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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 2013-12-30, Page 22 Lucknow Sentinel • Monday, December 30, 2013 Bruce Power looks back on 2013 Bruce Power is looking back on 2013 as a "monumental year in its history." From the successful operation of all eight units simultaneously for the first time in nearly two decades, to receiving policy sup- port in the Ontario government's Long - Term Energy Plan to refurbish Units 3-8 starting in 2016, the company said the past year had a number of "highlights" in a media release. For the first time in nearly two decades, all four of Bruce A's units were operational in 2013. After a planned investment outage on Unit 4 was complete, all four units per- formed admirably as spring turned to sum- mer and the people of Ontario required more electricity to cool their homes, schools, hospitals and businesses. With winter here, Bruce Power's eight units are consistently providing over 30 per cent of Ontario's energy. By realizing its full potential, Bruce A is a major reason the Ontario government has advanced its plans to shut down all coal- fired electricity generating stations in the province. With a revitalized Bruce site safely and reliably producing over 6,300 mega- watts of carbon -free electricity, Bruce Power has provided 70 per cent of the energy Ontario needs to shut down coal for good. "By returning all four of Bruce A's units to service, we have provided incredible amounts of reliable and carbon -free elec- tricity to the people of Ontario," said Dun- can Hawthorne, Bruce Power President and CEO. "As the amount of Bruce Power nuclear has gone up, the need for coal has dropped significantly, to the point where Ontario is able to deliver on coal phase out. This unprecedented environmental achievement simply would not have been possible without Bruce Power, and the peo- ple of Ontario will reap the benefits of cleaner air to breathe for generations." By proving refurbished units can safely and reliably provide massive amounts of LUCKNOW ARENA SCHEDULE JANUARY 1 - JANUARY 7 Wed Jan 1, 2014 All day New Year's Day - Facility Closed Fri Jan 3, 2014 10am 1 pm 4:45pm 5:45pm 6:45pm 8pm Open Skating - $2 Per Skater Public Skating - Sponsored by Thompson's Port Albert Sr Tyke Practice Atom Girls Practice Atom Rep Juvenile vs Shallow Lake Sun Jan 5, 2014 10am 11:30am 1 pm 2:30pm 3:30pm 5pm 6:15pm 7:30pm 8:30pm Port Albert vs Goderich Old Devils vs Ripley Int. Ladies Practice Public Skating - Sponsored by Helm Welding PeeWee Girls vs Kincardine Legends vs Mt. Brydges Midget Dev Practice Bad Apples Cliff's Shinny TueJan 7,2014 10am Open Skating - $2 Per Skater 5pm Jr/Sr Tyke Practice 6pm PeeWee Dev Practice Thu Jan 2, 2014 10am fpm 5pm 6pm 7pm 8:30pm 9:30pm Open Skating - $2 Per Skater Public Skating - Sponsored by Holyrood General Store Novice Rep Practice PeeWee Rep Practice Bantam Rep vs Shallow Lake Midget Girls Practice Kintail vs Port Albert Sat Jan 4, 2014 9am 10am 12pm 1 pm 2:15pm 3:15pm 4:45pm 6pm 8pm Bantam Rep Practice Goalie Clinic Novice Dev vs Ripley Atom Dev vs Ripley Novice Rep vs TCDMHA PeeWee Dev vs Milverton Int. Ladies vs Belmore Legends vs Stratford Lancer vs Durham Thundercats Mon Jan 6, 2014 10am 5pm 6pm 7pm 8:30pm Open Skating - $2 Per Skater Novice Dev Practice Atom Rep Practice Bantam Dev Practice Midget Dev vs Seaforth HURON TELECOMMUNICATIONS CO-OPERATIVE LTD. 519-395-3800 www.hurontel.on.ca carbon -free electricity, Bruce Power has given the Government of Ontario and its residents confidence that future refurbish- ment projects on the Bruce site will result in a clean source of energy for generations. This was clear in the government's Long - Term Energy Plan, which was released in early -December, when the Ministry of Energy introduced the policy framework to enable Bruce Power to refurbish its six remaining units starting in 2016. The com- pany will now work to put the commercial framework in place with the Ontario Power Authority and securing the investment to complete these projects. "We have had a successful year in terms of proving our capability of providing 6,300 megawatts from an eight -unit site to the government and people of Ontario," Haw- thorne added. "I want to thank all of our employees for the dedication to safe and reliable operations on site and look forward to another great year in 2014." Thompson: the year that was municipalities through decreases in funding through the Ontario Munic- ipal Partnership Fund (OMPF). She said those cuts could lead to tax increases that while administered through municipalities, are as a result of provincial actions. However, Thompson