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Are Solar+Storage Closing Gas Plants? Is that really what's most important?
30Mar 2019 14 Apr 2019
Over the last year or two, we've heard much about solar + storage – specifically battery storage, replacing [natural] "gas plants" and "peakers" and sometimes infrastructure investments, namely transmission. The hoops and hollers often reach feverous levels if new investment in natural gas "peakers" were avoided. But I have still yet to find evidence of single cycle combustion turbines – actual "peakers" proposed to be … actually avoided.
I am not going to rehash my corrections about two of the more notable stories that happened in California (three "peakers" and transmission for some big batteries in PG&E – Pacific Gas & Electric territory).
[Edit: 4/14/19 – I guess I must, so here it is. ~Hans]
At stake are 2 ultra-low CF (nearly zero – not even low single digits) single cycle gas turbine units (barely considerable a "power plant" and as "distributed generation" as we get at grid scale) and an older CCGT (Metcalf Emergy Cemter) at the hub of NorCal's 500kV transmission system (at the critical intersection between high load centers and several inefficient larger plants – Moss Landing, that are closing due California's "Once Through" Ruling. This is the basis of Diablo Canyon NPP needing to close in 2025 also).
And depending on what the alignment of the solar system is on any one day or the current state of smart grid-edge rate redesign efforts are, whether they will be actually closed is anyone's guess. [edit 4/19 – FERC denied closure of all 3]
All 3 plants & units are IPP – Independent Power Producer, owned. And all 3 have nearby BTF/M – Behind the Fence/Meter NG CHP – Combined Heat & Power units (agricultural processing facilities) within earshot. Which, when we look at the bigger picture of managing grid resources more intelligently through the ISO/RTO/Balancing Authorities, we will see ERCOT is incorporating large scale BTM/F NG CHP plants as part of their arsenal of enablers for higher RE integrations.
This last part was detailed in a presentation for ESIG – Energy Systems Integration Group by ERCOT's Lead Planning Engineer, Julia Matevosyan, and how they are addressing legitimate "Inertia" concerns pro-actively with advanced systems management technology enablers. Something that is desparately needed throughout the US, as I wrote about recently here, and several years ago here.
Or in Arizona with TEP – Tucson Electric Power adding (some solar+storage to address local NOx concerns from some very low Capacity Factory (CF) single cycle turbines – full speed ahead with distant coal plants), that started this most recent buzz gaining steam during 2018.
Nor should I focus on already dated exciting solar+storage news from Oregon, where it was added to an existing wind farm on the very sunny, eastern side of the Columbia Gorge. Solar exploding in Oregon's high desert has long been anticipated to correct the area's existing wind imbalance, largely waiting for Solar PV's price to hit a magic point. Massive Columbia Basin Hydro and transmission capacity to California needed solar or storage to even wind out, while a pumped storage proposal has languished for over a decade. Not surprisingly [to me anyways], it was an Energy Company of the Future – Nextera Energy Resources which developed this project.
[Edit already required while writing this article – that's how fast news is breaking … Add Idaho to the list of "groundbreaking" announcements – very much interconnected to Columbia Basin Hydro generation and storage, the BPA – Bonneville Power Authority transmission system and existing wind.]
Nor will I reference back to earlier claims about "peakers" shuttering around New York City, but not within New York itself, as those are stories about natural gas combined cycle plants replacing old "dual fuel" steam turbine plants in New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts. Natural Gas fleet re-construction completed in 2018 as noted by the Energy Information Agency's "unwelcome" announcement recently, that once again "natural gas" power plants were a substantial portion of the year's new capacity addition. This should not have been a surprise to anyone, as "Houston, we have a problem" as I detail here with renewable energy deployment in the eastern United States.
But unfortunately, this buzz continues as I recently wrote about here, forcing our attentions away from important regulatory and distribution system operator (DSO) level improvements, not only software enabled, but also physical hardware-based, that are desperately needed for a 21st Century Grid with high renewable energy penetration and already here… Distributed Energy Resources (DER).
So to get right to it, here are the latest solar+storage buzzes hitting the US energy transition space with some really big batteries. No disrespect to Christian Roseland at PV Magazine USA as I respect his efforts, but he [as several other authors/RE media resources running off FPL's press releases alone] has served up two softballs back-to-back to MLB "sluggers" in Florida and Texas. These are going out of the park once we unpack the backstories.
Has Spring Training begun yet?!
First up, Florida…
"The FPL Manatee Energy Storage Center is scheduled to come online in 2021, and will replace two natural gas-fired units at a nearby power plant. FPL notes that it will use this battery to meet costly evening power demand, meaning that it will be a solar+storage "peaker", replacing the flexibility that the gas plants offered."
and not to be outdone, ArsTechnia running with this story too, even claiming a new power plant will be built – even though Manatee Energy Center has been its name for some years.
What Florida Power & Light (FPL), otherwise know as Nextera Energy Resources when the understory is not about vertical monopoly IOUs – Investor Owned Utility, is replacing is two "dual fuel" natural gas/heavy fuel oil steam boiling turbines, not "peakers".
Manatee Energy Center, south of Tampa consists of multiple operating units, which is common in the US. 20th Century "power plants" or "generation stations" are now routinely named "energy centers" in the 21st Century. Nothing has fundamentally changed; centralized generation "plants" diversified with different Prime Mover technologies and Prime Mover operating units.
Wind+Solar+Storage is no different.
"D!ck Swinging Contests" and Power Plants 101
How US Energy Information Agency (EIA) track and power plant owners report key metrics is at a bit of an impasse in the industry. EIA likes basing all metrics upon a "spinning mass"; i.e., a turbine as the fundamental operating unit, whereas increasingly wind, solar, fuel cells and batteries are reported through a common inverter or transformer at its connection to the transmission system.
Boys will be boys, and make no mistake about it… this impasse is very much a "firehose" swinging competition! It unfortunately opens up a lot of room for tall tales, fish stories, debates over "inertia" and boasting from both sides, which only stalls the energy transition, not power it forwards.
And here, Manatee Energy Center is no different, with different types of gas plants, in different capacities and quantities, plus solar PV already incorporated in 2017.
Manatee Energy Center – "Gas Plants" & Solar PV
So what is being replaced or closed with solar+storage?
Two steam turbine units with a combined capacity of 1,726 Megawatts (MW) commissioned in 1976 and 1977. They are on the right side of the "power plant" above, which is connected to the cooling water lakes/lagoons which all steam plants require if they do not have cooling towers. Just above and not in the picture are 2 large heavy fuel oil tanks.
To Flex or Not to Flex…
Under no circumstances, unless we are talking about coal or nuclear, do any power generation experts consider natural gas steam turbines "flexible". They ramp slowly like a coal plant, taking a long time to boil water, build enough steam pressure to turn massive turbines and synchronize with the grid. Under very few circumstances do plant owners want to ramp them up or ramp them down, resulting in unprofitable fuel costs and emissions without the production of any usable energy.
