It's a hot-button issue in Oshawa, but many people east of Durham may not have heard the debate about the Ethanol plant proposed for Oshawa's waterfront.
The ethanol plant, proposed by FarmTech Energy Corporation proposes building the ethanol co-op near the foot of Farewell street about 1½ km from the marina. The plant would process corn crops to produce ethanol fuel. According to FarmTech's website, "This location is ideal because it’s close to major transportation routes, and the port. Greater use of the port means less truck traffic".
Durham Environment Watch notes that FarmTech has also requested that the zoning by-law should be flexible enough to allow for other ingredients such as cellulose to be used to create ethanol in future.
Reaction to the proposed plant has been somewhat mixed, however it seems that both environmental groups and City Hall are opposed to the plant. Lake Ontario Waterkeeper has recently formally requested that the Ministry of the Environment "deny or defer" the application for the plant.
A document (PDF) from The Regional Municipality of Durham from March suggests that "Should Oshawa Council decide to refuse FarmTech's planning applications, FarmTech would appear to be in a position to proceed with the development". The document requests that the local government's decision (whatever that ends up being) not be superceded by higher levels of government.
Transport Canada - The Crombie Report
In February 2008, Transport Canada released the Crombie report, which gave several recommendations on the use of the Oshawa waterfront. The report did not specifically address the issue of the ethanol plant in detail but did menion that, along with the consideration of a rail spur line, "Both of these projects are subject to the appropriate public processes. However, the resolution of these issues should be among the first orders of business for the new oversight body and the City".
FarmTech claims that the Crombie report supports the development of the ethanol plant, saying
"The Crombie Report also recognizes that as a condition of the transfer of port lands to the City, that the municipality agree to respect and recognize all existing leases, business contracts and undertakings".
The company claims that this means the ethanol facility should go ahead.
Meanwhile, when the Crombie report was released, deputy mayor Brian Nicholson said
"This is virtually everything we asked for," he said. "If this is adopted by the federal government and supported financially, it means the people of Oshawa can finally develop a waterfront that is what they want. For the first time our waterfront will be totally controlled by the people of Oshawa."
Mayor John Gray has been quite vocal in opposing the project. He is a member of the Take Back Oshawa's Harbourfront Facebook Group, where he recently suggested that members speak to current election candidates about the issue.
Ethanol & Our Environment:
A Quick and Simple Overview
Is Ethanol sustainable? The short answer is yes, because you can grow more year after year.
Is Ethanol environmentally repsonsible? Put simply, it depends what the ethanol is made from.
According to the David Suzuki Foundation,
"Ethanol made from corn only contains marginally more energy than what is needed to produce it. In fact, we use about a litre's worth of fossil fuels to grow, harvest, process, and transport a litre of corn-based ethanol."
More recent studies have suggested that switchgrass is a much better source of ethanol than corn, since
"switchgrass grown and managed for biofuel can produce 500 per cent more renewable energy than the energy it needs to be grown and processed"
In addition, switchgrass will grow on "marginal land" (that is, land we wouldn't normally grow our food on), which is a more efficient use of our resources and land.
Map of the Proposed Ethanol Plant:
Following is a map of the approximate location of the proposed corn ethanol plant.
Oshawa Harbour Image by netnomad
