HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1990-04-04, Page 44"lT
22 ,— THE HURON EXPOSITOR, APRIL 11, 1990
E..*t Mjss'. 1 On
PURINA
CHICK DAB'S
BENEATH THE WAVES of Henry Mero's pond paddle 3,000
Speckled and Rainbow trout, the fruit of three years of fish
Ontario Hydro proposes
Ontario Hydro is proposing an average
increase of 7.8 per cent beginning January
1, 1991.
"Hydro cannot keep the 1991 increase in
line with our previous price Increases,"
said Mr. Franklin. "There are numerous
pressures on our costs that are pushing up
the price of electricity."
In 1991, rates must recover the cost of
new generating and transmission facilities,
environmental protection requirements and
increases to wages and prices because of
inflation.
Hydro also has to recover much higher
pension costs due to a recent Supreme
Court ruling, additional research funding to
raising and the beginnings of a hatchery operation, a dream
in the making. Elliott photo.
7.8 per
Atomic Energy of Canada Limited and
funding to the Atomic Energy Control
Board as stipulated by the federal
government.
A good portion of Hydro's increase is
needed because of new facilities coming in-
to service. "Our customers' use of elec-
tricity grew by five per cent in 1989 over
the year before and it is expected growth
will continue," said Mr. Franklin. "As new
facilities to meet Ontario's power needs
come on line, their cost must be reflected
in electricity prices."
In 1991, two units at Darlington
generating station will be in operation and
new transmission facilities in southwestern
New individual health cards
Starting this spring, new individual
health numbers, on plastic cards, will pro-
vided to every bona fide resident of
Ontario.
Health coverage, including Ontario Drug
Benefits, will remain the same, but
everyone will eventually need the new
health card with its to -digit number, as old
OHIP paper cards and numbers are phas-
ed out.
"The introduction of this new card
means people's health needs will be better
served," said Health Minister Elinor
Caplan. "A personal number is the key to
reliable records that no longer need to be
changed as people grow up, leave home,
switch jobs, marry or divorce, raise
families or retire."
Individual cards also mean improved
confidentiality. Under the premium -driven,
family -based system, several people might
use the same number but only the person
paying premiums could be contacted by
the health ministry. This put at risk the
maintenance of confidentiality for other
family members.
The cards are part of the health
ministry's modernization and consolidation
of all its information systems. The
overhaul should provide savings of more
than $1.5 billion over 10 years, with 10 per
cent of that amount resulting from use of
the new health cards.
"Health services now account for one
third of the provincial budget, and we owe
it to the taxpayers of Ontario to plan and
manage those services using the best possi-
ble information," Mrs. Caplan said.
The information the new system provides
on the use of health services will be of
great benefit in the long-term. The
ministry will be able to use this data base
to detect health trends and plan for future
demands on resources.
Following this year's initial registration,
newborns and new residents will be added
as they arrive. Each person's health
number will be assigned for life.
Eventually, that one number will pros ide
access to all health programs and services.
Its common use by hospitals and other in-
stitutions, most of which now issue their
own cards and maintain large client
registries, will reduce their administration
costs.
Since residency in Ontario must be
established in order to obtain the new
health card, both fraudulent and uninten-
tional use of Ontario health benefits by
non-residents will be curtailed.
Registration kits will be mailed to every
household in the province, over a two-week
period beginning April 17.
Move being made to cha
milk quota distribution
The challenge to make milk production
more responsive to the changing demands
of the marketplace is being met in Ontario
with n move to change the way quotas are
issue' to dairy farmers.
The Ontario Milk Marketing Board
recently decided to change the method of
allocating market -sharing quota (MSQ) to
Ontario milk producers. Starting August 1,
1990, all producers' MSQ will be converted
from litres of milk to kilograms of
butterfat.
In the face of a growing market for
lower fat dairy products and increasing
skim -off, this change will encourage pro-
ducers not to increase the butterfat content
of their milk.
"We recognize the problems associated
with increased skim -off of cream as out
butterfat test continues to go up and as the
demand for butterfat continues to decline,"
said OMMB Chairman John Core. "The
move to kilograms of butterfat sets the
stage for multiple component pricing in
1991 and sends a signal to producers that
Ontario's fat test is high enough."