Natural Gas steam plants are seasonally flexible, but I struggle to classify days or weeks-long seasonal operations as "peaking" under general implied references from some authors or commenters. Would be the same as calling a coal plant, when not in scheduled maintenance, a "peaker" for doing what it is supposed to do, generate electricity 8760 (industry speak for 24/7/365).
Conversion Efficiency & Specific Carbon
Are natural gas fueled steam [electric generation] plants efficient?
Not really. Although, they do emit less carbon dioxide than coal plants.
Given their age, EIA actually assesses this Prime Mover class a higher Heat Rate than generally "more modern" coal plants, 10382 over 10045 respectively. The higher the Heat Rate, the lower the efficiency.
Lower CO2 emissions per unit of electricity produced is baked into the specific carbon content of the fuels themselves, not the small efficiency difference between steam turbines and their different fuels. However, we often hear this claim in simplistic discussions of "natural gas" being better than coal, with the implied meaning that "gas plants" are less carbon intensive than "coal plants". Fuel specific carbon content is indifferent to Prime Mover technologies employed. Natural gas contains about 60% of the specific carbon content compared to lignite, sub-bituminous, bituminous or anthracite; collectively "coal", per unit of energy – the MMBTU, Million British Thermal Units.
Power Gen Carbon Emissions Reduction – The Bridge "Decade"
A few months ago, the NY Times released an article, much to my dismay with some squiggly colorful waves representing our energy transition since 2000 based on "fuel" for every state. I'm sure you recall it, but it drove a huge stake in my ribs as I had spent a couple hundred hours attempting to correct the EIA Prime Mover – Fuel impasse from the same data that was used to the generate the colorful squiggles. Facebook never fails to stick pins in my eyes, this article is "promoted" every other time I log into my newsfeed.
Yes, the state by state history waves are nice, but they do not account for efficiency improvements that are largely an American technology story, given most countries have not converted steam to combined cycle plants. And this actually matters from a climate change and climate change mitigation/abatement perspective.
This is what state energy mixes would look like if Prime Mover technology and Fuel type were accounted for accurately. Texas in 2017 (not just ERCOT "Texas"). It's not so simple, but there are at least 8 different "gas plants" here and how, when and how much they are used matters from a carbon and energy perspective.
America's power generation carbon emissions reduction during the "transition" or "bridge" period between roughly 2000 to 2014 did not come simply from increasing natural gas consumption in existing steam turbines and running coal plants out of the market. It came from the other Prime Mover class generation unit at Manatee Energy Center – the "combined cycle" natural gas plant or CCGT – Combined Cycle Gas Turbine[s] – which not unsurprisingly, is not closing from this solar+storage project.
These are flexible operationally and highly efficient. Most in the US achieve around 60% energy in [natural gas] to energy out [electricity] efficiency, roughly double that of steam turbines regardless if the fuel is coal, oil, natural gas or nuclear. And they ramp fast, meaning they don't need to be "idling" burning fuel and spewing any number of emissions into the environment. Operational Expense (OpEx) is pretty low too, many of these are remotely operated without full-time onsite staff needed. Oh, and water consumption… that too is much lower than steam turbines.
This is what is at Manatee Energy Center, not being replaced by solar + storage, a CCGT.
Manatee CCGT is no sluggish "sea cow"…
Specifically, it is a hybrid combined cycle plant consisting of four natural gas combustion turbines (CT or GT), each paired with a HRSG – Heat Recovery Steam Generator, and one steam turbine. Electric power is produced at each combustion turbine connected to an individual electric generator and also at the steam turbine paired with an electric generator fed by the steam from one, two, three or four HRSGs depending on how many combustion turbines are operating.
If you dozed off, we just advanced to Power Plant 102, so I will repeat what we just covered.
The only fossil fuel fed into the CCGT was into the combustion turbine[s] – which is little different than what makes our airplanes fly, not the steam turbine. The steam was produced in the HRSG by capturing the normally expelled heat from the combustion turbine's exhaust. Without the HRSG, we have a single cycle combustion/gas turbine, a true "peaker" and a horrible efficiency or Heat Rate of 11214 according to EIA. With HRSG and steam turbine, Heat Rate drops into the 7000s and energy conversion efficiency rises into the 60% or greater range.
Not surprisingly with EIA's 20th Century accounting/reporting method entrenched in "spinning mass" thinking – some plant operators report natural gas or fuel oil as being consumed by the HRSG/ST itself, while others get it "right" as the only fossil fuel consumed is by the combustion turbine, not the heat recovery part of the CCGT. Ah… old ways of thinking die hard, and old dogs don't learn new tricks.
Combined at Manatee Energy Center there are 752.8 MW of combustion turbines which feed steam into a single steam turbine (ST) with a capacity of 471.8 MW.
Optimally, all 4 CTs plus the ST are running at the same time, but blocks of electric power of 752.8 / 4 = 188.2 MW plus one-fourth the ST output (118 MW) or 306 MW are possible, without significantly sacrificing the high efficiency rating of a combined cycle plant. This also means, no fuel is being consumed by the other 3 combustion turbines is there is only a need for one-fourth the CCGT's total capacity of 1,224.6 MW.
Manatee Energy Center's hybrid CC plant, a "four in one", is relatively rare for the US, where 3-in-1 or 2-in-1 are far more common, I tend to really like it, from the flexibility and efficiency perspective.
Two "2 in 1" hybrid CCGT in Arizona, not far from massive solar PV deployments and Palo Verde Nuclear Power Plant.
I could discuss 1 to 1 combined cycle "gas plants", but lets just suffice it to say the combustion turbine and steam turbine "after" the HRSG are connected by a common mechanism to rotate the single electric generator. As such, they are less responsive, take longer to ramp, and would fit more of a "baseload" generator definition… whatever "baseload" really is anyways. 😉
FPL built this hybrid combine cycle plant in 2005. It's not going anywhere, getting stranded nor being shuttered anytime soon, and especially not with this giant battery going in at the site. One might say, the battery compliments the CC plant just as it mitigates limitations from solar PV.
In fact, whether the battery is charged by the solar plant or from the CCGT as it is ramping down and un-synchronozing from the grid, the battery will minimize partial ramps of the CCGT, resulting in not only significant carbon dioxide emissions, but more importantly, NOx – Nitric Oxides and CO – Carbon Monoxide emissions from the combustion turbines as they ramp and not running at full capacity.
These are all good things in our collective challenge to reduce our carbon emissions. I feel like I am a "naysayers", for having to "bust this myth" at Manatee of solar+storage shuttering "gas plants" or "peakers", but this myth is busted!
We're still transitioning, not fast enough for my liking either, but some of us need to hold your leapfrogging jets!
Everything's bigger, err… better in Texas, especially our energy transition strategy
Strap on your massive belt buckle, pull on your cowboy boots, put on our 10-gallon cowboy hat, grab your dancing partner and enjoy this song by Rick Tervino as… "Everything's Better in Texas", especially our energy transition! Yee-haw!
