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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2015-11-25, Page 44 Huron Expositor • Wednesday, November 25, 2015 I I josiLH www.seaforthhuronexpositor.com Nuron Expositor PUBLISHED WEEKLY — EST. 1860 P.O. Box 69, 8 Main Street Seaforth Ontario NOK 1 WO phone: 519-527-0240 fax: 519-527-2858 www.seaforthhuronexpositor �p] POSTMEDIA NEIL CLIFFORD Advertising Director neil. clifford@sunmedia.ca SHAUN GREGORY Multimedia Journalist shaun.gregory@sunmedia.ca DIANNE MCGRATH Front Office seaforth.classifieds@sunmedia.ca NANCY DEGANS Advertising Rep. nancy.degans@sunmedia.ca MARIE DAVID Group Advertising Director Grey Bruce Huron Division 519 376-2250 ext. 514301 or 510 364-2001 ext. 531024 SUBSCRIPTION RATES 1 YEAR $50.00 (47.62+2.38 GST) 2YEAR $95.00 (90.48+4.52 GST) SENIORS 60 WEEKS $50.00 (47.62+2.38 GST) 120 WEEKS $95.00 (90.48+4.52 GS1) Publications Mail Agreement No. 40064683 RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT P.O. Box 69 Seaforth ON NOK 1 WO For any non -deliveries or delivery concerns: phone: 519-527-0240 Advertising is accepted on condition that in the event of a typographical error, the advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged, but the balance of the advertisement wit be paid for at the applicable rate. In the event of a typographical error, advertising goods or services at a wrong price, goods or services may not be sold. Advertising is merely an offer to set and may be withdrawn at any time. The Huron Expositor is not responsible for the loss or damage of unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materials used for reproduction purposes. We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canadian Periodical Fund (CPF) for our publishing activities. Canada letters to the editor OPP says they are committed to police service Dear editor, Given the recent media cover- age on In -Car Cameras (ICCs), often referred to as "Dash Cams;' I want to clarify some of the misinformation that was conveyed in relation to the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP). In 2004, the OPP installed approximately 80 cameras in front-line police vehicles as part of a pilot project. The vehicles were deployed in the Greater Toronto Area, Ottawa and Kenora. The focus of the pilot was aimed at increasing the safety of our officers and the public, and the video could pro- vide additional evidence with respect to criminal and Highway Traffic Act (HTA) investigations and prosecutions. The pilot study ran for three years, ending in 2007. After the pilot was concluded and the evaluations were completed, the decision was made not to proceed with a province -wide deployment. The cameras remained in the vehicles while they were functional, with the last camera being removed in 2009. The OPP has not used ICCs since that time. The OPP is committed to pro- viding the most effective and efficient police service possible, as we were in 2007 when it was decided that the ICCs should not be implemented across the province. More recently, the conversa- tion has moved to Body Worn Cameras (BWCs). Similar to the challenges faced with ICCs, there are concerns beyond cost, including: data storage and management, technological shortcomings, privacy concerns, and a lack of existing regulations and case law regarding their use. The vast deployed nature of the OPP work force compounds the problems outlined above. In April 2015, the Ontario Associa- tion of Chiefs of Police (OACP) Who owns Ontario? The people or the wind Letter to the editor Right now, the SOLD sign on Ontario has Big Wind's name on it. Mahon says four parties "agree" to every wind power project. False: the Green Energy Act (designed by the wind power lobby, for wind power corporations) removed local land use planning pow- ers (and overrode 20 other laws designed to protect Ontario including the Heritage Act and the Clean Water Act). The result is that communities can't say "no" even though the power projects industrialize formerly quiet communities. And, while Ontario citizens are allowed to appeal under the law, the legal test set is almost impossible to meet. Ontario's interests? Sold to wind power corporations. Other serious concerns about wind include the fact that, as two Auditors General have said, there was never a cost -benefit analysis done for Ontario's wind power program. We know the power these projects generate is produced out-of-phase with demand; that means, expensive wind power shows up when it's not needed, and Ontario sells it off at a loss on the power mar- ket. At the same time, Ontario's electricity customers pay for the difference, while also paying for "spilled" hydro, steamed off nuclear power, and idling gas plants, because Big Wind gets first rights to the grid. Ontario's interests? Sold to wind power corporations. Landowners are caught between the archaic "do what you want on your own land" policy espoused by the Ontario Federation of Agriculture, and the clear need to consider neighbours and communities at large in decisions to allow installation of huge, noisy wind turbines on their property. Landowners often fail to con- sulting lawyers before signing the complex lease agreements, and are thus unaware of finan- cial repercussions and the loss of property rights. But the biggest concern is what wind power development is doing to the environment. We're told it's necessary to "save" the environment, at the same time as power projects are being located in important bird areas and fragile environments like the Oak Ridges Moraine or the South Shore of Prince Edward County, and killing bats (crucial for agriculture) by the hundreds of thousands. Worse, because wind power is intermit- tent, it must be backed up by a traditional power source, which in Ontario is natural gas— thereby adding to greenhouse gas emissions, not reducing them. Again, Ontario has been endorsed the BWC pilot project being conducted by the Toronto Police Service (TPS) and police services across the province were asked to adopt an "observe and hold" position on BWCs until that pilot project was com- plete. The OPP supports the OACP's position and will fully evaluate the TPS report when it is completed. Over the past several years the OPP has made significant investment in technology that has had an impact on public and officer safety, in addition to creating efficiencies to keep officers on the road and in communities they serve. In 2016, the OPP will have every on -duty front-line officer equipped with a Conducted Energy Weapon. The OPP cur- rently owns and operates eleven Unmanned Aerial Vehi- cles (UAVs) to support investi- gations with photographs and videos in a timely and cost power corporations? sold to Big Wind. Mahon says we may never know whether wind power was a good idea. I thinkwe do right now: with $40 billion and counting invested in it, while health care budgets are cut and electricity bills rise dramati- cally, utility -scale wind power has not helped the environment, or the efficient manner. The use of UAVs in traffic collision investi- gations has significantly reduced the length of time highways are closed. The expansion of the number of Mobile Work Stations in vehi- cles, the implementation of Cit- izen Self -Reporting and the Civilian Data Entry program have all allowed for increased police visibility and provided an opportunity for officers to spend more time engaging in proactive enforcement and crime prevention activities. The Ontario Provincial Police remains committed to leverag- ing technology to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of our police force; however, we must make informed decisions and weigh the costs of imple- mentation against other strate- gic priorities. Yours truly, —J.V.N. (Vince) Hawkes, 0.0.M. people of Ontario. Who owns the wind? Who owns Ontario? Not us: the prov- ince has been sold to wind power corporations. —Jane Wilson President Wind Concerns Ontario Hearing ear dog headed to Seaforth Contributed Seaforth resident Karen Boxwell and her hearing ear dog Irie are pictured with Seaforth Lions club members John Snell and Cathy Elliott. Boxwell received Irie through the Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides. The Seaforth Lions Club sponsored Irie and are thrilled that Irie will be living and working with Boxwell in the Seaforth community.