The Nuclear Waste Management Organization is
recommending deep rock burial for the highly radioactive waste
that has been gathering in Canada for decades.
The anticipated shutdown of some coal-fired
electricity plants is delayed because energy consumption is so
high in Ontario.
Hydro dams are being planned that have the
potential to change the water quality of the rivers
involved.
Huge wind farms are being protested by the
residents of the Niagara escarpment.
The need to transport more energy to
consumers requires more huge transmission corridors that blight
the landscape and lead the loss of wilderness.
Is there no end to the problems created by
our insatiable demand for electricity?
Even in my little log cabin in the woods, our
energy use degrades the quality of air on the planet. We heat
with wood. We use a gas-fired chainsaw to cut the wood, and
gas-powered vehicles to move the wood from the forest to the
wood box.
Solar panels provide our electrical needs for
lights and radio, and various gadgets around the house. We are
very conscious of how much we
consume, especially in November, because the
supply is limited by the number of sunny days.
Maybe this is why I get so annoyed when I see
energy being squandered on my visits to the city. When I
stepped into the entry of the YMCA to take Kate to swimming
lessons, it hit me like a blast furnace. WHY?
What is the purpose of superheating the
entryway? I thought the little entrance rooms to buildings were
designed to prevent the outside air from mixing directly with
the inside air - thus keeping the main room of the building
cooler in summer, and warmer in winter. I did not think they
are there to cook us in winter and freeze us in summer. But
that is what I have found in many places.
We have a andapos;mud roomandapos; off our
kitchen door at home. It has no heat source at all. But since
it is small, and attached, and fully enclosed, it stops the
wind, and is generally quite a bit warmer than outside. It is
also quite a bit cooler than inside the kitchen. It provides a
welcome transition from the cold November wind to the cosy
wood-heated interior.
In the city, this gentle transition from cold
to warm is not part of the planning. I find myself well dressed
for the outside cold, stepping into an intolerably hot entryway
in about half the buildings I visit on my twice a month
sojourn. The flagrant waste of energy is inexcusable.
How many other ways could energy be saved?
Lights and computers off at night - light levels reduced in
stores - taking stairs instead of elevators, to name just a
few.
If we, as a society, stopped wasting so much
energy, we could reduce the amount of nuclear waste, we could
shut down the air-polluting coal plants, we could avoid the
need to build new transmission corridors. We could all breathe
easier - and save a tonne of money.
