[Ontario] No business like coal business – by Lorrie Goldstein (Toronto Sun – July 21, 2017)

http://www.torontosun.com/

Premier Wynne back in black

Premier Kathleen Wynne’s government is back in black – meaning the coal business. Specifically, the use of coal to generate electricity, a practice it outlawed in Ontario on Nov. 23, 2015, after shutting down the last of the province’s coal-fired power plants in 2014.

As the Wynne Liberals proudly proclaimed back then: “Ontario passed legislation today to permanently ban coal-fired electricity generation in the province – a first in North America and a significant step in the fight against climate change.

“The Ending Coal for Cleaner Air Act prevents new and existing facilities from burning coal for the sole purpose of generating electricity. It sets maximum fines for anyone who violates the ban and enshrines the health and environmental benefits of making coal-fired electricity illegal in law …

“Closing coal-fired power plants represents one of the largest greenhouse gas reduction initiatives in North America … Climate change is not a distant threat – it is already costing the people of Ontario. It has devastated communities, damaged homes, businesses and crops and increased insurance rates.

“The cost of inaction is far too high. Closing coal-fired electricity generation and reducing greenhouse gas emissions is part of the government’s plan to build Ontario up.” But that was then, before Wynne sold a majority stake in Hydro One to the private sector (the province maintains a minority ownership) to raise funds for her cash-strapped government.

For the rest of this article: http://www.torontosun.com/2017/07/20/ontarios-return-to-coal-business-fuels-concerns