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Home My WebLink AboutThe Brussels Post, 1979-05-02, Page 12Mr. w.-1 Mrs. Howard Mithcell have gone to Thorold to visit with their family 'there. Mrs. Calvin Cameron was a patient, in Wingham Hospital for several days. Sunday visitors with Mr. and Mrs. John Vanass and 'family were Mr. and Mrs. Bill Stevens and family, Watford, and Mr. and Mrs. Matt Claassens, Dublin. 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Apr. 2-1-0-9 • Your subscription is DUE NOW 12 THE BRussgo.posT MAY 2, 1979 Cut dependence on oil expert sans BY ALICE GIBB Peter Stonehouse, a farm management professor at the University of Guelph and one of the keynote speakers at Mitchell District High School's Energy Day last Wednesday, said Canada must reduce its dependence on crude petroleum products. Prof, Stonehouse's message was simple - if Canada doesn't reduce this dependence then Canadians can expect a lower standard of living and changed lifestyle in the future. The speaker said Western nations enjoyed an unprecedented rate of economic growth in the postwar era from 1945 to 1973 with a steadily rising standard of living, due to investment in education, research and development and new tech- niques of production and marketing in both the industrial and agricultural segments of society. Unfortunately, "this economic boom was also dependent on a high and rising rate of dependence on non-renewable forms of energy," Prof. Stonehouse told the audi- ence. While some countries began to realize in the 1960's that energy supplies weren't inexhaustible, it wasn't until the 1973 oil crisis that most Western nations realized how vulnerable they were. Then the OPEC nations banded together to demand higher prices for crude oil which meant prices "quintupled" according to Prof. Stone- house. He said the Canadian government has shielded consumers from these price increases by subsidizing oil prices in the country. He pointed out that many commercial farmers also can claim tax rebates on fuel consumption on their farms. Prof. Stonehouse said from 1973 to 1976, a wide discrepancy developed in the rate of energy consumption between developed and underdeveloped countries. Some countries, like the United States, started trying to do something about the energy problem, but Prof. Stonehouse said anada hasn't done nearly so well. This ,:ountry has actually increased its consumption, a fact Prof. Stonehouse partly blames on the government's shield- ing of consumers from price increases. Correspondent MRS. MAC ENGEL 887-6645 Mr. and Mrs. Earl Dunn spent a weekend recently w'th Mr. and Mrs. Bob Peter, Bowman ville. The speaker said, "Western nations should feel it incumbent upon themselves to reduce their level of energy consump- tion." He pointed out that nations like Canada are only increasing their inter- national indebtness by continuing to buy crude oil. He also pointed out that Western nations should be considering future generations when depleting non-renewable energy resources. In Canada, Prof. Stonehouse said 54 per cent of the country's energy needs are met by liquid petroleum, 26 per cent by natural gas (fortunately available in Canada), 16 per cent by electricity and four per cent by coal and coke. He said if Canada wants to reduce our indebtedness to foreign nations, then "we must switch our dependence on crude petroleum to alternative energy sources." In Canada, the largest amount of energy consumption is in the industrial sector, followed by the transportation industry. Prof. Stonehouse said since our country is so large, the only way we can hope to reduce energy consumption in transport- ation is if someone can invent an alter- native to the internal combustion engine. Prof. Stonehouse said only three per cent of the energy consumption in the country is farm-related, compared to 29 per cent which is industry related. AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRY He said the agricultural industry has set a goal for itself in reducing energy consumption by 25 per cent in the next decade. Prof. Stonehouse said researchers at the University of Guelph have been studying which foods produced on Canadian farms are the most energy-efficient. He said soybeans top the list, followed by carrots and winter wheat. However, if the straw from cereal crops is also being utilized on the farm, then they would even top soybeans in energy efficiency. Among the least efficient food products in terms of energy are cucumbers, cherries milk, pork, eggs, beef and broilers. However, if the manure use on the farm is calculated with the meats and milk, then they become much more energy efficient products. Also Prof. Stonehouse pointed out meat is often raised on land which isn't useable for crop production. Canada then is facing a "finite level" of non-renewable resources like natural gas and crude oil. He said the country is likely assured a supply of natural gas for about another 30 years. There is enough coal to supply energy needs for a longer period, but this resource creates problems in terms of polluting the environment. COAL MINING "I wouldn't like to see this country become too dependent on coal unless we can solve the pollution problem," Prof. Stone- house told the audience. He said open pit mining can also cause irreversible scars on the landscape unless we can determine a way to return land to agricultural produc- tion after the coal has been removed. Prof. Stonehouse said someday we may be able to make use of the biomass gas produced in agriculture, but this isn't economically viable until the price of crude oil increases even more. Solar energy is another alternative source of energy, but technical problems and economic efficiency of this method must be improved before its use will become widespread. Prof, Stonehouse said the other alter- native method of energy is nuclear power which he sees as a "stopgap measure" to see us through until we solve the problems of solar energy and nuclear fusion. But perhaps the most practical solution suggested by the speaker was for Cana- dians to reduce energy consumption levels to below the assured energy supply 'levels, His solutions in doing this included using waste heat from generating stations to heat greenhouses, livestock buildings, etc; using manure and agricultural wastes as replacements for expensive chemical fertilizers; rely on insulation to reduce energy loss in domestic buildings as well as farm buildings and to monitor our own individual energy around the home. Prof. Stonehouse said reducing our energy consumption is a challenge facing all Canadians. "If we don't close this gap we will have a tremendous level of international indebtedness and if we can't, our standard of living will suffer." He said it isn't any consolation to Canadians that the United States is now facing the same problem. Cranbrook people visit