Here's our breaking solar+storage news,
Everything is bigger in Texas
Juno Solar and Juno Storage projects, 495 MW of solar and 495 MW of batteries …. already have interconnection agreements, and together are easily the largest solar+storage project seen by pv magazine. However the project is not expected until May 2021, and in the next two years it is likely that even larger batteries will be announced.
This is indeed impressive, as I often find myself talking in Gigawatt (GW) and Gigawatt-hour (GWh) scales, especially as we discuss that other "peak" in California, evening peak increasingly outgrowing 8 GW and 25-40 GWh every day requiring natural gas "peakers" with limited pumped hydro and battery storage. Half a gig instantaneous capacity from any prime mover technology is a big deal.
But Juno Solar and Juno Storage is not just plugging into the existing grid way out in West Texas, where distributions systems have been strengthened to support explosive load growth in the nation's most productive oil patch, the Permian. It's going even further out into the West Texas scrub brush into Far West Texas, where transmission expansion has not completed. So far west a wind farm was so old, it was cheaper to decommission after damage from an ice storm and it is unlikely to be rebuilt until transmission arrives.
Not to worry, new transmission and substations are already under construction – the last if you will of Texas' CREZ – Competitive Renewable Energy Zone infrastructure projects to be developed to facilitate the expansion of wind [and solar] in the Longhorn State.
Red lines are single or dual circuit 345kV transmission. Most (left of the black line) did not exist a decade ago. New trans/subs in circle is under construction by Oncor, American Electric Power and Xcel (in SE NM).
I've been writing about this for some time, at least 5 years anyways. Solar PV is going to explode in Texas, but not on its own accord, standalone or solving any problems by itself.
Same is true with batteries, or their combination, as Texas is where pairing renewable generator with batteries began at NoTrees Wind Farm. The 36 MW storage project, after its rightful groundbreaking deployment by Duke Energy, much more quietly went through a battery changeout about 2 years later. Not knocking it, only highlighting we are very much still within the early years of very large batteries, and we don't have the histories from actual use cases to make any hard claims as to actually longevity we will witness, nor certainties on costs over the long run.
Starting to note a theme here, like horns in Texas?
Solar. Like Storage. Like Wind. Like Transmission. Is a part of a lonnnngggggg strategy.
One which many might think was built specifically for solar+storage. It was, but it wasn't. It was built based on a comprehensive, long term plan to enable all carbon reduction technologies to participate in the end goal – reducing the carbon intensity within our electric grids cost effectively.
Natural gas is definitely at play and a new natural gas reciprocating engine bank was recently completed by Golden Spread Electric Cooperative to maximize efficiency, flexibility and dispatchability. I suspect, this plant will have far greater operational longevity compared to a similarly sized battery – as it is the closest technology "match" there is to a grid-scale battery for providing grid services.
But this history and future is really about wind and transmission, massive new load growth in the oil patch and not enough flexible or fossil generation out in West or Panhandle Texas. A lot of it is about ERCOT, but it is not exclusive to North America's second smallest "Grid".
RRRRRRRUUUUUUUUUUPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!
Wait, what?! Who just killed Rick Tervino on our Texas Roadhouse jukebox?!
"Small" and "Texas" should never be in the same sentence, but isn't that better than saying "third largest grid"? Enough already, by line miles, generation resources, peak capacity, peak load, etc., it goes something like this; Eastern Interconnect, Western Interconnect, Texas (ERCOT) and then non-synchronous Quebec.
Sorry Texas, am I forgiven if I say this? Texas is the undisputed leader in new transmission and wind farm deployments in… North America. And soon, it will be a solar "success story" also. TBH, electric markets and light "don't tread on me" regulatory and policy intervention in Texas is… going to blow away more heavy-handed and mandate-drive renewable energy deployments in places like New York, North Carolina and wait for it… California!
Make no mistakes about it, the "Golden Platter" transmission, wind and natural gas have worked hard to forge and polish for solar and/or storage in Texas (and the Great Plains) is actually going to crush any other efforts around the world (minus China) to enable our energy transition, once solar arrives.
Which brings us back to the announcement about solar+storage in Texas being some revolution in our energy transition efforts.
I'll let Tom Bodett cover this,
"I'm Tom Bodett for Motel 6, and we'll leave the light on for 'ya."
And that's exactly what has happened in Texas with transmission, wind, utilities, EPCs – Engineering Procurement & Construction companies, large construction contractors and small, regulators, electric cooperatives, natural gas and both ERCOT and Southwest Power Pool… they have built a Motel 6 waiting for solar and storage to finish each their own journey through scaling, cost reductions and technology maturation.
One might ask,
"What's took you so long?"
But I think most would say,
"Ready to get to work? There's no lack of things to be done here!"
If you're not certain what those things are? This is a detailed breakdown from 2017 for the entire US. Speaking strictly from a carbon abatement issue (measured in million metric tonnes) we should be focusing the the "grays", then the "reds" and once those are done, then we can focus on the "greens". Spoiler alert, if we're hoping are Canadian friends are going to decarbonize through electrification also – that's another 75-85 Terrawatt-hours per year they supply us with currently. Honestly, thank you Canada!
[If you'd like to comment or discuss further, please do so on LinkedIn… here or connect with me on Twitter. Better yet, as this article is the product of four years long years of "bootstrapping" my way through the otherwise boring energy sectors, please consider sharing it with your networks, social media accounts, etc. ~Hans]
Tags: Energy Infrastructure, energy transition, florida, Renewable Energy, solar+storage, texas, wind power
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Harvard lawyer, super capacitor inventor, climate/energy book writer, and wise cracking, climate blog guest poster, Rud Istvan has a post up at WUWT:
https://wattsupwiththat.com/2019/04/05/grid-scale-battery-nonsense-2019/
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Florida State's Roderick Johnson selected by Browns in 2017 NFL Draft
Roderick Johnson #77 and Derrick Kelly II #74 of the Florida State Seminoles celebrate in the second half against the Mississippi Rebels during the Camping World Kickoff at Camping World Stadium on September 5, 2016 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
RODERICK JOHNSON, OT
6'7″, 298 pounds
Roderick Johnson was the 16th pick in the fifth round (No. 160 overall) of the 2017 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns.
In what has been commonly called a weak offensive-line class, Florida State's Roderick Johnson has a chance to break through as one of the better blockers. The two-time Jacobs Trophy winner for the best offensive lineman in the ACC, Johnson raised eyebrows by declaring for the draft after his junior season, but has shown enough in the past for Browns fans to be optimistic about their team's newest tackle. With that said, however, it may be best for the Florissant, Missouri, product to spend a year on the bench sitting and learning.
Scouting Report:
Johnson has the size of a true offensive lineman — not heavy, but built on strength and muscle. The 6-foot-7 tackle displays excellent awareness and vision and played a key role in running back Dalvin Cook producing record numbers for the Seminoles. With great wingspan as a blocker and a high motor, Johnson should appeal to coaches so long as he can work on his pass-blocking and calmness. Johnson will too often panic when things don't go his way. If he can get the proper time to mature and learn from the pros, Johnson should be a capable starter within two or three seasons.
