Letters, Sept. 3

Responding to power concerns

Re: Aren’t there other power options? (Think Tank, Aug. 26)

The op-ed by Jules Legal gets several key facts completely wrong.

First, Bipole III was not built to export electricity to the United States. It was built to make Manitoba’s power system more reliable.

Before Bipole III came into service in 2018, about 70 per cent of Manitoba’s 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.

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.

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’s most consistent messages.

Manitoba Hydro’s 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.

That’s why we are proposing three additional combustion turbines in Brandon. They can provide power when it’s 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.

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.

Are there other power options? Of course there are. That’s why Manitoba Hydro’s 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.

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’s needed, which will include our proposed and existing combustion turbines, and our existing hydroelectric resources.

A reliable electricity system isn’t built on a single solution. It requires a mix of resources working together to ensure Manitobans have power when they need it most.

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.

Scott Powell

Director, corporate communications and marketing, Manitoba Hydro

Teacher discipline overzealous?

Re: Teacher disciplined for ‘liking’ student’s online post (Sept. 1)

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.

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!

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’s social media accounts, if that is even possible. I am sure there are much more unsavoury characters out there who can access their children’s social media.

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.

Bonnie Smith

Winnipeg

Uphold pit bull ban

Re: Breed-specific dog ban should be overturned (Think Tank, Aug. 27)

In Elayna Hurtig’s article, she wonders when will Winnipeg be “ready” to allow pit bulls and pit-bull-type dogs on our streets. The answer is hopefully never!

Thank you to those city councillors for doing the right thing and upholding the breed-specific ban. You have protected innocent children, adults and pets from a dog breed that has been historically bred to attack, maul and kill.

While some pit bull owners may be responsible, there are many dog owners who are not. Unintended consequences frequently occur. No person or pet should have to endure lifelong physical disfigurement and psychological scars because relentless pit bull lobbyists keep pushing that we should remove the ban on this factually unpredictable breed.

Lobbyists love to claim that their so-called “evidence-based research” and “expert advice” proves we need to adopt a “breed-neutral approach”. The problem with the “it’s the bad owner, not the bad dog” philosophy is that there are a lot of bad owners out there, and after the damage has been done, it is the victim who has to live with the consequences.

There are obvious reasons for upholding the current breed-specific dog ban in Winnipeg. Ask any person who has survived a mauling by a pit bull or pit-bull-type dog. If Ms. Hurtig wants to own a pit bull, she can — outside city limits. Her choices should not put others at risk.

Common-sense residents are grateful to the city councillors who had the backbone to resist the relentless pressure by lobbyists pushing to allow pit bulls in our city.

Sandra Bueti

Winnipeg

City hall shakeup required

On Oct. 28, Winnipeggers will head to the polls to elect a mayor, city councillors and school trustees.

Candidates are promising change and solutions for infrastructure, crime, homelessness, transit and more. But one major issue has received little attention — Winnipeg city council’s governance model.

The mayor chooses the executive policy committee (EPC). If an EPC councillor disagrees with the mayor or does not support the mayor’s agenda, they can be removed and replaced.

Some councillors receive information before others, while others can be iced out of important decision-making. How can Winnipeg move forward when city hall itself lacks openness, transparency and equal representation?

When candidates ask for your support, ask them this:

Will you work to reform Winnipeg’s governance structure and bring greater democracy and transparency back to city hall?

Real change must start with democracy at city hall.

Mike Davidson

Winnipeg