Excerpt: "It may only delay what some believe is inevitable, but King Township is doing its best to derail plans for a natural gas-fired power plant in York Region. Councillors voted Monday night for an interim control bylaw that would prevent Calgary-based power developer Pristine Power from constructing the controversial "peaker" facility until land-use issues are more thoroughly studied, which could take a few months. ... King is the second municipality in less than two months to throw a wrench in provincial plans to power more of the GTA and surrounding communities with natural gas. Oakville passed a similar interim bylaw last March to slow attempts by TransCanada Energy Ltd. to build what's expected to be the largest natural gas-fired plant in Canada, on property owned by Ford Motor Co. TransCanada and Ford appealed to the Ontario Municipal Board, which upheld the bylaw. TransCanada has appealed that decision to Ontario Superior Court." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Biography: L. David Pengelly, M.Sc., Ph.D., P.Eng. – Hamilton, Ontario. Dr. Pengelly is currently Associate Clinical Professor, Department of Medicine, a member of the McMaster Institute of Environment and Health, and Professor Emeritus, Department of Engineering Physics at McMaster University in Hamilton. That air pollution is an important issue within the Clarkson-Oakville Airshed is recognized by the Ontario government, which created the provincial Air Quality Task Force. "The Task Force will develop a comprehensive action plan to reduce emissions from local industry, traffic, residences, and transboundary sources to improve air quality in the Southwest GTA, specifically in the Oakville – Clarkson Airshed." PLUME MODELING: Preliminary modeling being done on the path of the emissions plume from the proposed Oakville Generating Station, using wind readings from four surrounding airports, shows emissions travelling directly over Southwest Mississauga within our unique lakeside microclimate. C4CA has released this initial aerial depiction (click). This is an AIR war, not a GROUND war, and there is NO SAFE PLACE in the Clarkson-Oakville Airshed for a gas-fired power plant. |