NFL Combine results:
The expert says:
"Despite his balance inconsistencies, Johnson can be a powerful run blocker when he gets defenders framed up. Teams will have to decide if they want to play him on the left or right side, but an offensive line coach will need to try and correct issues with his pass sets and his footwork before he gets his shot." — Lance Zierlein, NFL.com
Author: Adam Hirshfield
Adam is the digital sports editor at The Palm Beach Post. A soccer fan and Michigan man, he has previously spent time at Bleacher Report, the NBA, USA Today, NESN and more. Please follow him on Twitter @ahirshfield.	View all posts by Adam Hirshfield
Author Adam HirshfieldPosted on April 29, 2017 April 29, 2017 Categories Football, seminolepostTags florida state seminoles, NFL Draft, Roderick Johnson, seminolepost, sports, sportsfront
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Magnetic Insight Raises $18M to Support Commercial Growth of Magnetic Particle Imaging in Cell Therapy, Vascular and Oncology Applications
ALAMEDA, Calif., Dec. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — Magnetic Insight, Inc., a developer and manufacturer of transformational in vivo imaging platforms, announced a Series A financing led by 5AM Ventures. The proceeds will allow the company to expand the commercial and operations teams, scale manufacturing, and develop new application areas for the technology. In conjunction with the financing, David Allison, PhD, Partner at 5AM Ventures, and Joe Victor, CEO of RareCyte Inc, will join the board of directors.
Magnetic Insight has commercialized Magnetic Particle Imaging (MPI), a new in vivo imaging modality that directly detects magnetic tracers, enabling deep tissue imaging of functional events and pathologies not possible with current technologies. MPI offers unprecedented contrast and sensitivity that transforms preclinical research and therapy development, with an added promise of clinical translation.
"We are excited to partner with 5AM Ventures on our Series A financing to help us meet the global demand for the MOMENTUM MPI system. Since our commercial launch in 2017, we have delivered systems worldwide and leaders in in vivo imaging have been publishing on the MOMENTUM MPI system across applications in cell therapies, vascular disease and monitoring cancer treatments," said Anna Christensen PhD, President and CEO of Magnetic Insight.
"Magnetic Insight has the opportunity to transform in vivo imaging and become a critical tool in life science research with longer term potential for clinical applications. We are excited to work with the Magnetic Insight team to drive new application areas and scale the company globally," said David Allison, PhD of 5AM Ventures.
Magnetic Insight is life science tools company developing Magnetic Particle Imaging to accelerate preclinical research with direct translation into the clinic. The company was founded by the leaders of the MPI program at the University California, Berkeley and commercial imaging industry. The company has been supported by prominent startup incubators, including StartX, CLSA Fast, and NIH C3i. Magnetic Insight is a privately held company with investors at Sand Hill Angels, CEG Ventures, StartX-Stanford Fund, and SVTech Ventures, and grant funding from the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program of the National Institutes of Health (EB020463).
About 5AM Ventures
Founded in 2002, 5AM actively invests in next-generation life science companies. With over $1.4 billion under management, 5AM has invested in 71 companies including Arvinas, Audentes Therapeutics, Cidara Therapeutics, Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, DVS Sciences (acquired by Fluidigm), Envoy Therapeutics (acquired by Takeda), Flexion Therapeutics, Homology Medicines, Ikaria (acquired by Mallinckrodt), Ilypsa (acquired by Amgen), Incline Therapeutics (acquired by The Medicines Company), Marcadia Biotech (acquired by Roche), Novira Therapeutics (acquired by J&J), Pearl Therapeutics (acquired by AstraZeneca) and Relypsa (acquired by Vifor Pharma). For more information, please visit www.5amventures.com.


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St Andrews swansong in 2005
Even the golfing gods would have struggled to come up with a more fitting Open farewell for Jack Nicklaus than the one he experienced at The 134th Open in 2005.
The three-time Champion Golfer of the Year called time on his storied relationship with the Claret Jug at the age of 65 at the Home of Golf – the Old Course at St Andrews.
Rapturous applause and cheers echoed around the famous venue as spectators showed their love for the Golden Bear, greeting every shot with louder and louder roars of approval.
And while the legendary 18-time major champion was bowing out years after his peak, a birdie on the last hole ensured he finished on a high despite missing the 36-hole cut.
Even Tiger Woods winning his second Claret Jug could not take away from Nicklaus' poignant swansong as the greatest brought the curtain down on a fairytale career.
Engineering St Andrews return
Some thought Nicklaus had made his last Open appearance at the Old Course in 2000.
It certainly looked that way when he stopped on the famous Swilcan Bridge on the 18th fairway to wave to supporters, soak in the atmosphere and pose for pictures.
After all, where better for the Florida native to finish his Open career than at the course where he won two Claret Jugs and finished runner-up in just his third Championship appearance.
But that was not part of his grand plan. In fact, Nicklaus revealed a year before The 134th Open that he had influenced the decision to stage it at St Andrews once again in 2005.
"I spoke to Peter Dawson [chief executive of the R&A] at St Andrews in 2000 and asked him when we would be coming back," said Nicklaus about the prospect of playing his 33rd Open.
"He said 2006 and I said that was a shame as I would be past my eligibility, which runs until I'm 65. He asked me if it was held in 2005 would I play and next thing I see it was announced for 2005."
Finishing with a flourish
Nicklaus is far from the only golfing great to treasure St Andrews and it was no surprise when Woods, who won his first Open at the Old Course in 2000, took an early lead.
The American topped the leaderboard on day one with a six-under 66 but Nicklaus showed he still possessed plenty of tricks in his bag as he posted a respectable three-over 75.
Woods continued to run riot in the second round and a five-under 67 opened up a four-shot lead over his nearest competitor Colin Montgomery – but Friday was all about Nicklaus.
Refusing to go down without a fight, Nicklaus shot a magnificent even-par 72 in his final competitive round, which included sinking a memorable 15-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole.
"I knew that the hole would move where I hit it; I always make it on the 18th," Nicklaus joked after.
"I aimed six inches left of the hole, played a six-inch break, hit it and the ball was going along and every other putt going that way missed the hole, but this one gobbled it in. It was like Pac-Man."
But despite finishing with a flourish, Nicklaus stressed it was the right time to hang up his clubs, with father time preventing him from being as competitive as he would have liked.
"When I come in here and say that I shot 72, and it's the best round I shot this year, and I played well, and I'm missing the cut, you know it's time to leave. That's sort of the way I look at it."
Emotions run high for final farewell
Even before holing yet another birdie putt on the 18th, the scene at St Andrews provided the perfect stage for Nicklaus to exit – the right way for the best of all time to bow out.
Having nailed his drive down the final fairway, it was time for Nicklaus to wave goodbye one final time as he stepped on the Swilcan Bridge to soak up the applause all around him.