Soybean growers seek
Representatives of the soybean industry,
growers, dealers and processors met
recently to negotiate the 1990 soybean crop
Marketing Agreement. This Agreement,
negotiated annually under the Farm Pro-
ducts Marketing Act, sets the maximum
amount which dealers may charge growers
for drying, handling and marketing their
crop.
Ontario soybean prices are established
from world export markets which do not
necessarily give producers their cost of
production and therefore charges to pro-
ducers should be competitive with world
markets.
Two major issues remain unresolved.
The first issue is charges for drying.
Dealers had requested an initial five per-
cent increase in an effort to recover infla-
tionary cost increases. They subsequently t
only reduced their demand to four per cent
- for arbitration. The growers countered
cent 1991 hike
Ontario will be brought into service. As
well, Hydro will return to operation two
units at the R. L. Hearn generating station
in Toronto.
"I reminded consumers last week that
we would fact double-digit increases in the
cost of electricity next year because of the
added effect of the federal government's
proposed Goods and Services Tax," said
Mr. Franklin. "The overall effect of rising
costs makes electrical efficiency im-
provements all the more important. Sav-
ings from increased efficiency will take
pressure off our existing and future
generating system, and help customers
reduce their electricity bills."
Hydro has budgeted' $3 billion from now
to the year 2000 for programs to help elec-
tricity users reduce their consumption.
Hydro's proposed 7.8 per cent price in-
crease is an average, all -customer in-
crease. Large industrial customers served
directly by Ontario Hydro would see their
bills increase an average 7.4 per cent. On-
tario's 315 municipal utilities would be
charged an average 7.9 per cent more.
Based on consumption of 1,000 kilowatt-
hours of electricity, Ontario householders
would pay an average about $4.50 more
per month for Hydro's proposed 1991
increase.
Electricity bolls to residential customers
served by the municipalities now average
$64.50 per month for 1,000 kilowatt-hours of
power.
Hydro's proposal has been submitted to
the Minister of Energy and will be review-
ed by the Ontario Energy Board.
Chick orders are now being taken!
Call or visit your nearest Ralston Purina dealer
and ask about chick delivery dates and details.
Q9 Rolston Country Roads
ifillton J. Dietz
R.R. #4
Seaforth, Ontario
NOK 1 WO
1-519-522-0608
Dates: May 4, June 1
Hills Feed & Farm Supply
Box 14000
Clinton,Ontario
NOM 1 LO
1-519-482-7706
Dates: April 25, May 23,
June 20
Topnotch Seaforth Feeds
Ltd.
Box 370
Seaforth, Ontario
NOK 1 WO
1-519-527-1911
MTS Farm Supplies Onc.
215 Pickard Road
Exeter, Ontario
NOM 1S3
1-519-235-2808
Dates: April 27, May 25
ge
SO
S A COMPL'
SYST
The present method of allocating MSQ io
litres encourages higher fat tests, and it is
the Board's view that the change to
kilograms will stop the increase in On-
tario's fat test by making producers direct-
ly accountable for all of the fat they
market.
The conversion will be based on the in-
dividual's weighted average butterfat test
during a historic base period. Special con-
sideration will be given to new producers.
In addition, an appeal procedure will be
announced for producers whose base period
test is not reasonably representative of
their current situation.
The Board notes that the change to
kilograms will not affect the volume of
milk that producers can market within
their quotas, provided their fat test does
not change In relation to the base period
test. Also, there will be no changes to the
milk payment system to producers in the
coming dairy year. The Board will be
undertaking a broad communications effort
over the next several months to inform
producers and industry members about the
change.
competitive charges
with a modest flat increase on the first
four points of moisture and then a flatten-
ed drying charge curve, similar to that of
corn. The drying issue will be arbitrated.
On the second issue, dealer handling
charges, again the dealer's initial position
was to recover the cost of inflation through
a five and a half percent increase. Their
final arbitration position is a four and a
half percent increase.
The growers have yet to submit their
final offer on handling charges which they
will do at the next negotiating session
slated for April 20, 1990.
"If Ontario's soybean industry is going to
function in a competitive international
market, then not only farmers, but dealers
and processors must all be competitive and
not just seek to recover their costs from
he producers," stated John Cunningham,
Chairman of the Ontario Soybean Growers'
Marketing Board's negotiating committee
News deadline is
Monday at 4 p.m.
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