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THURSDAY, MAY 4, 2000 THE NEW TANNER Small power generators need politician's help BY MAGGIE PETRUSHEVSKY The New Tanner There needs to be a huge reversal in attitude if the prov- ince really wants to buy power from small suppliers, says a local power producer. "Tk ie is seriously committed to cleaner air they need to approach the govern- ment about cleaning up their act and recognizing the newer (cleaner) technologies avail- able," says Halton MP Julian Reed, one of eight producers with water-powered plants built specifically to generate power for sale into the On- tario grid. Air pollution is the main cause of asthma and that has been determined to be the big- gest cause of school absen- teeism. The Ontario Medical Association says contami- nated air causes 2,000 deaths annually but until the public mounts a greater lobby to the government, Reed predicts no change will happen. There are enough sites within the grid to produce approximately 4,000 mega- watts of water-generated power but they sit undevel- oped because of bureaucratic obstacles to construction of new plants. though Reed has had to temporarily shut down his Norval plant on the Credit River, he does have an oper- ating plant near Haliburton producing 500 kilowatts of power which he sells to On- tario Hydro. The plant went into production in 1996 spe- cifically to generate power for sale into the provincial power grid. "We started in 1989 to get our approvals (from the Min- istry of Natural Resources) and it was 1995 before they came through," he says. Reed says two groups within the ministry have con- flicting mandates. This re- sults in one section of the group reviewing and com- menting on any power devel- opment plans while another group in the same ministry must give approval for the proposal. "If you get opposition to small hydro (from the minis- try), it could take years to get an approval," he says. "If they are in favour of it, the approval could come in weeks." This lack of clear rules plus the fact that existing rules can be altered at will, results in "absolute chaos" for would- be power suppliers, Reed says. Until that confusion is cleared up the delays it causes deter would-be producers because "time is money" for them. Reed notes public or envi- ronmental objections to power plants usually fall into five categories. The first is changing the quality of the water. Most objectors claim power plants warm the water in the stream thus changing or even destroying fish habi- tat. Not so, says Reed. That might happen if the water was dammed up, then taken from a pond. But with a turbine tak- ing directly from a stream and returning immediately to the stream, the water is cooled, not warmed, a couple of de- grees. The result actually im- proves cold water fisheries. The second is the concern that plants help leach mercury into streams. When an area is flooded, mercury is leached from soil into the water. Reed's findings show no measurable change in mercury levels with small installations. The third objection is to how methane leaches out of soil when an area is flooded. If that were a serious concern then the MNR should be go- ing around blowing up all the beaver dams in the province, he notes. Still another objection comes from anglers and natu- ralists who say turbines grind up fish. That is a straight myth, Reed says. Nature kills off 99 per cent of hatchlings before they ever mature and return to breed as opposed to ACTON SENIORS' IRECREATION CENTRE By Dot Redekop Don't forget to come along on our "Sentimental Journey" with us on May 10 at 7:30. The Acton and Georgetown choirs will take us on the trip. Tickets available at the door. Everyone welcome. Refresh- ments are included. Our number was drawn for the 50/50 on the coach Wednesday. Nick said I could have the money because I was holding both tickets at the time. We hadn't decided who was to have which ticket. So according to Nick, Dot Redekop was the winner. Of course, I left it at Rama. Betty said be sure and spell the name right. We have some great trips for June and July so watch for details as the dates get closer. Our next trip to Rama is Wednesday, May 31. Cost is $5 and includes lunch. Come on out; the bread pudding is great, We are closed Monday, May 22 for Victoria Day. the 10 per cent or less which may get caught in a power plant intake system. When they are sucked in they die from reverse pressure in the plant, not the action of the turbine. Fish ladders eliminate the problem. Anyone ques- tioning the statistics can look at more than 25 years of his- tory with the North of Scot- land power system, or results in British Columbia and Nova Scotia, he says. Finally there are those who object to construction of new installations for purely senti- mental or esthetic reasons. "With 25 years in the busi- ness I've come to the point where I ask 'How do you want your poison'?" Reed says. Environmental impacts from gas and coal-fired instal- lations are much higher than from water-powered ones. Given Ontario's lack of con- stant wind, except around Lake Huron, using wind as a power source doesn't even count. And even there, wind couldn't begin to meet the demand for additional power. Purported support for small producers aside, Reed points to the bias against water-generated or "green" power. "Owners of water-powered plants must rent every cubic meter of water taken from a stream and put through a plant. Then they must return it to its source in pristine con- dition," he says. "But gas- fired plants pay no tax to- wards the air they use or pol- Join Frogwatchers hike Spring and all its wonders as the natural world comes to life can be witnessed in the forests and wetlands of the Mountsberg Conservation Area in the annual Frogwatcher's Hike on Satur- day, May 6 from 7 to 9 p.m. Male frogs are in full cho- rus in their annual bid to at- tract the mate of their dreams. The songs or mating calls are so distinctive from species to species that frogs can be iden- tified by their voices alone. The Spring Peeper, the frog harbinger of spring, has a distinctive peep that signals the return of the new season. This tiny, one-inch long frog and its high pitched peep are usually one of the first spe- cies heard and the of several hundred frogs calling for mates together can be deafening. During the Frogwater's Hike, participants will learn about the difference between frogs and toads. 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