GREEN ENERGY FOR WOOLWICH, WATERLOO REGION AND ONTARIO

It was only a few years ago that I and I suspect others considered green energy to be a gimmick. As far back as public school we were shown little working models of a solar panel that could convert sunshine into electricity and make a little blade rotate. Nowadays, although more expensive per watt of conventiuonal electricity produced, nevertheless solar and wind are producing significant amounts of energy. Today's K-W Record has two stories and one Opinion article dealing primarily with Wind and Solar green energy. The Opinion piece is titled "Hasty leap into green energy has been costly". The news stories are "Energy czar warns Ontario falling short" and "Costs of solar falling according to study by Queen's prof". The Opinion article by Martin Regg Cohn does reference problems with Ontario's green energy but also states "Operating costs for renewable energy are likely to decline significantly in future, while conventional energy will become more expensive, so we should hedge our bets." . The "Energy czar..." article is in regards to a report submitted to the Legislature by the Environmental Comissioner, Gord Miller. He takes issue with the government's ambitious conservation plans falling short. The last news story about falling costs for solar energy by a Queens' University prof claims that the cost of modern solar panels purchased in bulk is under $1 per watt and that when all costs are properly included (including environmental), solar is very close to being competitive with conventional energy sources.