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Save time, save money. Do you want to see all your favourite flyers anytime, anywhere? Look for these great sponsors: 8 Acton/Georgetown, Friday, May 9, 2008 Georgetown Canadian Tire store manager Tracey Craig (left) accepts a rebate cheque worth over $10,000 from Halton Hills Hydro CEO and president Dan Guatto and its Ontario Power Authority Program consultant, Linda Boyer. The store has significantly reduced its energy consumption after an extensive lighting retrofit and Halton Hills Hydro helped to offset the cost of implementing the project through the OPAs Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program. Photo by Eamonn Maher Canadian Tire has undertaken an extensive lighting retrofit at its Guelph Street store that is saving not only energy, but money. By replacing the existing 400-watt metal halide fixtures with energy efficient T-8 fluores- cent fixtures in the retail area of the store, more than 70 kilowatts (kW) of power, amounting to 470,660 kilowatt hours/year, have been avoided. This amount of power is equivalent to the elec- tricity used by 47 average-sized Ontario homes per year. Halton Hills Hydro helped to offset the cost of implementing this project through the Ontario Power Authoritys Electricity Retrofit Incentive Program (ERIP). This program provides cash incentives for commercial organizations to reduce their electricity consumption through facility retrofits. Canadian Tire, locally owned and operated by Tomas Kase Merchandisers Ltd., recently received a rebate cheque for $10,655 from Halton Hills Hydro. Canadian Tire is very committed to the envi- ronment, both through the products it retails and through its own operational practices, said Tomas Kase. We are pleased to be able to con- tribute in such a significant way. The reduction in electricity will eliminate the use of the equivalent of 215 tonnes of coal annu- ally and the generation of the following annual greenhouse gas emissions: 313.5 tonnes carbon dioxide 1,394.1 kilograms sulphur dioxide 291 kilograms of nitrous oxides Dan Guatto, CEO and President of Halton Hills Hydro said, Canadian Tire is the first cus- tomer in Halton Hills to complete a lighting retrofit under this program. We are pleased with the results and encourage every business in our community to come forward and apply for assis- tance under the program. More information on ERIP is available at www.haltonhillshydro.com. In addition, we are also offering The Great Refrigerator Round-up through which we assist homeowners retire older, less efficient refrigera- tors and Peaksaver which helps limit electrical load on the grid through remote control of elec- tric hot water tanks, said Guatto. Also, coming soon, will be Summer Sweepstakes, a program whereby customers qualify to win prizes if they achieve summer over summer electricity reduc- tions this year. Details will become available at www.halton- hillshydro.com Canadian Tires bright idea for retrofit saves energy, money More residents will be able to stop flushing their money down the toilet now that the Region is almost dou- bling the budget for its residential toilet rebate program. At its meeting Wednesday, regional council approved an extra $102,580 for the program that offers rebates of $60 or $75 depending on the toilet to homeowners who purchase high-efficiency models that save on water. The move comes in response to what Region staff says has been an overwhelming response to the pro- gram, which was launched late last year. The 2008 program designated 790 rebates for Halton Hills which has wastewater capacity limitations and an additional 790 rebates for the rest of the region. While only 43 rebates have been claimed in Halton Hills so far, 605 rebate requests have come from the other three municipalities. Staff anticipates that rebate fund- ing for Milton, Oakville and Burlington will be exhausted any day now, so it recommended council approve the budget increase to bring an additional 1,420 rebates on board. This means therell be a total of 3,000 rebates available this year. The Region plans to develop pro- motional material targeting Halton Hills residents with the hopes of reaching the target of 790 rebates. The extra money for the program is coming from the Regions rate sta- bilization reserve fund. According to the Region, those who replace their toilets can save about $27 annually on their water bill. For more information on eligibili- ty for the rebates and application forms visit www.halton.ca. Halton Hills residents slow to take part in toilet rebate Under the watchful eyes of students in the atrium, Christ the King Schools Club Green held auditions for their very own Canadian 'Idle' competition recently, as they asked Town councillors questions about the environment, recycling, and 'idling' your car for the most efficient use of fuel. Wards 1/2 Regional Councillor Clark Sommerville acted as the host while Wards 3/4 Regional Councillor Jane Fogal, Mayor Rick Bonnette and Halton Hills CAO Dennis Perlin (as well as Ward 1 Councillor Jon Hurst, not shown) fielded questions and racked up their score. Fogal was the winner of the competition. Photo by Ted Brown Canadian Idle Tomorrow (Saturday) is the last day for Halton Regions week-long Spring Compost Giveaway. The event runs from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Halton Waste Management Site (HWMS), 5400 Regional Road 25 in Milton. Residents are invited to pick up some compost as a thank you for diverting more than 26,000 tonnes of yard waste from the landfill last year. Residents attending this years giveaway are again encouraged to bring a donation of a non-perish- able food item or to provide a cash donation, which will be given to local food banks. Residents must bring their own bags or containers (a maximum seven per household) and a shovel in order to collect their own com- post. Regions compost giveaway ends tomorrow