News Releases
August 18, 2003
"Think Smart" and reduce the consumption of electricity
BRANTFORD, ON - In an effort to avoid rotational blackouts, Mayor
Friel, Brantford City Council and Brantford Power support Premier
Eves' appeal to reduce energy consumption.
Premier Eves has requested that commercial and industrial customers
including federal, provincial, municipal and public agencies,
reduce power consumption to 50 percent of normal usage.
Mayor Friel is aiming to reduce energy consumption by 50 per
cent in all municipal departments and agencies for the week of
August 18, 2003.
Generally, residents and businesses are requested to shift
electricity consumption, where possible, to the off-peak hours
between 8:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m.
Mayor Friel thanks Brantford residents and businesses for their
efforts over the weekend to conserve energy.
"The citizens of Brantford stand tall in the Province of Ontario
during this blackout emergency. We pulled together, helped our
neighbours and have performed extraordinarily in conserving both
electricity and water … an A+ [A plus] effort that we can all
be proud of.", says Mayor Friel.
To ensure that there is enough power to meet demand for the week
of August 18 and to provide power to essential services like hospitals
and water treatment plans, Mayor Friel is appealing to all Brantford
residents and businesses to continue their efforts to 'think smart
and reduce their consumption of electricity."
Energy Conservation
Tips
Commercial and Industrial Buildings:
- Where possible, shift electricity consumption to off-peak
hours from 8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m.
- Turn off air conditioners, if practical. If cooling is essential,
set air conditioning thermostats to 26 degrees Celsius.
- Eliminate the unnecessary use of cooling systems in off-hours.
- Where possible, open windows and doorways to draw in naturally
cool air.
- Reduce lighting levels in offices by at least 50% except in
areas required for emergency response such as stairwells, or
for security reasons.
- Reduce the numbers of elevators and escalators that are in
service.
- When practical, reduce the availability of hot water in the
building.
- Do not use office equipment and signage including illuminated
billboards, unnecessarily. Evaluate and disconnect any unnecessary
equipment like copiers, coffee machines, computers.
For more information, businesses and industries can contact the
IMO Help Centre at:
Toll Free 1-888-448-7777
Telephone [905] 403-6900
Fax [905] 403-6921
e-mail helpcentre@theimo.com
At Home:
- Where possible, shift electricity consumption to off-peak
hours from 8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m.
- Turn air conditioners off if practical and especially when
you leave home. Where cooling is essential, set thermostats
at 26 degrees Celsius.
- Open windows to draw in naturally cool air, if possible.
- Cool pool; run air conditioning in one house and invite neighbours
or other family members to share the cool.
- Reduce lighting levels. Turn lights off when leaving the room.
- Do not use water outside. There is a full ban on washing
cars and driveways and watering lawns and gardens for the week
of August 18, 2003.
- Cut back on your inside water usage. Reduce the number of
loads of laundry; hang clothes to dry; do dishes by hand.
- Do not use appliances unnecessarily; unplug any spare appliances.
Ø If you must run appliances, do so between off-peak hours of
8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m.; run appliances only when loads are completely
full. Ø Minimize the use of hot water.
- Take showers instead of baths.
- Turn off swimming pools and hot tub pumps.
- Avoid using furnace fans.
- Open refrigerators and freezers infrequently; in the event
of a power outage, cover freezers with blankets or sleeping
bags.
- Use microwave ovens if possible, for cooking.
- When using your oven or barbecue, conserve energy by cooking
more than one meal at a time. Make sure to store unused portions
properly.
- Enjoy summer's supply of fresh produce; fresh fruits and vegetables
are nutritious when eaten raw.
"Think Smart" and Stay Safe
Health and safety are always paramount concerns for our community.
When conserving power or during power outages, residents and businesses
are urged to consider the following safety tips:
- Maintain an adequate level of lighting in areas required for
emergency response such as stairwells or for security reasons.
- Avoid elevators. With potential rotational blackouts, you
will not know when you may be trapped in an elevator due to
a power loss. (The Fire Department must rely on elevator service
persons to open the elevator shafts to assist you. The Fire
Department will only force entry into an elevator when a medical
or fire emergency occurs.)
- During a power outage, make sure your stove is turned off
and keep it clear of any materials that may burn. When power
comes back on and the stove is not turned off, it may ignite
pots or other nearby materials.
- Smoke alarms, fire alarms and carbon monoxide detectors may
not be working during an outage, so take extra safety precautions
during outages.
- Use flashlights and battery powered lighting instead of candles
whenever possible.
- If you must use candles, use appropriate candleholders. Make
sure candles are out when you leave a room or go to bed.
- Do not leave young children or pets alone with candles and
ensure all matches and lighters are out of their reach.
- Propane appliances, tanks and generators must be kept outside.
The exhaust or the burning of any fuel will create harmful carbon
monoxide gases that you cannot see, smell or taste.
- Generators must not be connected into your household hydro
circuits by anyone other than an electrician. To do so could
cause the generator's power being back fed onto the power lines
coming to your home and result in a life hazard to linemen working
somewhere else on the power lines.
- During a power outage, business and industry should start
using their emergency and fire safety plans to protect their
premises.
For more fire safety advice, please contact the Brantford Fire
Department Fire Prevention Bureau at 752-0540.
- If in doubt, throw it out. If power to your refrigerator
is out for at least four hours during a power outage, meats,
fish, cheese, milk and formulas should be discarded. Ø
- Take spoiled food, in particular meat and dairy products,
to the special dumpsters set up at the Civic Centre and Wayne
Gretzky Centre
Contact the Brant County Health Unit at 753-4937 with questions
about how to handle food.
- Call before you dig; if you are doing any construction or
maintenance work, contact 751-5900 to avoid any unnecessary
disruptions to power and water supplies.
- If you unplug unused appliances like refrigerators, remember
to keep them secure
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