He was joined by playing partner and fellow Open legend Tom Watson – the man who had famously beat him to the Claret Jug in 1977 in the great 'Duel in the Sun' at Turnberry.
And it was Watson rather than Nicklaus who got caught up in the emotion of it all.
"Here's the greatest player who has ever played the game in his final Championship of his career and I had the privilege of being able to play with him," said Watson.
"I joined him on his last walk, the last hole of his Championship career and I lost it."
Nicklaus added: "Tom was far more emotional than I was. Tom was on the bridge with tears running down his face and I'm like, 'Watson!' – but he was doing it on Tuesday in the practice round."
Watson continued: "I was walking up the fairway, over the bridge crying and Jack finally grabbed me and said, 'Tom, come on, get a hold of yourself, you have a golf tournament to play here.'
"I had to par the last hole to make the cut, he knew my position, it wasn't all about him – he had concern for me and that's something he always had – I appreciated that very much."
Watson went on to hole his par putt before watching on along with the thousands of spectators around the green as Nicklaus stepped up for his birdie effort – the rest, as they say, is history.
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HomeFeaturesFor popular dance teacher Rheesa Schachter, Kids Etc. is...
For popular dance teacher Rheesa Schachter, Kids Etc. is a family affair
left: Rheesa Schachter (centre) with
daughters Taylor (left) & Jessica
right: dancers from Kids Etc.
By MYRON LOVE In more ways than one, for Rheesa Schachter, Kids Etc. Youth Movement Company is a family affair. Her daughters, Taylor and Jessica Smith, whom she describes as her two best friends, have been an integral part of Kids Etc. since they were teenagers – both as students and, later, as teachers – and, since 2017, have been her partners in the business.
Taylor is an award-winning dancer, a choreographer and a performer who has also qualified as a personal trainer and has her own personal training gym. Jessica's credentials are equally impressive, having competed in the World Dance Championships and having been chosen as a Hall of Fame All-Star. Jessica has completed her Intermediate Level Cecchetti Ballet Exams. Her mother notes that she has assumed responsibility for Kids Etc.'s marketing and social media initiatives.
In addition, Rheesa notes that her husband, Paul, handles administration duties and is always available to help in a myriad of ways from providing bandaids to editing the music to cleaning the toilets.
On another level though, Schachter says that she considers her staff and students also as part of one big family. She observes that all of her students are like family to her and that half of her 20-plus teaching faculty are former students. During these past few months of pandemic closures, she notes, she kept all of her staff on salary and kept to a teaching schedule via Zoom.
Rheesa Schachter has been dancing – and teaching dancing – virtually all of her life. The daughter of the late Joe and Sunny Schachter – who grew up in River Heights – began studying ballet at an early age. She recalls that when she was young, ballet was the only option for aspiring dancers. Jazz dancing was only open to students 13 and older.
"I felt that jazz dancing should be available to younger students as well," she says.
At the tender age of 16, the future dancing teacher approached the former Ramah Hebrew school – where she had been a student – about offering dance classes after school.
"I started with 12 children, twice a week, teaching jazz dance," she recalls. "It was very exciting. I loved working with the kids."
Over the next few years, while she finished her education – graduating from Grant Park and the University of Manitoba (with a B.Comm. degree) – she continued to teach dance and her student numbers continued to grow. She had also studied dance at York University during her summers off from the U. of M. and completed her Royal Academy of Dance ballet exams.
"After university, I got a real job at a bank," she recounts. "I hated it. My passion was dancing. After a year, I quit and founded Kids Etc."
While at university, she had taught her dance classes in rented spaces at churches in River Heights. In 1986, she opened her first studio on Academy Road in what had been Gerry Gurvey's Uptown Drugstore. A couple of years later, she moved the studio to 686 Academy Road. In the early 1990s, she relocated again – this time to 3525 Roblin Blvd in Charleswood.
"With my student numbers continually growing, I had to keep expanding," she says.
She also had to hire and train a growing number of instructors for the ever-growing number of classes that now include ballet, Jazz dance, Hip Hop, Tap, Lyrical, Modern, Musical Theater, Adult, and Pre-School dance programs.
In 2017, with her lease on Roblin coming due, Rheesa Schachter had a decision to make – retire or expand. "I wasn't ready to retire yet, so I decided to expand. I looked up and down Portage and Grant and Taylor for a suitable new location without success. Then this space came up near McGillvary Blvd, (505 Fort Whyte Way). The developer was willing to build. It was fantastic."
At over 11,000 square feet, she reports, Kids Etc. has the largest studio in Winnipeg. The building contains four large studios (one labeled AFK – alles for the kinder – in recognition of her parents' influence on her), bleachers for spectators and a huge lounge area for parents.
Pre-Covid, Schachter notes, Kids Etc. was offering more than 100 classes a week – with classes averaging 10-15 kids each. "We prefer smaller class sizes so that we can give each child the attention each needs," she says.
"We pride ourselves in that we challenge our students but also focus on maintaining balance," Taylor adds.
Jessica further points out that the staff works to foster a close relationship with the students while also incorporating a sense of fun in their teaching.
Their mother notes that while Kids Etc. has produced some students who have pursued a career in dance, the staff works to encourage each student to build their self-confidence and strive to achieve their personal best in a non-competitive setting.
Schachter says that with the Covid situation hopefully improving, she hopes that Kids Etc can get back to normal business in the fall.
Asked about the accessibility of the Fort Whyte location, Schachter responds that students come from all over – including three students each from Morden in southwestern Manitoba and Arborg in the Interlake.
Schachter has thought about retiring in a few years and leaving the dance studio in the capable hands of Taylor and Jessica. "I will probably never completely retire," she says. "I really love teaching dance."
ISRAEL (SOODY) KLEIMAN October 3, 1932 – January 1, 2021
Rady JCC holds first in-person program in more than 20 months: Challahliscious


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The report points to shortcomings in police recruitment
This affair caused a stir in the United Kingdom, and Scotland Yard had been accused of ignoring alarming signals about the killer's behavior. Other cases have been added to this, fueling a crisis of confidence among Britons in their police, in a country where the notion of consensus with the public is embedded in the approach of the police. "It is too easy for the wrong people to both join and stay in the police," said the head of police inspection services, Matt Parr. "If the police are to rebuild trust and protect their female officers and staff, enforcement must be much stricter and sexual misconduct must be taken much more seriously," he continued.
"Standards must change"
The study included 11,277 police and administrative employees, 42 people were interviewed. 725 control files and 264 complaints were screened. "Despite repeated warnings, too little has been done to improve standards and stamp out misogyny and predatory behavior," added Matt Parr. Among the report's recommendations are updating minimum due diligence standards and improving the quality and consistency of enforcement decision-making.
The report highlighted criminally reprehensible behaviour, such as sexual acts which were treated as an isolated deviation, or the recruitment of police officers associated with crime in their surroundings.
