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POWER OF YES: Use your superpower in this provincial election

'If you don't like what you are hearing, press for solutions. Your vote is your superpower. Demand solutions,' writes columnist
Russ Coles, Climate Action Newmarket-Aurora
2022 06 01 Voting screen (Elections Ontario)
Elections Ontario

In partnership with Climate Change Newmarket-Aurora, NewmarketToday brings you a regular series of columns aimed at creating awareness and engaging our community to take action on climate change.

As we consider the world we live in at the moment it can be depressing. Wars that we thought were things of the past, unfathomable people becoming elected to power, allies turning on allies, coupled with affordability issues and health-care concerns. Lost in the midst of all this turmoil is the existential global warming crisis. 

Last year was the warmest year on record. We have breached the 1.5C boundary that was seen as the maximum we should let the global average temperatures rise. Scientists have recorded temperatures at the North Pole soaring more than 20C above average, reaching levels beyond the melting point of ice. This rare and dramatic spike in warmth has sparked serious concerns among researchers about the accelerating pace of climate change and its cascading effects on polar ice, global weather patterns, and rising sea levels. 

How can we raise the priority of  the climate emergency especially as governments or prospective governments dial back on the progress we have made? Well, you take the opportunities where you find them and focus attention and action on solutions. 

One such opportunity is the current Ontario election. Provincial governments have a huge role in addressing global warming and driving down carbon emissions. Use this opportunity to seek out candidates that understand we are in a climate emergency and have solutions. And if you don't like what you are hearing, press for solutions. Your vote is your superpower. Demand solutions for your vote.

Power generation is a perfect area to focus on reducing emissions. The current Ontario government is ramping up fossil gas energy production instead of eliminating it. It is increasing the carbon emissions from this source by 500 per cent. Renewable energy is the solution. It is cost effective and quick to ramp up unlike nuclear power, which is carbon free but expensive. 

A report from the Ontario Clean Air Alliance found electricity generated by a new nuclear reactor would be far more expensive than renewable options, costing 3.6 times more than onshore wind, three times more than solar, and 1.7 times more than offshore wind. The report also underscored the province’s abundant renewable energy potential, noting that Great Lakes wind power alone could provide more than enough electricity to meet the province’s energy needs. 

We should also focus on creating increased east-west power grid links with Hydro Quebec which is clean, carbon-free hydro power.

Here are some things you need to demand of your provincial candidates regarding power generation:

  • Does their vision for Ontario involve a plan to phase out gas power by 2035? (Aside from exceptional and emergency circumstances totalling less than 88 hours per year)
  • Will they work to triple Ontario's supply of low-cost wind and solar electricity by 2035?
  • Are they in support of an expansion of Ontario's east-west transmission grid to increase our ability to use Quebec's existing massive hydro-electric reservoir system to store our variable wind and solar electricity?
  • Will they require the Ontario Energy Board to conduct a public hearing to review the financial prudency of current plans to build nuclear reactors?

Another area of focus are buildings that contribute 18 per cent of Canada’s total carbon emissions. All buildings equipped with fossil-fuel-based heating and cooling systems and appliances emit planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions. If the province created emission reduction rules for new and old buildings, if designed correctly, experts say the rules could be an important step toward reducing carbon emissions while avoiding rent hikes for tenants. 

New buildings should be created without requiring gas for heating or electricity. Heat pumps, solar panels, energy-efficient windows and housing design should be the standards for the massive amounts of housing construction that needs to take place — not in the Greenbelt but in already approved environments — to address the affordability crisis. The more energy efficiency we build in new homes, the less we will have to renovate in the future at considerable cost. 

Here are some things you need to demand of your provincial candidates regarding housing construction:

  • Are you willing to create emission reduction rules for new and old buildings utilizing heat pumps, solar panels and energy conservation?
  • Are you willing to provide funding for old homes to convert to a carbon emissions free home?

Be prepared to acknowledge and thank candidates whose parties have made efforts toward limiting carbon emissions in their policies. But we are in an emergency and much more has to be done. We need to demand more of our politicians. The candidates want your vote. Use your superpower to secure a livable future for you and the next generations. Make climate action one of the top priorities for this election and let's win some battles in this complicated, fraught time.

Inspired by the international organization Project Drawdown, Climate Action Newmarket-Aurora seeks to engage citizens, institutions, and policymakers in actionable and measurable solutions to stop catastrophic climate change as quickly, safely and equitably as possible. You can contact them at [email protected], and follow them on Facebook and Instagram.