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Backyard Touch 318 Guelph Street Georgetown 905.873.8835 Independent & Free Press, Wednesday, October 10, 2007 3 Halton Director of Land Ambulance Services Jim King said staff continues to work with its healthcare partners in the Halton-Peel Emergency Services Network to develop strategies to address the offload- ing delays. Its really a systemic problem in the hospital system, he noted. Nosals report also said there were sever- al instances between April and August this year that only one ambulance was on hand to respond to emergency calls for all of Halton. In those situations assistance is requested from neighbouring municipali- ties, but they are often unable to help due to high demand in their own areas. Somervi l le ques- t ioned what can be done to rectify the sit- uation. Nosal said the key is to increase the number of peak demand ambulances in Halton. The Regions bud- get team will consider the staf f ing needs required to bring on another peak demand unit for 12 hours a day, seven days a week during the 2008 budget process. King also pointed to the value of emer- gency response units (ERU) a fully- equipped SUV or mini-van staffed by a sin- gle paramedic that costs 60 per cent of what an ambulance would. Its used to pro- vide life-sustaining emergency care while waiting for a transport ambulance staffed by two paramedics to arrive. He said that between January 2006 and June 2007, ERUs were able to arrive before an ambulance for more than 1,700 local emergency calls. I believe its the way we should go in the future, he said. Staffing requirements for a dedicated ERU program will be considered during future budget processes. Despite the delays at the hospital , Haltons EMS response time has been below the mandated standard since 2001 due to an aggressive deployment strategy that results in paramedics spending the majority of their working hours on task, Nosals report said. How many people does it take to change a light bulb? The Mayors Green Plan Task Force is hoping at least 6,800. This month, task force members Councillors Clark Somerville and Jon Hurst, turn the light on Project Porchlight in Halton Hills. Project Porchlight is a non-profit group, supported by the Ontario Power Authority and the Ontario Trillium Foundation, that uses community groups to deliver a (13-watt) compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulb to selected homes in Halton Hills free of charge, said Somerville. The goal is the homes that receive them will use them to replace their porchlight to show the neighbourhood they are conserving power. To date, 6,800 light bulbs will be deliv- ered to homes beginning October 20. Project Porchlight is contributing 4,800, and Green Task Force members Neilson Dairy and Halton Hills Hydro are con- tributing another 1,000 each. The savings are huge when added up, said Somerville, who spotted the campaign during his attendance at this years Federation of Canadian Municipalities conference, and brought it home to Halton Hills, enlisting the enthusiasm of the newly-formed Mayors Green Task Force. Each bulb saves $50 in hydro savings (over five years) and each bulb saves 125 pounds of coal from being burnt to create power, said Somerville. With 6,800 times $50, thats $340,000 in hydro savings in Halton Hills alone and 850,000 pounds of coal that doesnt have to be burned thats equivalent to 15 dump trucks of coal. Its a small thing, but every bit helps ... and once you put it into perspective what it saves in (hydro) money and coal (green- house gas emissions) its huge! Hurst agrees, putting the numbers into a national perspective at a recent Town council meeting. Replacing even one 60-watt incandes- cent bulb with a 13-watt CFL in each of Canadas 12 million households could save up to $73 million a year in energy costs. It would also reduce greenhouse gas emis- sions by approximately 397,000 tonnes the equivalent of taking more than 66,000 cars off the road each year. So when you think to yourself what is one bulb is going to do. Its not what one bulb is going to do, its what are 12 million bulbs are going to do. At least 25 per cent of the towns house- holds will receive the free bulbs with the distribution spread over the towns four wards on a proportional population basis about 1,200 in Acton, 1,200 in the rural areas and the rest in Georgetown. Volunteer groups are already lining up to help deliver the bulbs and explain the significance to homeowners. The mayor and every Town councillor and Green Plan Task Force member will hand out 50 bulbs each, plus community groups such as: Georgetown Girl Guides, Acton Scouts, HOPE (Healthy Options for People and the Environment), POWER (Protect Our Water and Environmental Resources), Christ the Kings Club Green, minor hock- ey teams. Also assisting with the campaign are Halton Hills Chamber of Commerce and the Acton BIA. POWER will be sup- plying office space and the Town is provid- ing storage space for the bulbs. The Halton Hills Green Plan Task Force is very excited that Project Porchlight is coming to Halton Hills, said Mayor Rick Bonnette. Its a great way for Halton Hills to educate residents on energy efficiency by thinking globally and acting locally. Everyone can make a difference and help protect our environment. Anyone else wishing to help out, either by sponsoring more bulbs or by helping to deliver them, should contact Somerville, 519-853-9930, clarks@haltonhills.ca or Hurst, 519-853-2015, jonh@haltonhills.ca For more information about Project Porchlight go to the website www.pro- jectporchlight.com or call 1-866-585- 6359. Halton Hills Councillors Clark Somerville (left) and Jon Hurst install a new energy efficient light bulb in the porchlight of an Acton home. A total of 6,800 bulbs will be delivered to Halton Hills homeowners this month to promote energy conserva- tion. Photo by Ted Brown CYNTHIA GAMBLE Staff Writer Offloading delays have left Region with only one ambulance Continued from pg. 1 DR. BOB NOSAL Project Porchlight a bright idea Aidan Benoit, the three-year-old Georgetown boy who has been battling neuroblastoma cancer, died at his home Monday. The young boy, who was diagnosed with the disease last August, underwent a bone marrow transplant, radiation and chemotherapy and seemed to be on the road to recovery until the cancer came back in August. Caledon resident Michelle Cunnington, a friend of Aidans and his family, said Aidan was a vibrant and happy little boy. He always made everyone laugh, said Cunnington. He is in heaven now with the angels and pain-free. We will all really miss him. Cunnington, who with Terri Funseri, is hosting a fundraiser din- ner/dance and silent auc- tion for the Benoit fami- ly, said the event will go ahead as planned Oct. 19 in Brampton. The event is sold out, however, anyone interested in making a donation to the family or items for the silent auction is asked to call Cunnington at 416-948- 8697. Aidan is survived by his parents Donna and Kyle, brother Nathan, and grandpar- ents Don and Frances Daigle and Shelly Benoit. Visitation will be at J.S. Jones & Son Funeral Home (11582 Trafalgar Rd.) today (Wednesday) from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. A memorial mass will be held at Holy Cross Catholic Church (224 Maple Ave.) Thursday at 2 p.m. Fundraising event to continue despite tots death AIDAN BENOIT