[homeles_ot-l] Fwd: Low-Income Energy Network (LIEN) bulletin - "LIEN Currents"

Mon Mar 10 17:51:39 EDT 2008

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Zeenat Bhanji <bhanjiz at lao.on.ca>
Date: 10 Mar 2008 16:52
Subject: Low-Income Energy Network (LIEN) bulletin - "LIEN Currents"
To:

 <<LIEN bulletin - Jan,Feb 2008.pdf>>

 [image: Paintbrush Picture] [image: Picture (Metafile)]******

*        *

The bi-monthly bulletin of the Low-Income Energy Network (LIEN)

*Volume 3, No.1, January/February 2008*

   - *LIEN's fight for low-income energy rates goes to Divisional Court*

   In April 2007, the Ontario Energy Board (OEB) released a decision that
   it had no jurisdiction to implement rate affordability programs for
   low-income residential consumers. The Board decision was not unanimous.
   There was a very strong dissenting decision in this matter by Gordon Kaiser,
   Chair of the three-member Board panel, who found that the OEB does have the
   "jurisdiction to approve special rates for low-income consumers in
   appropriate cases."  On February 25, 2008, LIEN appeared before a Divisional
   Court panel to appeal the OEB decision and argue that the OEB does have the
   authority to set affordable gas rates for low-income energy consumers.

   LIEN appealed because a permanent rate assistance program is a crucial
   component of its strategy to address energy poverty in Ontario.  At
   Divisional Court, LIEN's legal counsel argued that there is nothing stopping
   the OEB from interpreting its authority broadly. It can consider and
   implement rate affordability programs, or approve or fix a separate rate for
   low-income consumers.

   LIEN will report on the Divisional Court's decision in the appeal when
   it is released.

   - *Ontario to lift the clothesline ban*

   Outdoor clotheslines are currently banned in some parts of the
   province under municipal bylaws and in some cases builders' covenants,
   usually for aesthetic reasons.  On January 21, 2008, the provincial
   government announced that it is moving to end the bans and allow
   anyone living in a freehold detached, semi-detached or row house to put a
   clothesline out in their yard. Condominiums and high-rises would be looked
   at separately. The government is consulting with stakeholders in the
   condominium and high-rise sectors to assess how to potentially proceed in
   those environments.

   Clothes dryers are among the most energy-consuming appliances in the
   home. Hanging clothes out to dry not only saves on electricity bills but
   also contributes to a reduction in air pollution and greenhouse gases.

      The government is asking the public for input on how to best end these
restrictions through a posting on Ontario's Environmental Registry at *
www.ebr.gov.on.ca*<http://www.ebr.gov.on.ca/ERS-WEB-External/displaynoticecontent.do?noticeId=MTAyNTM3&statusId=MTUzMjkz&language=en>.
Comments are due by March 28, 2008.

   - *OPA prepares for province-wide launch of low-income** Energy
   Efficiency Assistance Program for Homes*

   Last December marked the end of the pilot phase of the Ontario Power
   Authority's low-income* Energy Efficiency Assistance Program for
   Houses*. On February 22, 2008, LIEN representatives attended the OPA's
   stakeholder session to provide input into how the program could work best.
   The goal of this session was to review the results of the pilot program,
   discuss outreach challenges, program parameters, program delivery models,
   and harmonization with other programs in anticipation of a future program
   launch. LIEN has been advocating for the expansion of the pilot program
   province-wide and was encouraged to learn that this year the OPA will be
   rolling out energy conservation and demand management program initiatives
   designed to help low-income Ontarians in all communities reduce their energy
   consumption.

   - *25-in-5: Network for Poverty Reduction*

   LIEN attended the "25 in 5: Network for Poverty Reduction" workshop on
   January 28, 2008. The network is a multi-sectoral, comprised of more than
   100 provincial and Toronto-based organizations and individuals working on
   eliminating poverty. They call for a Poverty Reduction Plan with a goal to
   reduce poverty in Ontario by 25% in 5 years and 50% in 10 years. Over 250
   people attended the event, aimed at working collaboratively towards
   solutions and targets for Ontario's poverty reduction plan. LIEN stressed
   that the province's poverty reduction plan and its long-term affordable
   housing strategy must both address energy poverty and that low-income
   households should not be paying more than 6% of their total household income
   on energy costs.

   - *Toronto's Towerwise Energy Efficiency Education Action Committee*

   The Toronto Atmospheric Fund has brought together a number of
   stakeholders, including LIEN, to form the  Towerwise Energy Efficiency
   Education Action Committee (TEEEAC) which has met twice, on January 7 and
   February 25, 2008.  The committee will be producing educational materials to
   promote energy efficiency, and greenhouse gas emission reductions, in new
   and existing multi-residential buildings. TEEEAC is developing a work plan
   and a list of short, medium and long-term goals. As a start, the group is
   compiling a list of existing energy conservation practices that TEEEAC
   participants are doing and/or know about which can be used as a resource.
   LIEN representatives have highlighted that tenants will play a vital role in
   the success of this initiative.

*LIEN Currents** is issued bi-monthly by the Low-Income Energy Network for
members and others interested in solutions to energy poverty in Ontario. For
more information, contact the LIEN Coordinator at
**bhanjiz at lao.on.ca*<bhanjiz at lao.on.ca>
* or 416-597-5855 ext. 5167 or t**oll-free at 1-866-245-4182 ext. 5167. You
can also visit our website at
**www.lowincomeenergy.ca*<http://www.lowincomeenergy.ca>
**

 [image: Picture (Metafile)]********

*LIEN would like to express its appreciation to the Ontario Trillium
Foundation for supporting this initiative*

-- 
Terrie ( mocharebyl at gmail.com )
"If you see an injustice being committed, you aren't an observer, you are a
participant." June Callwood
Prejudice is a burden that confuses the past, threatens the future and
renders the present inaccessible.  Maya Angelou
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