MPP Jim Brownell (centre) congratulates CCRI Secretary-Treasurer Elaine Kennedy (left) and Vice-Chair Patrick Finucan (right) on their success.
Cornwall Residents Will Become A Driving Force
Cornwall, ON – The Cornwall Carbon Reduction Initiative (CCRI) is launching a new project, with the help of a new $46,900 grant from the Community Go Green Fund. Jim Brownell, MPP for Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry, congratulated the CCRI for its continued efforts.
“The citizens of our region have made great strides toward becoming greener, healthier, and more environmentally friendly,” said MPP Brownell. “The Cornwall Carbon Reduction Initiative continues to do great work in helping our community reduce its environmental impact and highlighting our region’s green assets.”
The grant will be used to develop and deliver a new project entitled A Driving Force. “This project will help residents learn how to maintain and drive their vehicles in order to best reduce fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions,” said CCRI Chair Brenda Wilson. “We are thrilled with the match between Cornwall’s goals and those of the Community Go Green Fund.”
Founded in 2006, the Cornwall Carbon Reduction Initiative is a grassroots organization which is dedicated to providing outreach and education activities about climate change and greenhouse gas reduction. Through an approach tailored to our community, the CCRI promotes long-term behavioural change and directs measurable actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Cornwall’s residential, commercial, and institutional sectors. For more information, visit their website at cornwallcarbonreduction.ca.
The Community Go Green Fund is a program of the Ontario Ministry of the Environment. Announced in 2007, this four-year program comes under Ontario’s Climate Change Action Plan. To date, the Community Go Green Fund has provided more than $6M in funding to more than 90 community groups.
Oh Look three retired education people. We wonder why there is no improvement in the area *LOL*
““This project will help residents learn how to maintain and drive their vehicles in order to best reduce fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions,””
OMG what a waste of money. Want to know how to do so? Maintain your vehicle with regular checks. Make sure the pollution sensor works properly. And above all, don’t slam your foot to the metal when you want to drive but yet accelerate slowly. Keep it about 80km with cruise control and you are at about peak fuel efficiency. Unfortunately, if you follow these rules, most people behind you will be horning like you’re an old person driving.
Seriously, what a waste of money for a common sense thing.
I think this is just a Liberal means of putting out some money to someone.
Wow…I have to agree with you there Grimalot. This information could be given and become a requirement to know when applying for your drivers license…perhaps even in a test required by all people who would like to renew their license. All that being said, once the information is out there doesn’t mean the general people will heed the advice.
look who is in the picture did you expect anthing else *lol*
Elaine gets no support due to attitude,, Jim is always working on his private stuff, and Pat well waitin for retirement
This is rather a painful comment, because as most readers know, I am a strong supporter of the Ontario Government’s commitment to a sane energy policy. However, forking out taxpayer money for what is essentially a marketing/advertising project is not an effective way to go.
Most people don’t think of the extra gas they are using as they try to get past the idiot who insists on doing 75 on the 138. No amount of marketing/advertising is going to convince them otherwise. The only ways to convince people do drive in a fuel efficient manner are:
1) To mandate minimum fuel efficiency standards on the automakers;
2) To add a substantial licence plate surcharge to owners of pickups and large SUVs who cannot demonstrate an actual need for such a vehicle (for example, a farmer, plumber, etc. would be exempt, whereas an accountant, who lives in the suburbs and drives the monster to work in the city, and goes camping maybe once a year, would pay an extra $1000 for his plates);
3) To let the price of gas at the pumps reflect the true cost of this commodity.
It probably won’t be too far into the future when market forces force reality on motorists everywhere, so why not spend this money on something with a much more immediate and long lasting payoff – conversion of massive energy wasting High Pressure Sodium street lights to LED street lights? Some of these lights actually exist in Cornwall – drive west on Toll Gate to a small trailer park two blocks west of Vincent Massey to see them in operation. Just bare in mind that these lights were no doubt installed by an individual who probably has to look at the bottom line, and not by the city.
Richard
I have spoken with people on the 3 points you have made numerous times, as well as other methods of improving the environment. Unfortunately it appears the health of the planet is no different then the health of the people living on it.