Meta and Microsoft team up to announce Office and Teams in virtual reality


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Elon Musk praises Kyrsten Sinema for leaving the Democratic Party
Elon Musk commends Sen. Kristen Sinema for leaving the Democratic Party and I hope more of our elected leaders act independently, Elon Musk wrote on Twitter.
Sinema announced that he was now an independent and would no longer be formally considered a Democrat. Some of her Democratic allies are bidding her good salvation, but Sen. Kirsten Sinema has found at least one admirer in her decision to formally become an independent. It just so happens that this is the richest person in the world.
Good for @SenatorSinema Elon Musk wrote on Twitter. I hope more of our elected leaders will act independently, aka in the interest of the people. Sinema told POLITICO on Friday that her decision was based on the fact that she "never really aligned with any political party.
His decision is likely rooted more in apprehensions about a potential primary challenger than in any sort of political stance.
Elon Musk has encouraged his followers to vote Republican ahead of the midterms while trying to keep Twitter politically neutral while continuing his political journey. Elon Musk praised the qualities of independent voters who are not registered with any particular political party.
He did not mention that in some states this decision may also reduce the number of castes that can vote. Arizona is not one of those closed or partially closed primary states. Hardline Democrats or Republicans never vote for the other party, so independent voters are the ones who really decide who is in charge, Musk wrote on Twitter.
The Telsa CEO and new owner of Twitter has previously said he would support Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis if Republicans decide to challenge Trump in 2024. Sinema's decision on Capitol Hill is expected to have little practical impact on the Senate. The now-former Arizona Democrat rarely attended party luncheons where lawmakers expressed their views on issues.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer also said Sinema would continue his committee duties and the Democrats would retain their effective 51-49 majority. Sens. Bernie Sanders and Angus King are also both independents who caucus with the Democrats. Sinema was a major thorn in the party's efforts to raise taxes on wealthy Americans and pass a sweeping spending plan known as Build Back Better.
He later voted for the much smaller Inflation Reduction Act. Outside of policy, Sinema has been a reliable vote for top Biden administration nominees, including Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. Still, some progressives celebrated his move.
Arizona Democratic Party chair Raquel Teran blasted Sinema as someone who has shown she answers to corporations and billionaires, not Arizonans. The executive board of the state Democratic Party first denounced Sinema for opposing changes to the filibuster so that the party could pass voting rights legislation.


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Revisiting Disney: The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
The Nightmare Before Christmas is a film that I have always been reluctant to say I enjoy. Does that have to do with the film itself? Absolutely not. It does, however, have to do with the culture surrounding the film. I've noticed a trend. Those that love The Nightmare Before Christmas really LOVE The Nightmare Before Christmas and it seems to become nearly their entire personality. The diehard fans of this film feel that it needs to be protected at all costs. Now, don't misunderstand me: I think loving something and being passionate about it is great. But, when that thing you love becomes your entire personality, then it becomes, for lack of a better term, annoying. That being said, let me move on to talking about the actual film.
Directed by Henry Selick, The Nightmare Before Christmas, in simplest terms, is about a skeleton named Jack Skellington, who has an existential crisis about his "life" (he's dead, so having an existential crisis is literally an oxymoron here). He proceeds to try and solve that crisis by stealing a holiday he knows very little about, nearly ruining it entirely for everyone involved, solving his existential crisis, and literally suffering no consequences or really learning why what he did was wrong. That's it. That's the movie. Oh, and there's some pretty wonderful music written by Danny Elfman.
It bothers me endlessly that more credit goes to Tim Burton in regards to this film than to Henry Selick. Yes, the film is based on a poem Tim Burton wrote, and he created the characters. He is not credited with the adaptation of said poem or even credited with the screenplay. He produced the film. But, he was very smart in striking the deal with Disney to make sure that the full title of the film was Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas. But, if this film gets lumped in with Burton's films one more time, I'm going to throw a fit. I like Tim Burton, don't get me wrong (although I prefer early Burton as opposed to his more recent work), but Henry Selick worked so hard on this film. And, stop motion films are the furthest thing from easy.
Danny Elfman composed the music and lyrics for this film and, honestly, I think it's some of his best work, next to his score for 1989's Batman. The songs are catchy and lyrically clever.
As far as the actual story, I have two issues: the "love" story between Jack and Sally and Oogie Boogie, the villain, seemingly being color coded, despite being a literal bag of bugs. I'll start with the former. The "love" story between Jack and Sally feels completely incomplete. It feels as if it was thrown in there to tie the film up with a nice little bow. And, probably for marketing purposes. It's one of the aspects of this film that drives me nuts. I hate half-assed love stories. Now, the other issue I mentioned, which is clearly the more important of the two, is that the character of Oogie Boogie seems to be color coded, and I'm not just referencing the fact that Oogie Boogie is played by one of the only POC in the whole cast. Look at his entire introduction scene: the style of music he sings is drastically different from the rest of the film, as well as the decor/style of his scenes. It all just varies so much that it's hard not to look at that as being color coded. Which is so unbelievably unnecessary.
Anyway, I like the film. It's aesthetically pleasing. In particular, I've always like any of the scenes involving the cooking ingredients or the chemistry set. I'm not entirely sure why. And I will forever hate the line "Nice work, Bone Daddy" that is said towards the beginning of the film because it has spawned some really cringeworthy merchandise.
Kristen Marie August 31, 2020 Animation, Blog, Blogger, Cinema, Cinephile, Color Coding, Critic, Criticism, Danny Elfman, Disney, Entertainment, Film, Film Blog, Film Blogger, Film Buff, Film Critic, Film Criticism, Film Lover, Film Review, Film Reviews, Film Website, Films, Henry Selick, Jack Skellington, Movie, Movie Blog, Movie Blogger, Movie Buff, Movie Critic, Movie Criticism, Movie Lover, Movie Review, Movie Reviews, Movie Website, Movies, Opinion, Review, Reviews, Revisiting Disney, Screenplay, Screenwriting, Stop Motion, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Tim Burton, Walt Disney, Walt Disney Animation, Walt Disney Company, Walt Disney Films, Walt Disney Pictures, Walt Disney Productions
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August 30, 2018 Opinion » Letters to the Editor
Letters to the Editor for the week of August 30
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Human waste along Riverside trail
My name is Presley and I am a dog who lives in Cheakamus. In recent months there has been a growing amount of human feces in the woods along the Riverside trail, most notably around House Rock and at the mid-point pull out en route to Loggers Lake.
The sad thing is my dog friends and I get into this human waste and end up getting very sick. We understand the municipality is very busy and patrolling this area to issue tickets for these overnighters is challenging to keep up with and is not deterring the action.
On behalf of the K9 and human friends who enjoy these trails, we would like to request washroom facilities and/or better signage be placed in the area to address this issue. Who knows, our daily hikers may enjoy this relief as well.
Presley, on behalf of
Mike Janyk and Sarah Stead
Train isn't the answer
Commuter train to Whistler? No thanks.
