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Premier Doug Ford's Ontario

Ontario’s energy minister takes heat for quoting from magazine casting doubt on climate change

From link.

Ontario Energy Minister Greg Rickford is taking heat for quoting from an online magazine — which denies the scientific consensus on climate change — to justify scrapping more than 750 renewable energy projects at a cost to taxpayers of $231 million.

For the second day in a row, Rickford referred Tuesday to an article in the U.S.-based Climate Change Dispatch headlined “Germany pulls plug on wind energy as industry suffers severe crisis,” as the NDP raised concerns about the Ontario government’s cancellation of wind turbine and solar projects.

Rickford called it “one of my favourite periodicals” and quoted from the piece, stating Germany is “struggling to keep the (electricity) grid stable” because of erratic wind energy and its subsidies that caused “German electricity prices to become among the most expensive worldwide.”


Opposition parties jumped on Rickford for relying on the magazine, whose website says it “does not believe in consensus science” and describes “global warming alarmists” as “those who believe man is wholly or largely responsible for any fluctuation in the planet’s overall surface temperature.”

“It’s shocking,” said New Democrat Leader Andrea Horwath, slamming the Ford government for cancelling the Liberal cap-and-trade program aimed at curbing greenhouse gas emissions, firing the independent environmental commissioner and scrapping programs to promote electric vehicles.

“Everything they’re doing is falling in line with people who would be denying climate change.”

The magazine’s main headline Tuesday was “Why apocalyptic claims about climate change are wrong.”

Rickford maintained it was “appropriate” to quote from Climate Change Dispatch because the German experience with wind farms is “remarkably similar to the situation that we have.”
Click to expand...

While Germany has been running into opposition as it expands electricity generation from wind turbines and the pace of this expansion has slowed, the country relied on wind for 18.8 per cent of its electricity in 2017, according to a recent news report from Deutsche Welle, the country’s public broadcaster. Germany has almost 30,000 wind turbines.

Rickford took the previous Liberal government to task for signing contracts on the renewable energy projects that Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives cancelled in July 2018 to save electricity ratepayers $790 million, saying the power they would have supplied is not needed.

Green Leader Mike Schreiner described Rickford’s choice of briefing material as “incredibly reckless and irresponsible.”

“If we have a minister of energy who doesn’t believe that humans are responsible for climate change, that’s a pretty serious problem,” added Liberal interim leader John Fraser.

The furor erupted as a group of students announced an Ontario Superior Court lawsuit, shepherded by the environmental law charity Ecojustice, against the Ford government for “weakening the province’s climate targets and jeopardizing their futures.”
Click to expand...

“I believe in climate change and I believe in literature that supports a balanced article on any given subject matter that points out both sides of the coin, right?” he told reporters.

“As a man well studied, I’ve relied on literature sources that oppose my views and my opinions throughout my legal education and other education that I’ve taken,” added Rickford, who is trained as a lawyer and a nurse.

“It’s important that you consider all periodicals and sources of literature with differing views … that was the consideration that was given.”

In regard to the $231 million the government has allocated to compensate developers of the cancelled renewable energy projects, Ontario’s auditor general, Bonnie Lysyk, told Horwath in a letter that she signed off on the estimate last spring and will “revisit” it in her audit next year.

Horwath has been pushing the Ford government to call in Lysyk to do a special audit on the program, which so far has seen $1.1 million paid out to 13 developers — an average of just under $85,000 each.
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From the Globe:

www.theglobeandmail.com

Former Ontario police commander Brad Blair challenges new law that limits lawsuits against province

Lawyer for Brad Blair alleges the Progressive Conservatives’ Crown Liability Act is ‘a shameless exercise in public officials trying to duck accountability at every level’
www.theglobeandmail.com www.theglobeandmail.com

Speaking of which - does anyone notice that provincial government ads are popping up all the time on Youtube - be it the government proper or Metrolinx. I wonder how much money they spent on these (dont tell me, it'd need a FOIA).

AoD
 
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Good news I suppose- but a I'll-believe-it-when-I-see-it sort of thing.

Three of Canada's premiers will announce they'll fight climate change by working together on small nuclear reactors, a company that's developing the technology says.

New Brunswick-based ARC Nuclear Canada says in a news release that its president will attend a signing ceremony Sunday between the provinces of New Brunswick, Ontario and Saskatchewan to work in collaboration on the modular reactors "in an effort to mitigate the effects of climate change."