said it wasn't all bad news in 2013 as she listed a number of accomplishments in the riding this year. She highlighted the Field to Fort Gala, which she said shows the local agricul- tural industry recognizes the efficiency in moving forward with "farming hubs': Also, she credited the local residents who have shown initiative by develop- ing potential uses for the Bluewater Youth Centre in Goderich. Speaking about a group of members of the Huron County 4-H Club called the Wawanosh Girls who won the pro- vincial Go for the Gold competition at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair this fall, Thompson said local youth are showing an interest in being positively involved in the community. She also spoke highly of Glen and Vanda McNeil, a couple from Ashfield- Colborne-Wawanosh. With son Curtis, they were recognized by the Bank of Montreal as one of the 10 outstanding "farm families" in Ontario. Thompson said she was very happy with a renewable energy symposium meeting she held in July which attracted representatives from a number of renewable energy industries. Although the 41st Ontario provincial election is not scheduled until October of 2015, Thompson said she and the PC party are ready and able should it come sooner. MPP Lisa Thompso "We are focused on it now," Thompson said, noting that the party has released a number of "white papers" which discuss its plans on a wide variety of topics includ- ing health care, education, rural and northern issues and manufacturing just to name a few. However, she said the trig- ger on an election could only be pulled by the NDP, which she said has propped up the Liberal government. "I've seen the NDP sit on their hands to avoid controversy." Asked how the PC Party plans to dethrone a Liberal government that has been in power for over a decade, Thompson said, "I encourage people to be honest with themselves and access what the current (party) has created." While Thompson said she likes Wynne as a person and truly believes she "thought she could make a differ- ence" when she became premier, "The mess created by Liberal policies, gov- ernance and leadership is so enor- mous...it takes more than a person with a good heart to make the right decisions to turn this province around." With some political analysts saying the next election could be PC leader Tim Hudak's last chance if he loses, Thompson made it clear she is 100% behind him. "I'm absolutely behind Tim Hudak. He understands what needs to be done to move the province forward in recov- ery mode," Thompson said. "While we have confidence in Tim, he has confi- dence in us (his caucus) that you may not see in other parties." "He has the type of leadership that we need, not the type of leadership we have been getting." Stephen Harper: The Musical coming March, 2014 by N D P "Stephen Harper: The Musical'; a one-man comedy show starring James Gordon, is coming to Blyth in March on behalf of the Huron - Bruce NDP party. The performance is a musical political satire comedy that uses humour, political commentary, 19 original songs, spoken word, audi- ence participation and hundreds of projected images to explore where Canada is and where it might go as a nation. Gordon is known for his 12 years as resident songwriter on two CBC radio shows, "Basic Black" and "Ontario Morning" as well as his 20 years with the Canadian Folk Trio "Tamarack". There will be two performances at the Blyth Festival Theatre on the evenings of March 21-22, 2014 and a performance on March 20 at a location to be deter- mined in the northern part of the riding. Draws will be held starting in January with a pair of tickets being given away each week. The entry requirements are to submitted three paragraphs on the theme "Love, Hope, Optimism': "The draw was inspired by the play's final song called "Jack's Dream7 said Huron -Bruce NDMP member Tony McQuail. "The cho- rus goes 'Love is better than anger, Hope is better than fear, Opti- mism's better than despair. So let us be loving, let us be hopeful, let us work to build a world that is fair.' We are asking people to write about what they love about Can- ada and our community, what they hope for the future and what gives them optimism. McQuail said they will post all the submissions where people can read them during the intermission. He said people should send their draw entries to love.hope. optimism2@gmail.com or snail mail them to him at RR1, Luc - know, ON. Tickets for the performances are now on sale at the Blyth Festival Box office in time to make the per- fect Christmas present. Vouchers for the northern per- formance on March 20 can be obtained from McQuail.