For Immediate Release
June 15, 2005
Nanticoke
to remain open after 2007
Common sense has prevailed - Barrett
Queens Park - After
two years of calling on Dalton McGuinty to admit Nanticoke OPG is too
essential to shut down by 2007, Haldimand-Norfolk-Brant MPP Toby Barrett
is hopeful an announcement to break their promise and keep the power producer
open will mean further investment in pollution abatement.
“Quite frankly
this is one promise they had to break - I've argued constantly in this
legislature for government to do the right thing and admit they could
not walk away from, up to, 25 percent of our energy production.”
said Barrett. “It looks like they may have finally taken the blinders
off and realized that with the instability of the current energy picture,
the power produced by our 600 workers at Nanticoke is essential.”
Barrett further called
on the government to grab this opportunity for further investment into
smog reduction technology.
“Now that the
Ontario Liberals have finally clarified their mixed messages and given
Nanticoke workers an eye to the future, this government can cool its rhetoric
and get down to some real smog reduction work.” Barrett stated.
“As I said in the legislature last week, ‘smog can be fixed;
smog should be fixed, technology is available - and it's in use right
now - to cut 99% of particulate matter, 96% of NOx, 92% of SOx from fossil
fuel generators.’”
The previous Tory
government paved the way for investment into fossil fuel smog reduction
with a $250 million investment into Selective Catalytic Reduction Units
at both the Nanticoke and Lambton coal fired electricity plants.
Nanticoke GS, representing
3,938 megawatts, will have units closed through 2008 with the last unit
to close in early 2009. In addition to new generation capacity, transmission
upgrades in southwestern Ontario are necessary for the closure of Nanticoke.
Between 2004 and 2007,
Ontario is shutting down more new generating capacity than any other jurisdiction
in all of North America – at a cost of billions.
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For more information
please contact MPP Toby Barrett at: 519-428-0446, 905-765-8413 or 1-800-903-8629
Due to urgency of announcement, those wishing immediate interviews are
asked to contact: Rob Willett @ 519-410-1621
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