These things happen on occasion, just ask my wife, but I tend to cool down when given more information.
For example, I got miffed when I read that every home and small business in Ontario will have a smart meter by 2010 but didn’t find a single word about what big business was going to do to contribute to our all new attitude and action related to energy conservation in this province.
And yesterday I wrote, ‘I mean, any government that wants to introduce a culture of conservation and try to reduce our dependence on fossil fueled energy production (think: coal furnaces by the score) has to go after the biggest users. Right?’
And though I scoured the book again for information about responsibilities placed on big businesses and the biggest users all I found was this short line in the FAQ section at www.ontario.ca/smartmeters.
Q: Does the billing system that applies to residential customers also apply to business customers?
A: These rates apply to low-volume consumers, including all residential customers and many small businesses.
However, though I worry big users are getting too big a break, I did receive the following comment from a reader that put a bit of my concern into perspective:
I think it's pretty obvious from the hydro company deficit, that they are not charging high enough rates for electricity. Maybe electricity everywhere is being subsidized. Signed, LM
I wouldn’t be surprised if we have been receiving too much of a break for too long.
And as we consider alternative sources of energy for the 1,001 electrical appliances we love to operate surely we’ll have to pay for the move away from fossil fuels.
Also, another reader helpfully supplied information regarding rates to medium and big hydro consumers and left me with a link that will keep me occupied for a few days (with extensive homework and an essay due by Friday!).
The reader said:
In Ontario, medium and large use customers already pay Time-of-Use rates. In fact, they pay hourly spot market prices that can be very volitile. Residential and small commercial will pay in three TOU tiers (Peak, Mid-Peak and Off-Peak).
Click here for more information.
I encourage readers to do just that, i.e., ‘click here,’ while I work on that essay.
***
Thank you to the readers who supplied useful comments.
Also, please click here to read Part 4 - Upcoming smart meter rates - how much and when
Now that I've cooled down, where’s my foolscap?
.
2 comments:
Gord - I've been enjoying your posts and biting my tongue. This topic really gets my blood boiling for sooooo many reasons.
First: Smart Meters are nothing but a very expensive scheme to extract more dough from your wallet and mine. Time Of Day rates are nigh unto impractical for residential users - and Dalton knows it. It's fine to say that we should use off-peak electricity, but beyond your dishwasher and *maybe* laundry appliances, what opportunities exist? And suppose we *all* started using off-peak power. I'm pretty sure it would no longer be off-peak (although it's unlikely we'll ever get there). For all your big-ticket items - stove, fridge, heat, hot water - you're paying more and there ain't much you can do about it. So, tough!
Second: I feel like the expenditure on Smart Meters is a wasted opportunity. Instead of the millions spent to install these, would it not have made sense to offer direct subsidies on residential solar/wind conversion, buy-back of old applicances, etc.? We could have done something dramatic and, instead, we blew the dough on nothing more than high-tech billing technology cloaked in the legitimacy of 'education'.
Third: It's true that we have been underpaying for electricity. But that situation has little to do with the true cost of generating power. It's more to do with chronic, long-term mismanagement of hydro generation in Ontario. We've been underpaying because of massive debt, not because it costs a lot to generate power.
See there, Gord? You got me going!
Hi Crazylegs,
Great comments, much appreciated.
After looking at the med- and high-rates I felt the same, i.e., very impractical for the majority of residential users. I can switch my laundry time, not much else at first glance.
I'm going to take a close look at medium and big users who already pay TOU rates, though lower than you and I, I believe. If the big users pay their fair share then I may be OK w part of the increase.
Your second and third points are worth exploring. Now you've got me thinking too.
Keep well.
GAH
Post a Comment