Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath isn't getting a charge from the Ontario Long-Term Energy Plan

Daily Miner & News
December 9, 2010
QMI Agency

Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath isn't getting a charge from the Ontario Long-Term Energy Plan.

The $87-billion strategy, announced by the Liberal government in late November, will rely on nuclear, wind, solar and biomass power to keep the province's lights on for the next 20 years.

The NDP leader says not enough is being done to encourage Ontario residents to save electricity in their own homes -- where about 30 per cent of power is consumed.

"Unfortunately, the province has not looked at conservation," said Horwath during a stop in Sault Ste. Marie.

"We always talk about new generation, new generation, new generation of power. But one of the things we don't look at is the fact that so many people across this province could really benefit from some real conservation program."

The Ontario Home Energy Savings Program ends in April 2011.

The program helped 158,000 property owners retrofit their homes with improvements such as high-efficiency windows and doors and heating and cooling upgrades. While 112,000 replaced an inefficient furnace or boiler.

She fears Ontarians will be zapped by cost overruns on the construction of two nuclear reactors and the refurbishment of 10 others. The Liberals peg the cost at $33 billion.

"We think there's a lot of room to shift that investment into other things -- conservation being one of the major ones."