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HomeMy WebLinkAboutZurich Citizens News, 1978-02-16, Page 4Page 4 Citizens News, February 16, 1978 C Illlli111111111111111111111IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIBl1111111111111111111111111111l11111111111{II111111111111111111111111111l1117111IIIIIRII11111111111111111111111111111111111111IIIIIIIIItlllfll111111_ Z.C.N.Vi.e p oint o.Plll11111111111111111111tlllllllllllll{1111IIIIlIItlIlIIIII11111111111111llillllllllllllllllllllllllll11111111111111111111{111II11111111lIIIt1111111111111iI1111111111111I11111IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIi_ 71. ?Illllllllllllllllllllltlllllllllllllllllllllllllllf111111111111111111111111111111IIIIIIIIIIIIillllllllllll11111111111111111111111IIIIIIItf11111111111101111111111I111111111111111111111111111{IltllIIIUIIIIIIIe Lewis alre Time will tell whether the recent successes of the NDP party in Ontario in gaining more popular support were largely due to one man. That one man, of course, Stephen Lewis, has stepped down as party leader — a position which made his name a household word over the past eight years. Lewis brought a number of things . to the New Democrat Party of Ontario. In addition to being its leader when it became the Official Opposition for the first time in the history of the province, he introduced moderation to its stoic socialist philosophy which had preced- ed his accession. In its place, Lewis ex- tended his own brand of imaginative social -democracy. It was much more flexible and capable of fitting the con- tours of the socio-political map of On- tario during the fluctuating '70's. Where others in his party called for strict adherence to such socialist stan- dards as state ownership and govern- ment departments to solve every moral dilemma facing modern society, Lewis concentrated on specific issues and his responses, solutions to problems, and reactions to new events sparkled with the brightness of a man who was -not only intelligent and direct, but human and sensitive as well. As we see it, Lewis was less con- cerned about socialism than he was about winning elections. But more im- portantly, he was concerned about the human condition, and the policies of the NDP during his leadership stood out for their position on civil liberties dy issed and the economic rights of the poor and dispossessed. Now the NDP has a new leader by the name of Michael Cassidy. He is noticeably less tolerant of compromise in order to make the party work, either from the standpoint of representing people or winning elections. Cassidy touts blanket nationaliza- tion of the metal mines and a $4•an hour minimum wage as if he were talking of a vendetta rather than a political plat- form. There are a lot of people out there (indeed some very liberal people) who don't accept the theory that govern- ment can right wrongs by nationalizing everything in sight. Equally, there are no doubt many people signing un- employment cheques who would dis- agree that the $4 an hour minimum' wage is going to get them a job any sooner or pick up a sagging economy — or help the small businessman. Mr. Cassidy, we think, has a great deal to learn as leader of a major provincial political party. Unfortunate- ly, he may not learn his first lesson un- til the next provincial election, some three to four years hence. From the positions taken by the NDP at their convention over the weekend, it is clear that Ontario has begun to lose an interesting alternative to the other two existing political par- ties. It is also clear that both the NDP and the province of Ontario no longer have the talents of Stephen Lewis in the spotlight of the Legislature. St. Marys Journal Argus FIRST WITH LOCAL NEWS Published Each Wednesday By J.W. Eedy Publications Ltd: Member: Canadian Weekly Newspapers Association Ontario Weekly Newspapers Association News Editor - Tom Creech Second Class Mail Registration Number 1385 Subscription Rates: $7.00 per year in advance in Canada $18.00 per year outside Canada Single copies 20c p{IIIIllIIII111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111►IU►►Iu11►I►111►►l►►►l►111111►111► a Miscellaneous Rumblings By TOM CREECH Land and greenhouses One of the more interesting briefs that was presented to the local members of parliament at a meeting sponsored by the Huron County Federation of Agridulture came from that group's property and land use committee. The brief said that a press release issued from the ministry of agriculture stating that Ontario had a reserve of two million acres of land available for agricultural production should not be taken at face value. That figure includes land that is in the Toronto - Niagara region and which would be too expensive to return to agricultural production plus land which would be suitable only.for pasturing purposes. In Huron County, according to the ministry, there are 3,526 acres of reserve land available. When the federation attempted to determine where these reserve lands were, they received an elonged answer that amounted to "We don't know". The federation brief stated that "It would appear that this informa- tion on reserve land for agriculture is rather irrele- vant for future use as no consideration has been given to soil capabilities, climatic factors and even the feasibility of farming in some areas. This writer believes that it was MPP Jack Riddell who "hit the nail on the head" when he said that Hay swamp was probably included in that total. One also wonders if gravel pits redundant and otherwise, and old private landfill sites were not thrown in. If I learned only one thing from my three years at Western, its this: you do not accept anything at face value. Statistics are about the easiest• thing to manipulate with the only person who really has any idea what's going on being the manipulator. One really begins to doubt the validity of their statistics when they say that there are 17 million reserve acres in the Canadian Shield. As the brief suggests, it almost sounds like the ministry of agriculture is inferring that it is agriculture which should be moving northwards and leaving southern Ontario as the manufacturing centre for the province. While it is true that some of the heartier vegetables could be grown in northern Ontario, I can't see the growing of peaches or tomatoes in land near Cochrane as the soil is of a poor quality and the growing season is considerably shorter. Continuing this column along agricultural lines, a study commissioned by the Ontario government has confirmed the technical and economic feasibility of using the heat rejected in the moderator cooling water of a nuclear generating station to heat greenhouses and increase the growth rates of fish in a hatchery and fish farming operations. The study which was con- ducted by Ontario Hydro and the consulting firm of Conestoga Rovers and Associates found that a com- parison of a greenhouse heated by conventional energy versus one heated by moderator cooling water indicates a saving of $13,000 per acre (in favour of the moderator cooling water operation) in 1977, and in- creasing to $199,000 saving per acre in the year 2006. The difference, which includes both operational costs and capital cost differentials between the two systems, is primarily due to the projected escalation of fossil fuel costs. The greenhouse industry in Ontario which represents only five percent of the total horticultural production in Ontario, is declining due to increasing fuel costs and the importation of large numbers of hothouse vegetables from south of the border. The active farming of fish could be another use for the waste water and a cost benefit analysis which was conducted, said that the total benefits of a restocked fish population could amount to over seven million dollars per year. This pilot study was conducted on the area sur- rounding the Bruce Nuclear power plant with the town of Kincardine being the main benefactor. Another future development which the study did not mention, was the possibility of the construction of a central heating plant for the town that could be heated by the waste waters. While the initial costs of this project could be quite high, it could prove in the long run to be a relatively inexpensive form of heat.