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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1977-11-10, Page 58Conserve is the word today bile this supplement centrates on, energy Ings in the home, it is ortant to put the domestic or in perspective. The sumption of energy in the m of electrictiy and ting duel in Canadian resents ut one and fifth ofarms r the total rgy consumption in da. Gasoline for private represents a further share of the tran- tation sector. is means several around st, saving home can have significant pacts on the national ne. If everyone cuts his estic consumption by y 10 per cent through ace tuning, insulation, er temperatures or other asures, the result would be utback of about 2 per cent. al national consumption. ile this may not seem e in percentage terms, it actually a tremendous rgy and dollar saving for ada. econd, the other sectors of economy are also large rgy users; both industry transportation surpass dential consumption. 'This ans that there is both an ortunity and a respon- lity for conserving energy those sectors. Each of us also contribute by ying our conservation cerns over to our job. ether you drive a truck or nage a business, work in office or a factory, there numerous ways that you conserve energy each ird, as private citizens consume almost 20 per t of Canada's energy get in our homes and over f of the transportation rgy in our cars, giving us al direct consumption of ut ,one third of the total. other two thirds of ada's consumption is d to produce the goods and ices that we as ton- ers demand. This means t our potential for con- ation is not limited to that third of the total energy get that we consume ctly, By careful pur- chases, consumer action, recycling and choosing energy-efficient travel modes, we can have an im- pact on that other two thirds. Almost all of us believe to some degree in conservation. For some people, it is a simple matter of saving money; for others, a husbanding of resources now so that we will not find our- selves short in the future. For yet other, people, con- servation represents an ideal, a way of life to which we should aspire. Whichever is your view, there are many sound reasons to support energy conservation as an important new direction for Canadian energy policy. Let us focus briefly on just the most obvious of these. First, there is the sheer physical volume of energy that is being demanded in a world of ever more people, of higher incomes and of more technology. With every in- crease in our rate of con- sumption, in Canada as elsewhere, it becomes harder to find, produce and transport the necessary energy materials. For the first time we are in a position where projected future demand levels cannot be satisfied by conventional energy sources. Canada will face possible shortages of oil and natural gas within the next decade unless non -conventional or potential frontier resources can be developed and delivered in sufficient quantity. Even future elec- tricity supply is not assured. Feasible hydro sites are now almost totally developed and uranium reserves are limited. Second, even if we could locate energy resources of suitable quantities and qualities, their costs would be monumental. It has been estimated that to satisfy anticipated demand growth in Canada to 1985 alone, we will have to spend over $100 billion; that is about $20,000 per existing household to just supply energy. This effect gets worse with time because, as we move to lower quality and more remote sources of energy, it wil cost us more and more energy to obtain energy. That is, since we have to invest not only dollars but also energy units in order to mine coal or tar sands, drill wells, operate pipelines or whatever, the net costs of energy delivered to the consumer will be still higher. The impact of this on our economy will be severe, both in terms of inflation and because it means fewer dollars for schools, hospitals and other industrial projects. In effect, it implies a return to the situation in which Canadian investment would be concentrated in the resource sectors of the economy. In view of the resource and cost factors, conservation offers a low-cost and low-risk alternative to continued high - demand growth. Third, assuming the resources were available and could be produced at a cost that we were willing to pay, to produce them and then consume them would involve large-scale en- vironmental impacts. Obviously to the extent that we conserve energy and defer or cancel energy develop- ment plans, the en- vironmental impact of production and tran- sportation can be avoided. Moreover in 'almost every instance sound energy con- servation at the point of use also supports environmental protection. True, in some cases environmental protection techniques seem to require more energy, but in most cases this arises only when such techniques are added on to the end of an existing process. The emission devices on automobiles are good examples of this approach. When more thought is given to the process as a whole-, the apparent conflict between energy conservation and environmental protection usually disappears. In summary, energy conservation can be viewed as the purest form of en- vironmental protection Finally lets examine the idea of qualit}tof life. This is perhaps an over-used"phrase, but the fact that it is over- used means that for. many Canadians, there is a feeling that our higher incomes and greater wealth have not been producing all that we had hoped they would. For example, we now have larger, more powerful automobiles, but it takes us just as long to get to work and there are ever more aggravations en route. Our luxurious homes are burgeoning with appliances, our garbage bags burst with waste from the affluent society. But has all this consumption and con- venience brought us closer together or has it alienated us from the natural world and each other? There is sound evidence to think that most indications of quality have begun to turn downward, that .they are by Page 13 no means as closely related to energy consumption as we once thought, Indeed, It now seems that efforts at moderating , our energy consumption - smaller cars, more mass transit, better built houses, less waste production, more personal involvement - will contribute to the quality of life at the same time as they save energy. There are still other reasons to support a serious and continuing effort at energy conservation which cannot be discussed fully here. Energy conservation is likely to require the sub- stitution of labor for capital and will thus account for an increase in jobs in Canada. By avoiding the need for enormous volumes of im- ports, energy conservation will reduce the dangers of international blackmail and confrontation. And so forth. Let us help you solve this winter's Home Heating Problems today. 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