The Ontario government says Premier Doug Ford will meet with Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe and New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs for an announcement at a hotel near Pearson International Airport on Sunday afternoon.
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regina.ctvnews.ca

Ford, Moe and Higgs to announce deal on development of small nuclear reactors

Three of Canada's premiers will announce they'll fight climate change by working together on small nuclear reactors, a company that's developing the technology says.
regina.ctvnews.ca

And IMO, nuclear > wind or solar when trying to replace base load generation.
 
Not a bad idea in an on itself - though I suspect it is more to put the Liberals in a tough spot (pro/anti-nuclear factions).

As to the reactor itself - liquid sodium is notoriously reactive and difficult to work with. I am not sure how they will get around that reality in small reactor vs. some more benign coolant options.

AoD
 
Ontarians with full and part-time jobs increasingly using food banks, report says

BY MICHELLE MCQUIGGE THE CANADIAN PRESS
Posted December 3, 2019 6:14 am

globalnews.ca

Ontarians with full and part-time jobs increasingly using food banks, report says

Feed Ontario says the number of food bank users with jobs has gone up 27 per cent over the past three years.
globalnews.ca globalnews.ca

Number of first-time food bank users in Sudbury "through the roof"

Proportion of working poor and seniors behind jump in first-time users

Kate Rutherford - CBC News
Posted: December 02, 2019

 
AlbertC said:
Ontarians with full and part-time jobs increasingly using food banks, report says

BY MICHELLE MCQUIGGE THE CANADIAN PRESS
Posted December 3, 2019 6:14 am

globalnews.ca

Ontarians with full and part-time jobs increasingly using food banks, report says

Feed Ontario says the number of food bank users with jobs has gone up 27 per cent over the past three years.
globalnews.ca globalnews.ca

Number of first-time food bank users in Sudbury "through the roof"

Proportion of working poor and seniors behind jump in first-time users

Kate Rutherford - CBC News
Posted: December 02, 2019

Click to expand...

With minimum wages unchanged, expect more use of the food banks.
 
W. K. Lis said:
With minimum wages unchanged, expect more use of the food banks.
Click to expand...

So lets revisit the minimum wage question shall we; without too much compassion, lets look at what the rates are in peer-group US Cities.

As at July 1, 2020:

NYC - $15 USD
L.A. - $15 USD
San Fran - $15 USD
Washington DC - $15USD
Chicago - $14USD
Seattle $15.75USD (small employers), $16.39 (large employers)

Same Cities in CAD

NYC - $19.85 CAD
L.A. - $19.85 CAD
San Fran - $19.85 CAD
Washington DC - $19.85 CAD
Chicago - $18.53 CAD
Seattle $20.85 CAD (small employers), $21.69 (large employers)

Minimum wage needs to rise, substantially. At $19CAD per hour, we would be leaving ample room to be competitive; an argument could be made for more.
 
Northern Light said:
So lets revisit the minimum wage question shall we; without too much compassion, lets look at what the rates are in peer-group US Cities.

As at July 1, 2020:

NYC - $15 USD
L.A. - $15 USD
San Fran - $15 USD
Washington DC - $15USD
Chicago - $14USD
Seattle $15.75USD (small employers), $16.39 (large employers)

Same Cities in CAD

NYC - $19.85 CAD
L.A. - $19.85 CAD
San Fran - $19.85 CAD
Washington DC - $19.85 CAD
Chicago - $18.53 CAD
Seattle $20.85 CAD (small employers), $21.69 (large employers)

Minimum wage needs to rise, substantially. At $19CAD per hour, we would be leaving ample room to be competitive; an argument could be made for more.
Click to expand...

IMO, I'd like a regional variable minimum wage- as costs-of-living and potential revenues are far different in say, Kenora than they are in Toronto, it's may potentially be harmful subjecting all of Ontario to a Toronto-centric policy.

Even something like Seattle's policy would work.
 
jje1000 said:
IMO, I'd like a regional variable minimum wage- as costs-of-living and potential revenues are far different in say, Kenora than they are in Toronto, it's may potentially be harmful subjecting all of Ontario to a Toronto-centric policy.

Even something like Seattle's policy would work.
Click to expand...

Several US States either permit or legislate differential rates.

Oregon, by state law sets 3 tiers, Portland; Portland's Burbs and Smaller cities; and rural.

Washington State, California, Illinois and Colorado all allow different minimum wages in Cities set by local government.

New York State sets minimum wage for NYC, NYC suburbs and then the rest of the State.

It would be reasonable to set a minimum wage for the GTHA; at about a 10-15% premium to the province-wide number.

So, let's say $18CAD for all of Ontario, and then $19.80CAD - $20.70CAD for the GTHA.
 
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