Ontario’s energy supply has been marred by years of fiscal mismanagement and short-term thinking. The Green Party intends to correct these mistakes by taking Ontario in a new, clean and green energy direction that focuses on reducing demand rather than increasing supply. Instead of squandering billions of tax dollars on expensive, heavily subsidized nuclear energy, or allowing coal-fired plants to continue to pollute the air we breathe, the Green Party believes Ontario can build a sustainable energy future through a combination of conservation, efficiency and renewable energy programs.

We applaud the efforts of the local utilities to encourage conservation. We are concerned about the plans to expand the capacity of the OPG Darlington nuclear generating station. Nuclear energy does in fact contribute to climate change during the construction of the generating stations through the making of concrete, the manufacture of the equipment and the construction itself. Even if the government decided to build a new plant tomorrow, it would not start producing for about 10 years and our children would be paying for 40 years. Improving efficiency produces payoffs immediately without leaving behind a legacy of radioactive waste. Solar and wind only count for 1% of the electricity in Ontario. We can do better.