\t\t\tResponding to power concerns<\/p>\n
Re: Aren\u2019t there other power options?<\/a> (Think Tank, Aug. 26)<\/p>\n The op-ed by Jules Legal gets several key facts completely wrong.<\/p>\n First, Bipole III was not built to export electricity to the United States. It was built to make Manitoba\u2019s power system more reliable.<\/p>\n Before Bipole III came into service in 2018, about 70 per cent of Manitoba\u2019s electricity from our northern generating stations flowed through Bipole I and Bipole II. Because those lines run along the same corridor, a major outage or damage to that line could have caused widespread service disruptions. Bipole III gives Manitoba an alternate route to move electricity from our generating stations to feed into our provincial grid.<\/p>\n In fact, the importance of Bipole III is even more obvious today. The Bipole I and II converter stations are aging and require major upgrades. As that work begins, Bipole III will be even more critical to help ensure Manitobans continue to receive reliable power.<\/p>\n Second, the article also claims Manitoba Hydro has been reluctant to talk about drought and low water conditions. Nothing could be further from the truth. Hydro has spoken publicly about the impact drought has had on hydroelectric generation in recent years, including in annual reports, rate applications, and planning documents. It has been one of the utility\u2019s most consistent messages.<\/p>\n Manitoba Hydro\u2019s system is designed to manage drought conditions. The challenge we now face is that electricity demand is growing. According to our integrated resource plan, Manitoba will likely need additional reliable generation by 2030 to meet growing winter peak demand.<\/p>\n That\u2019s why we are proposing three additional combustion turbines in Brandon. They can provide power when it\u2019s needed most and can be built within the time frame required. They are the most reliable and affordable option available to meet peak loads and other system stress. They would operate, on average, about five per cent of the time.<\/p>\n Third, the suggestion that Manitoba Hydro should simply build more hydroelectric generating stations ignores the reality that large hydro projects take decades to build and are not a viable option in the time frame in which we need more generating resources.<\/p>\n Are there other power options? Of course there are. That\u2019s why Manitoba Hydro\u2019s plan leans heavily on energy efficiency programs, demand-response measures, upgrades to existing generating stations and purchasing up to 600 megawatts of wind power from majority Indigenous-owned wind farms.<\/p>\n But wind energy is only available when the wind blows. To keep the lights and heat on during the coldest days of winter, renewable energy needs to be backed up by reliable generation that can be called on whenever it\u2019s needed, which will include our proposed and existing combustion turbines, and our existing hydroelectric resources.<\/p>\n A reliable electricity system isn\u2019t built on a single solution. It requires a mix of resources working together to ensure Manitobans have power when they need it most.<\/p>\n Manitobans can rest assured that Manitoba Hydro is continuing to act in their best interests, as we have every day since our formation in 1961.<\/p>\n Scott Powell, Director, corporate communications and marketing, Manitoba Hydro<\/p>\n Teacher discipline overzealous?<\/p>\n Re: Teacher disciplined for \u2018liking\u2019 student\u2019s online post<\/a> (Sept. 1)<\/p>\n As a high school teacher, I supervised school student councils, who I took to rural towns for province-wide meetings, drove students to course-sponsored activities, and allowed both my children to travel with teacher supervisors to other parts of Canada and even Europe.<\/p>\n I know things have changed and social media, which was just developing in my last days of teaching, has really grown and become a problem for parents and students, but I think parents have to use some common sense when dealing with these issues. A teacher has now been named publicly for an innocent mistake. This innocent mistake will follow him for the rest of his life. What a shame!<\/p>\n If parents want to make sure that only people they deem acceptable follow or like their children on social media, they need to place strict controls on their children\u2019s social media accounts, if that is even possible. I am sure there are much more unsavoury characters out there who can access their children\u2019s social media.<\/p>\n It is no wonder we are short of teachers in Manitoba. For the whole 40 years of my career we had a surplus. If I was 18 now, I would rethink my choice to spend six years training for a career that is so tightly controlled.<\/p>\n Bonnie Smith, Winnipeg<\/p>\n Uphold pit bull ban<\/p>\n