Port Picton letter

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To:Ryan Williams

Member of Parliament, Bay of Quinte

Dear Mr Williams

I am adding my comments to those of my fellow residents Angus Ross and Brian Etherington published in the June 22 Picton Gazette criticizing your flabby analysis – if I can call it analysis – of the proposed Picton Terminals container port expansion.

Mr. Ross – a veteran climate change expert from the Canadian insurance industry – analyzes prospects for greenhouse gas emission reductions from this initiative and finds at best there are none.  Mr. Etherington tackles the dreadful safety record of the port proponent and the attendant costs and risks to the County and its taxpayers.

I would like to call attention to your laughable analysis of the inflation impact of the container port from the perspective of someone who spent nearly 25 years analyzing the economies of 65 countries around the world.  Below you will find a chart from the Financial Times of London illustrating the inflation rates of Canada, the United States, the countries of the Eurozone, the UK and Japan.  The inflation of the past couple of years is by no means isolated to Canada.  I would hope that does not come as a surprise to you.

I would also point out that having peaked at 8.1% in June of last year, at the end of April this year Canada’s CPI was 4.4%.  The combination of COVID-driven supply chain shocks and the spike in energy prices driven by Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine are now trailing off with recent interest hikes from the Bank of Canada (that you and your party leader revel in attacking) as well as other central banks around the world no doubt contributing to further declines in inflation going forward.   In fact, the Trading Economics website: https://tradingeconomics.com/forecast/inflation-rate forecasts Inflation in Canada to be 3.3% by the end of Q1 2024. Perhaps you should spend some time reviewing this website before making further economic prognostications.  What I can tell you is that forecast inflation WILL NOT be driven by any decision taken about the shoddy Picton Terminals proposal.

I am particularly distressed by your pledge to withhold support for the repair of Highway 49 unless County Council agrees to Picton Terminals proposal.  People less polite than me would call this blackmail.

Sincerely,

Jane Lesslie, CFA

Picton

 

Little BESS Proposals

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Almost lost in the public noise on the topic of Big BESS, a further two BESS project proposals were floated by other proponents. Each was significantly smaller. Opting not to reject a proposal that had not been received, Council tasked staff to report back to Council with their recommendation. The staff report is reported in the agenda of the January 31 Council meeting here.

  • THAT Council pass the following Municipal Support Resolution, as required by the Independent
    Electricity Systems Operator, providing evidence of municipal support for the Mowbray West and Mowbray East Battery Energy Storage System project proposed by Abundant Energy at 500
    Mowbray Road (Project MCML_81) and 493 Mowbray Road (MCML_82)

    Motion: ‘The Council of Prince Edward County supports the development, construction and operation of the Long-Term Reliability Projects on the Municipal Lands.’

Going against staff’s recommendation for council to approve the municipal support resolution for the proposed Abundant Solar Energy project (a requirement by the Independent Electricity Systems Operator (IESO), the recorded vote lost 8-5.

Lost and Found

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If you arrived here looking for my Elect Jane Lesslie web site, don’t despair. That site had served its purpose and has been relocated/archived to election.janelesslie.ca complete with all of its post content.

There’s some good environmental and social information and commentary on local issues posted there. Well worth a visit.

Big BESS Proposal

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In early December, Compass Renewable Energy Consulting Inc. launched a proposal for a large Battery Energy Storage System [BESS] to be built north of Picton adjacent to County Road 5.

Picton BESS Limited Partnership was created by Compass Renewable Energy Consulting Inc. for developing the Project, with support from Capstone Infrastructure Corporation. Capstone is approved by the Independent Electricity System Operator [IESO] among the 55 Qualified Applicants with the experience and capabilities to successfully develop, construct, and operate facilities acquired through these procurements.

The Project will be submitted to the IESO Request for Proposals under the Expedited Long-Term 1 procurement. The IESO requires that the local municipality is in favour of the specific ‘green energy’ projects as a condition for review of the project by IESO.

As it is of utmost importance to us that Picton BESS be correctly integrated into the County of Prince Edward, we are seeking to incorporate public feedback through Public Community Meetings and a Project Website into the development of this Project.

The Wellington Times provided a comprehensive report and local commentary on this proposal.