Parry Sound Muskoka MPP Norm Miller, Huntsville Mayor Karin Terziano, Ontario Energy Minister Todd Smith, and director of northern region operations for Enbridge Luke Skaarup held a press conference in front of Town Hall today to reiterate the natural gas expansion in Hidden Valley and Burk’s Falls, affecting more than 140 homes and businesses.
The province will allocate just over $3 million to support connections to the natural gas distribution system to help make life more affordable in Parry Sound and Muskoka, announced Miller.
“As part of our government’s plan to make life more affordable, we are lowering energy costs for homes, businesses and farms across rural, remote and underserved communities,” said Smith.
According to a media release issued by Miller’s office, the average household that connects to the new service could save between $250 and $1,500 per year in energy costs by switching to natural gas from costlier fuel sources, and businesses are expected to save up to 30 per cent per year on energy costs.
Huntsville Mayor Karin Terziano thanked the provincial government for investing in Huntsville. She said the provision of the service to residents in Hidden Valley will help them reduce the cost of heating. She said the announcement also coincides with road reconstruction in that area and the addition of District water and sewer services. “So it’s going to be a great economy of scale for three levels of government to work together on this project. We’ve already begun meeting to coordinate this work with the Hidden Valley residents who are all very happy that this gas is coming, water and sewer potentially coming, and new road work coming,” she said.
“Residents here are really going to value the expansion that’s coming their way,” said Skaarup. “With these projects we’re going to be bringing jobs, we’re going to provide energy savings and we’re also going to help support local investment as Ontario moves towards… recovery.” He said without the support of the province the project would not be feasible, due to the geography of the area. “Our customers are a little more far apart, we’ve got more swamps, more rocks to deal with, and this program really helps us to provide access to those that need natural gas and more affordable energy.”
Miller added that natural gas burns cleaner than oil, it doesn’t have to be delivered by truck, like oil or propane, and it’s much less expensive than electricity. “These projects will create construction jobs in the short-term and promote economic development in the long-term.” He said about three years ago his party campaigned on expanding natural gas distribution to more rural communities in order to decrease the cost of heating homes and, “I’m pleased to be here today to deliver on that promise.”
Miller spoke to those who are not part of the expansion or connected to natural gas. “I want to assure you that no tax dollars are going into this. This expansion project will be paid by the natural gas customers only, not by all taxpayers.”
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If we want to limit global warming and reduce the impacts of climate change we need to reduce the burning of fossil fuels (in vehicles, buildings etc.) by 50% over the next 8 years. That is not ‘shutting down the house’. We all have 8 years to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. It’s up to you to decide how you get there.
Ryan Vallentin is exactly correct!
Uninformed people do not understand that you cannot just flip a switch and stop burning fossil fuels. This takes time and technology and a transitional period. Fossil fuels will likely always be part of our energy supply however expanding our natural gas supply infrastructure is a major benefit to helping become more efficient. We can stop transporting by propane trucks, railways, etc. I have worked in the environmental controls industry for close to 40 years and have done many energy savings projects on large facilities.
If people want to stop burning fossils fuels immediately, they can shutdown the house, hop on a horse and head to a warmer climate.
I posted the following in another conversation regarding the expansion of natural gas into Burks Falls and Hidden Valleyl
I install home heating systems for a living and have some insight into the expansion of natural gas.
1) Heat pumps don’t work in winter, they are only good to about 5 degrees C outside, then you need to switch to back up (referred to as emergency heat) utilizing either electrical resistance, propane, oil, or NG
2) Solar panels are not reliable in the winter, sure there are some days that you can generate plenty of electricity, but most winter days it won’t be enough
3) Dirty production of electricity will not offset the reduction of NG usage
4) Most houses are heated by Oil or Propane in areas without NG, those fuels must be transported via truck to the residence, further increasing fossil fuel burning
5) NG appliances are much more efficient then their Propane or Oil counterparts, and will save more fuel and reduce emissions
6) NG appliances last longer then propane appliances, yet another net reduction in our environmental impact
Natural Gas expansion is still the best option here, but perhaps some incentives for home owners to have heat pump systems with NG as the backup source would be the best solution until technology catches up.
Great work here by the Provincial and Municipal governments to give the good people of Burks Falls a cheaper, safer choice for heating their homes. I remember some weeks ago that representatives of the Muskoka Climate Action lobby group wrote a letter expressing their dissatisfaction with the plan. One of the options they presented was for people in Almaguin to use heat pumps in place of furnaces. That suggestion was nonsensical, as the winter time temperatures there easily fall below -20 degrees. Kudos to the levels of government here for presenting a realistic plan. We need more of this from our decision makers.
Would love to have natural gas on Hawkes Rd. In Port Sydney to reduce my dependence on wood & propane. Many Seniors on the road of the 15 plus residents who live there.would love to reduce there heating /cooking costs .Reducing meat consumption from factory corporate farms will result in less greenhouse gas production than objections to relatively clean burning natural gas….P.S. Park Your car.
So sad that we are still moving backwards on stuff like this. Can we please look and plan ahead instead of just considering the next few years? Oliver said it. So tired of the incredible waste of money and lack of vision. It is not rocket science. By my calculation, the 3 million dollars divided in to 140 homes is about $21k per home/business. Estimated savings of between $250 and $1500 per year, so lets say $500 per year. Unless my math or logic is not sound, that means we could use the 3 million to subsidize the electricity bills for those households and businesses for at least 40 years instead of expanding the infrastucture for a dead-end technology. That would allow them to use electricity (which in Ontario is very environmentally friendly) and not have the carbon footprint or environmental footprint of building more pipeline infrastructure. Not that I think that this would be the best solution – just pointing it out for arugment’s sake. The best solution would be to invest that money in local green eneergy sources to offset the costs.
Well said, Oliver Wolfe (good name, by the way).
Mr. Miller, you came to Huntsville to make a Government announcement of project funding ($3.1 million). Then you said ,“I want to assure you that no tax dollars are going into this. This expansion project will be paid by the natural gas customers only, not by all taxpayers.” This statement makes no sense. All government spending is tax dollars!
But more importantly… Mr. Miller you are not responding to the urgency of the climate crisis…this is an emergency!
The burning of fossil fuels is the primary cause of current global warming, and everyone, everywhere, must stop burning oil, gasoline, and natural gas as soon as is humanly possible. This change will not be easy, but there are ways to do it. Let’s admit the problem, and work together to solve it.
Does this project work well with a nationwide plan to reduce co2 emissions by 50% In eight and a half years? Or to be a carbon zero country by 2050? is this investment smart if we are seemingly only planning to use it for 28.5 years or less? Sadly I am not surprised with this shortsighted view, that is why we are in the current climate and ecological crisis that we find ourselves in – regardless if if is widely agreed upon or not. The goals of this project are very legitimate – the route to get there seems to be backwards.