Ontario's energy future had…

Ontario's energy future had better be based upon an aggressive energy conservation program coupled with extensive use of the many green energy options available to us in this Province.  The fact that the current government botched the green energy program thus far does not indicate that it is an impossible option.

We could use run of the river hydro generation that causes much less environmental impact than large dams and their reservoirs.  Wind, solar heating passive and active are good options for our province.  Geothermal can be used for space heating and where it is hot enough the generation of electrical power.  Solar electric could be drastically expanded and all renewables that generate electricity need a smart grid to manage the diversity of power available over time and space.

It is a truism that our use of energy in Canada is inefficient.  Becoming more efficient is the low hanging fruit in the quest to drastically lower our greenhouse gas emissions.  We need a comprehensive energy conservation programs across all sectors residential, commercial and industrial infrastructure, transportation and so on.  Super insulation, passive solar heating incorporated into new construction and retrofitted into old is needed.

To drive this we need government carrot and stick programs.  One that works well is a carbon tax which is more transparent that cap and trade and rewards those who conserve or convert to green energy while penalizing those who do not.

We need an honest accounting of why our present green energy programs have failed and need evidence based non-ideological programs based on the successes of other countries around the world.   We owe it to ourselves and to the world to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions as low as possible. it should be our goal to beat the targets set at Paris.  Ontario has the largest concentration of talent in the country.  We need to harness that to make a rapid and vital transition to a green energy sector.

[Original Comment ID: 204805]