Huron Expositor, 2007-06-27, Page 912,000 BTU
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County gathering support for broadband access
The Huron Expositor • June 27, 2007 Page 9
Susan H u n d e r t m a r k
Huron County is once again gath-
ering testimonials from residents
who don't have access to highspeed
Internet.
Applying for $10 million in
provincial funding that was recently
made available to expand broad-
band services in rural Ontario,
Huron County is in the process of
trying to meet a July 13 deadline.
The county, in a joint application
with Perth County, applied for 50
per cent funding for help with
broadband access to Industry
Canada through a program called
Broadband for Rural and Northern
Development (BRAND) in 2003 but
was turned down at the time.
This latest round of funding will
fund one third of each project up to
a maximum of $1 million each with
the remaining two-thirds to be paid
by municipalities, telecommunica-
tions providers and other private
partners.
Carol Leeming, who is leading the
Huron County committee creating
the application, says they need local
residents' help in arguing the case
for highspeed Internet where it is
not currently accessible.
Festival Hydro offers three
programs to save energy
Three programs aimed at reduc-
ing peak electrical demand over
summer are now available to resi-
dents of Seaforth, Brussels, Hensall
and other areas served by Festival
Hydro.
Festival Hydro announced last
week it would be participating in
The Great Refrigerator Roundup,
Summer Savings and The
Peaksaver programs, supported by
the Ontario Power Authority.
Bill Zehr, Festival Hydro presi-
dent, said in a press release that
he's excited to be a part of the three
programs, allowing local users to
"play an important role in using
electricity wisely and reducing peak
electrical demand over the critical
summer months."
The Great Refrigerator Roundup
is designed to remove older, ineffi-
cient fridges from the electricity sys-
tem at no cost to the customer.
Refrigerators collected will be dis-
posed of in an environmentally safe
manner.
The Peaksaver program assists
qualified Ontarians to install a
device in their homes that allows
the utility to control their central
air conditioning during peak times -
usually weekday afternoons during
the hottest days of summer. There is
a $25 incentive payment for signing
up.
Summer Savings is another
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"These programs represent the
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"Tell us how it would help your
business, your children and your
community involvement," she says.
"It's a competitive process and we
need help to argue the case that we
would benefit from it," Leeming
says, adding that it also has to be
proven that those who are currently
not using highspeed Internet would
subscribe to it if it were available.
"We also need to know if any busi-
ness has left our area because of no
highspeed Internet or if business
growth has been limited because of
no access to highspeed," she says.
Terri Shobbrook, of Hullett, says
a lack of highspeed Internet creates
difficulty for her kids trying to do
their homework.
"It can take a long time to access
a website. Sometimes I put in a load
of laundry while waiting for a site to
load," she says.
Shobbrook adds that while gov-
ernment agencies want the public to
access documents on the Internet,
her dial-up service prevents her
from accessing many government
websites.
Working at home as a website
manager, Shobbrook says is chal-
lenging as well without highspeed
access.
1•
"Managing a website is very slow.
A lot of people wouldn't hire me
because of the lack of speed. I'm
managing but only because of an
understanding boss," she says.
While it was estimated in 2003
that 21,000 people throughout
Huron and Perth were without
access to highspeed, Leeming says
the current gap in service has not
yet been determined but she's
guessing it's not as big as it used to
be.
"Maybe the solutions today are
different.. Technology has changed
and we'll be exploring all technolo-
gies," she says.
"The province appreciates there
are gaps in highspeed access and is
wanting to fill more of them," says
Leeming.
The plan in 2003 was to build 14
towers throughout Huron and Perth
Counties.
Leeming says towers and possibly
fibre optic cables will be part of the
plan.
While meetings are planned with
representatives from Perth County,
Leeming says it's not known yet if
the two counties will create a joint
application.
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