For those who may think such a service would be of help to us, consider this: first, any train would face stiff competition from an already effective network of bus companies and transfer services that meet the needs of customers and cater to where the customers usually are, the airport or Downtown. Both have no direct rail connection.
For a train to achieve such a seamless connection service that buses now provide would cost us billions of dollars. In the end, billions that would be wasted on competing with an already effective network of carriers presently serving us.
There is a saying in the transportation business: "frequency builds numbers." It would take a very expensive schedule of trains to compete with the many bus and other options now offered. A bus can leave with as little as 10 people, profitably, whereas a train needs a lot more to be profitable and who is going to make up for any loss?
If you get on a bus at the hotel in Whistler, your next step off would be the airport, no connections needed. Despite losing Greyhound, Whistler, unlike other towns, still has many options throughout the day. And for pricing, our bus service is pretty affordable.
Any dream of effective and cheap rail for Whistlerites died when BC Rail was sold off to CN. Now rather than deal with Victoria and all the leverage our town may have as a tourist generator, we have to deal with a multinational company with its headquarters back east.
Why it was sold makes me so mad and question the motives of politicians, in this case Gordon Campbell's Liberals. To reacquire those assets and rights would be bitterly expensive.
Some may remember that up until about the late '80s, Whistler had passenger rail service. The BC Rail Budd car left North Van in the morning and ended in Lillooet, returning later in the evening.
It was good for Pemberton to Lillooet, but mostly a pain for any skier. I tried and tried, but apart from the attraction as a train, it was a logistical nuisance and I always preferred the "once-per-day" bus we had back then.
Perhaps we should focus on CNG-powered hybrid buses as a step forward. As for the railway, it still puzzles and angers me as to why we sold off BC Rail.
Lance Bright
DES heating systems: are they safe?
(Editor's note: this letter was shared with Pique and addressed to mayor and council.)
It appears that the majority of owners in the five townhome developments (The Heights, The Terrace, The Rise, Whitewater and Riverbend) that were part of the 2010 Olympics Athlete's Village Development are heating their hot water with the heat pump option because they believe that it uses less hydro and saves them money compared to heating hot water with the conventional electric tank option.
A note on page 22 of the Residential Heating System Technical Service Guide (April 2016) states: "the heat pump should be used for all DHW (domestic hot water) heating with the (electric) backup elements in the "off position.'" The guide recommends that the heat pump be set to 52 C for hot water. However, most heat pumps in the 174 townhomes are set at 48 C or lower to prevent red screens.
Since it came into force in 2012, the 2012 BC Plumbing Code has required that thermostats for electric water heaters be set to 60 C to prevent the growth of Legionella. This raises the question of whether temperatures lower than 60 C are safe.
This question appears to be answered with an implied affirmative in the document Domestic Hot Water Tank Replacement Update posted on the Cheakamus Crossing website on March 14, 2017. The document suggests that circulating water at any temperature will have the equivalent bactericidal effect as thermostats set to 60 C.
The document states: "The requirement to maintain 60 C with an electric storage tank was added in the current 2012 version of the British Columbia Building Code to limit Legionella growth in the bottom of electric tanks because of the stratification in the tank.
"The system provided in Cheakamus, while utilizing electric tanks also has circulation from the heat pump that will limit the stratification and therefore could possibly be considered code compliant via an alternate solution as discussed below.
The first point is that "could possibly be considered code compliant via an alternate solution" is not the same as "approved by the building inspector as an alternate solution under the building code and a valid and subsisting building permit."
This issue aside, the idea that circulation that limits stratification might reduce the growth of Legionella appears to make sense on the surface. But does circulation have the same bactericidal effect as a 60 C thermostat setting? This question is answered by two complementary studies.
1. A 2008 paper published in the International Journal of Hygiene Environmental Health titled "Occurrence of Legionella in hot water systems of single-family residences in suburbs of two German cities with special reference to solar and district heating" states:
"Our data show convincingly that the temperature of the hot water is probably the most important or perhaps the only determinant factor for multiplication of Legionella. Water with a temperature below 46 degrees C was most frequently colonized and contained the highest concentrations of legionellae."
2. A 2013 study, published in Environmental Engineering Science, titled "The Role of Hot Water System Design on Factors Influential to Pathogen Regrowth: Temperature, Chlorine Residual, Hydrogen Evolution, and Sediment" compared bacteria levels in electric water heaters at 49 C and 60 C and with and without tank circulation states:
"Recirculation tanks had much greater volumes of water at temperature ranges with potential for increased pathogen growth when set at 49°C compared with standard tank systems without recirculation. In contrast, when set at the higher end of acceptable ranges (i.e., 60°C), this relationship was reversed and recirculation systems had less volume of water at risk for pathogen growth compared with conventional systems.
"Recirculation tanks also tended to have much lower levels of disinfectant residual (standard systems had 40-to–600-per-cent higher residual), four to six as much hydrogen, and three to 20 times more sediment compared with standard tanks without recirculation."
"This is also the first study to quantify hydrogen concentrations in hot water systems, which is of future interest given that hydrogen is an important energy source allowing virulence gene activation of Salmonella and other human pathogens."
Is Legionella serious? An article published in the Jan./Feb. 2004 edition of The Canadian Journal of Infectious Diseases; "residential water heater temperature: 49 or 60 degrees Celsius?" answers this question in the affirmative.
"This (Legionella) is a serious illness associated with high death rates (up to 12%). Primary groups at risk (the elderly, smokers, the immunocompromised and patients suffering from chronic respiratory illnesses), are groups who include a large proportion of the population at home."
Of particular concern is the statement: "The importance of Legionnaire's disease is underestimated because it is difficult to diagnose and because it is reported through a passive surveillance system."
After concluding that the use of an electric water heater is the most significant factor leading to Legionella contamination in hot water in the home, the infectious disease specialists recommended that "electric water heaters already installed should be set at 60°C to limit the risk of Legionella contamination."
David MacPhail
Gluttonous energy consumption and selfish attitudes prevent Whistler, and the world, from meeting climate change targets
Trapped in my house with an outside Air Quality Index of 10-plus due to smoke from forest fires that are becoming larger and more frequent, in part, due to human-caused global warming, I read the "Whistler's GHG emissions continue to rise" article.
This shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. Anyone using the roads or parking lots can easily see the high percentage of large, gas-guzzling vehicles. Many of them are huge SUVs or pick up trucks. While some people may need these vehicles for work, a large portion do not.
It is a myth that you need a 4WD SUV to live in or visit Whistler. For the past 10 years I have driven a Honda Fit, rated at 50 mpg, year-round in Whistler. It is our vehicle of choice when we go skiing. We are a family of four, all of whom are over six feet. We even have room for a fifth passenger if the need arises.
For summer we can get four bikes or four kayaks on the roof rack. On some trips we even have a lower carbon footprint per person than riding the bus, according to Planetair, four people in a fuel-efficient vehicle each have a lower carbon footprint that each of 30 people using a city bus.