We promote things like a green initiative the same way we aid people with diabetes, using care and control as the way to a healthy future. Yet in both cases there is little or no progress in rectifying the problem (trust me after 40 some yrs of diabetes all I see is money spent on methods of control). The only people making money is industry and people in the discipline or field of study.
As for transportation I drive a few thousand kilometers per week. I am a huge fan of Volkswagen TDI as I can accomplish all this travel on about $80 with the Volkswagen. I have my vehicle tested as per government regulations. It costs me, if memory serves me, about $45. There is no test for diesel. They just look for black or white smoke coming from the exhaust.
For those of you about to talk about costs, never mind the maintenance costs. I know that already however it is significantly less often then North American cars. Pretty much oil changes every 40,000 km and a seasonal tire change.
I would much rather take the train as driving is becoming old and tiring, however to use VIA rail is both inconvenient and not cost effective in the least.
Busses though advertising a trip for only $25 from point A to point B would still leave me with another $30 trip to work one way.
There are many other methods I have presented as well, however as I am sure you know the wrong people care.
Richard, you make good sense. I am so tired of “do gooders” telling us how to live. This damn green energy talk is sickening to say the least. And why is it always teacher (with lots of time on their hands, living comfortably) telling us what to do? I live on a dairy farm, we all work very hard and we don’t waste because waste costs money. Private business owners get it, public servants on the other hand don’t.
That could have gone towards an extra nurse on the front lines in the hospital instead.. again, what a waste…
Smee: congrats on your choice of vehicle – I too drive a VW Diesel, and driving around 90 on the highway (2 or 43, for example), I can easily get 50 mpg. And I agree with you 100% on VIA rail. It’s cheaper for me to drive to Toronto or London in my wife’s gas guzzling Chrysler than it is to take VIA rail.
Tammy: Thanks for the compliment. However, I’m having trouble understanding some of the rest of your post. “This damn green energy talk is sickening to say the least.” Am I to take it that you’re against green energy, or is someone missing something here?
As a dairy farmer, you use a lot of energy in running the farm: diesel for the tractors, and no doubt a huge amount of hydro to keep the barn clean and habitable for the cattle, and to keep the bulk tank cold. There’s no reason whatever for you to feel guilty about this energy use, because you’re using it wisely to produce something we all need.
On the other hand, if you could get help to install a windmill or suitable solar panel on your property to reduce your dependence on Hydro One, wouldn’t you and your customers (me) be better off? And as more and more people in your position do start investing in green energy, prices will certainly come down for us all. Remember, how in 1990, a good computer cost around $2000? In 2000, a good computer still cost around $2000, but was infinitely better. Now, ten years later, a good computer is around $700, and many times faster than one a decade earlier.
Consumer demand brings down prices and encourages development.
This is what the provincial government is trying to achieve with its Green Energy Act, so that when the real crunch comes, in another 20 or 25 years, we’ll have some sort of infrastructure to replace fossil fuels.
Study the many private businesses that have really tried to go green – if anything, their profits have gone up.
Cheers and good luck!
I understand her point Richard; Correct me if I am wrong Tammy.
This is another concern I raised at a green club meeting. How come it is always the general public held responsible governing bodies and highly paid administration refusing to enforce legislation on industry?
I also put forth a question to the 12 or 15 people present. I asked how many of them walked or took the bus to the meeting. Did anyone even carpool? Guess how quiet the room was after that question was tabled.
Quit asking me to save energy and recycle while P&G place adverts stating the new and improved products require less trucks to deliver due to a smaller size. However they never stated how many other product lines they have reduced. One more line only menas more trucks.
Quit telling me to save water, the earth is closed loop water cannot just leave the planet. It can however go into all the different sizes of bottled water and many other canned goods and the processes to manufacture.
Put a water meter at my home and tell me it is to better monitor the use of water as well as aid in maintenance procedures. Make me laugh, it must be our local engineering groups providing that control method. End of line monitoring is inefficient at best. However seeing as where it comes from you could not expect any better.
Jamie
Here as in the tar sands Alberta make Ontario seem prehistoric for the same reason
Thank you smee, thats exactly what I mean…its the hypocrisy of it all. I will even go further, wind and solar is a farce, its costly, unreliable, heavily subsidized and over rated.
Funny how nobody comments on facts