Even as the Climate Crisis Grows More Destructive To People and Property, Ontario’s Ford Conservatives Could Care Less About Joining the Renewable Energy Revolution

Ontario Premier Doug Ford and his Conservatives Place Carbon Fuels – Polluting Oil and Gas – Ahead of the Health and Welfare of Present and Future Generations in Our Province

A Call-Out from the Ontario Clean Air Coalition, a not-for-profit citizens group pressing for greener sources of energy

Posted October 6^th, 2023 on Niagara At Large

Why is Doug Ford ignoring the renewable energy revolution?

The world is going renewable – but don’t take our word for it.  That’s the finding of the International Energy Agency (IEA) [https://www.iea.org/news/renewable-power-s-growth-is-being-turbocharged-as-countries-seek-to-strengthen-energy-security], long a bosom buddy of the oil and gas industry.

According to the IEA, renewables are set to account for over 90% of global electricity expansion over the next five years, overtaking coal to be the largest source of global electricity by early 2025!

As the IEA notes, the continued acceleration of renewables is critical to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

It’s a hard-to-miss story, but the Ford government is doing its absolute best not to look. This province hasn’t contracted for a single kilowatt of wind or solar power during the last five years.

Ontario was once a leader in developing renewable technologies, but that came to a screeching halt with the election of the Ford Government. Now this province is all-in on buggy whips: betting big on an outdated 1950s energy plan focused on  polluting fossil gas [https://www.cleanairalliance.org/campaigns/gas/] and  high-cost nuclear [https://www.cleanairalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Darlington-New-Nuclear-Report-ONLINE-aug-01-v_02.pdf]. It’s like deciding to manufacture typewriters at the dawn of the internet age.

This will lead to  higher electricity prices [https://www.cleanairalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/options2023-may.pdf] for everyone in Ontario. And it will also lead to Ontario missing out on the biggest economic and technological shift since the internet. That matters, because the shift to  renewables [https://www.cleanairalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Great-Lakes-Wind-Report-apr-17-v_01.pdf] is going to be massive. And Ontario is sitting on the sidelines.

The Ford Government hopes to make Ontario a leader in EV battery manufacturing. But already it is facing  steep competition from places like Quebec [https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/making-the-world-s-cleanest-batteries-in-quebec-802865250.html#:~:text=Northvolt%27s%20facility%20will%20focus%20on,of%20only%20a%20handful%20of] that can supply EV battery manufacturers with low-cost, clean renewable power. According to the CEO of Northvolt, Quebec’s clean waterpower will  “slash by half the total footprint of the carbon dioxide required to produce batteries [https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/northvolt-gets-billions-from-canada-to-build-quebec-ev-battery-plant-1.1977685].”

Meanwhile, Doug Ford’s plan to ramp up the  greenhouse gas pollution of our gas plants by 700% [https://www.cleanairalliance.org/campaigns/gas/] will throw away the clean energy advantage that we achieved by phasing out dirty coal. We are going in the wrong direction.

What you can do

1.     Please help us distribute our  NEW pamphlet [https://www.cleanairalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Wind-and-Solar-Pamphlet-ONLINE-sep-25.pdf]: Why is Doug Ford turning his back on renewables while the world goes green?  Click here to order FREE pamphlets [https://www.cleanairalliance.org/pamphlets/] to share with your friends and neighbours.

2.      Please click here to tell Premier Ford that Ontario needs to start investing in Made-in-Ontario wind and solar energy NOW [https://www.cleanairalliance.org/gorenewable] – to lower our electricity bills and create good, green jobs.

Thanks for your help! -Angela Bischoff, Director

For more, click here https://ocaa.cmail20.com/t/y-e-xlyutdk-iykiildiyd-w/

The Ontario Clean Air Alliance (OCAA), established in 1997, successfully led the campaign to phase out the use of dirty coal power in Ontario. We are now working to move our province to a 100% renewable electricity system. This includes replacing our high-emission gas power plants and high-cost nuclear power stations with a combination of conservation, made-in-Ontario wind and solar power, and water power imports and storage from Quebec. Together these would lower our electricity bills and greenhouse gas pollution. For more info click on : CleanAirAlliance.org OntarioClimateAction.ca

Please Check this CBC story out and ask yourselves why so many Ontario voters gave Ford and his government their support again in the 2022 provincial election – https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ford-proud-cancel-green-energy-1.5368745

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“A Politician Thinks Of The Next Election. A Leader Thinks Of The Next Generation.” – Bernie Sanders