Electricity coalition to release Windsor poll on clean, public power prior to public meeting on Ontario's energy future

    WINDSOR, ON, Sept. 19 /CNW Telbec/ - The Ontario Electricity Coalition
will release results tomorrow of a telephone poll of Windsor residents who
were asked which they think will give them a better electricity rates and do a
better job of protecting the environment - a public power utility or a private
corporation.

    OEC spokesperson Paul Kahnert will release the results at a news
conference at 11:00 a.m., Thurs., Sept. 20 at the Windsor Utilities Commission
Building, 787 Ouellette Ave.

    Tomorrow evening, Kahnert and voteforcleanenergy.ca campaigner Derek
Coronado will kick off a debate on Ontario's electricity future at a public
meeting at 7:00 p.m. at Club Alouette, 2418 Central Rd.

    "Under the Liberal government, the Ontario Power Authority has released
an electricity plan that energy minister Dwight Duncan described as probably
the largest peacetime expenditure in this country's history," said Kahnert.
"Yet, there has been no public consultation, no debate on a plan that is going
to expand electricity privatization and subject Ontario to yet another
expensive experiment with deregulation.
    "Even the Conservatives, when they were in power, went through the
motions of public hearings."
    The environmental coalition, voteforcleanenergy.ca, also has concerns
about the Liberal electricity plan, said Coronado.
    "The province's energy plan delays the closure of dirty coal plants,
repeats the mistakes of the past, massively commits to nuclear and eliminates
environmental assessments for nuclear. It's unconscionable," he said. "People
should be worried."
    Hidden within both Liberal and Conservative policies is a deregulation
and privatization agenda, said Kahnert, who calls both directions a big
mistake for consumers and the environment.
    "Show us one deregulated electricity market that has worked," he said.
"Why do they keep trying to make deregulation work here? It hasn't worked
anywhere."
    The Ontario Electricity Coalition is touring the province to raise clean,
public power as an issue in the October 10 election.

For further information: Renzo Zanchetta, [phone]; Paul Kahnert,
[phone]