This is an example of how many people could reduce their carbon footprint. They just choose not to. Even our children are being ingrained with this culture of energy gluttony as there is a twice-daily glut of vehicles dropping off and picking up students every day at the schools.
You don't have to search far to find much more blatant examples of excessive energy consumption. The paper consistently has ads for ATV, side-by-side, and snowmobile tours. There are several companies that spend a good portion of the summer driving clients up and down the Callaghan Valley road looking for bears.
Honestly do the bears actually look better from a gas guzzling Land Rover Discovery or Jeep Wrangler than from a Toyota Prius? The irony is that we see many more bears while riding our bikes up the Callaghan Road than the tour companies do and we don't park blocking the driving lane and idle. At a time when almost every scientist with a pulse is pleading with us to reduce our GHG emissions, should we really be promoting pollution for pleasure activities that glorify burning gas as the feature of your outdoor activity?
While these companies do employ numerous staff, since when does the better good of the planet take second place to a business's profit margin? After all, isn't that how the planet became so polluted in the first place? There are many less polluting activities that they could be promoting instead. Yet on a regular basis we are given the opportunity to squander even more of our natural resources on such carbon-intensive activities as heli-biking, heli-hiking, heli-golf, and heli-skiing.
Do people really have such little respect for the environment that they would take a helicopter up Mt. Currie just to drive gold balls into the wilderness? Now there is heli-yoga at Beverly Lake. I don't have anything against people doing yoga at Beverly Lake as long as they hike up there like the rest of us. If you don't feel comfortable hiking up there on your own, Whistler has many well qualified ACMG guides that would be happy to take you there at a fraction of the cost.
The poster child for gluttonous fuel use is the pair that recently flew a helicopter around the world using over 26,000 litres of fuel. As pointed by a previous letter to the editor that is enough fuel to last the average Canadian over 22 years. Producing one barrel of fuel (159 L) consumes 5.333 tonnes of sand/Boreal Forest. So, this helicopter flight around the world destroyed 872 tonnes of sand/Boreal forest and produced 47.6 tonnes of carbon.
There is other collateral damage in creating fuel from the oilsands. Outside Magazine's December 2014 article by Ted Genoways states, "Tar Island Pond One owned by Suncor, by Suncor's admission released 400,000 gallons of sludge into the river every day. Environmental Defence estimated the combined daily leakage from all the tailings ponds into the Athabasca River to be nearly 3 million gallons."
A recent article by James Wilt states, "At last count, the Alberta Energy Regulator estimates it will cost at least $23.2 billion to clean up the oilsands tailing ponds. Environmental Defence reports that it may be double that, with its online counter nearing $50 billion in largely unfunded liabilities."
Is this the legacy we want to leave our children just because we are too selfish or lazy to change our ways?
Even our healthy lifestyles are a contributing factor. Just ask one of our accomplished local skiing, snowboarding, or mountain biking athletes how much they have flown this year. Or ask your neighbour, as we all justify travel if it involves biking or skiing. The 2010 Winter Olympic events held at Cypress were almost wiped out due to heavy rain. We were told it was just a bad year. Five of the warmest years in history were in the last seven years. How long does this have to continue before we admit that if five of the last seven years were the warmest in history, we need to change our ways?
Our homes and commercial buildings aren't any better. Clearly, we are on mission to build larger and larger homes. Even with advances in technology a 5,000-square-foot house will use more energy than a 1,500-square-foot house.
There are many reasons for this. More space consumes more energy to heat. Even though many of the new houses are touted as consuming less energy, that is only true if they are used efficiently. From 18 years as a real estate appraiser I know first hand how wasteful many of these homes are.
The home in Lakecrest with the heated garage floor that was on during a 25 C day in July when the home had not been occupied for months. The home in Kadenwood with vast windows, most of which didn't open. Instead a ventilation system and filter system ran 24 hours a day in conjunction with heat and air conditioning to provide "fresh air."
Another home with four hot water tanks with nearly 1,000 L capacity just to make sure there was always enough hot water. Historically an electrical panel with a 225 amp capacity was ample. Now it is not infrequent for homes to have 450 amps. A clear indication that electric consumption is up. Most new homes have outside accent lighting and even lighting for their landscaping. Sure, it is good to have lights at your front door but do the bears and wildlife really need to see your house at night?
Many homes now have heated patios and overhead patio heaters just in case the down jacket you wear at -10 C in the winter won't keep you warm on your deck in the summer. The latest must have extravagance is a gas patio or deck firepit. Really are we raping the boreal forest so people can sit on their decks and watch gas burn?
Even the RMOW sets a bad example. Just look at the overkill of Christmas lights strung up in the Village every winter. Yes, they are all LED, but half as many would still look great. The commercial sector is not exempt from squandering energy. The outside lights on the Husky station are on 24 hours a day. I believe the Four Seasons Private residents have patio heaters on every deck. Many hotels have heated counters at their check desks. Many of the stores in the village have excess lighting that could be substantially reduced without effecting their business other than saving them money.
Walk through the village in any season and see how many businesses keep their doors open all year regardless of the outside temperature. Even Whistler Blackcomb, which has made great efforts to reduce its GHG emissions and has the most to lose from global warming, is not exempt from promoting wasteful energy use. Go to their website and you are encouraged to buy a GMC vehicle, not a Smart car or Prius but a large truck. They even feature the giant GMC pick up on quad tracks outside the Roundhouse and on a video blasting through the snow. Makes it difficult to believe that they would actually like me to buy a fuel-efficient Chevy Spark and do my bit to ensure there will be skiing in the future.
If WB really wanted to make a statement illustrating how far they will go to prevent climate change, they could stop heli-skiing, and ban the on mountain ATV and snowmobile tours or at least buy a dimmer switch for the Tube Park.
This is just a short list of examples that show why Whistler and the world won't meet their climate change targets. The real reason and the blunt reality of the situation is that we don't care enough and that the pain and consequences of doing nothing are not strong enough or immediate enough to motivate change. It really comes down to, are we willing to sacrifice the environment in order to maintain our current lifestyles or are we willing to sacrifice our current lifestyles to preserve the environment?
If you are having trouble with that answer you could Google wildfires in B.C. and it may help you decide.
Bryce Leigh
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[Alert] – Dim Sum & Cocktail Pairing at Hakkasan's Ling Ling
By	John Chamberlain
Hakkasan is a globetrotter. From London to Mumbai, Shanghai to New York, Hakkasan has brought with it an eye for luxury, a taste for Cantonese cuisine, and a penchant for cocktails and nightlife. With a focus on the latter, they've created Ling Ling as well, a nightclub outpost of the Hakkasan restaurant, with locations in London, Mykonos, and Marrakesh. To celebrate, Hakkasan has introduced the Evolution of Ling Ling cocktail flight, which commemorates and reflects the unique heritage of Hakkasan and of Ling Ling: Cantonese via England, Greece and Morocco. And now, New York City.
The Evolution of Ling Ling is a pairing of three cocktails and three dim sum bites, all with a common ancestry but each with its own distinctive character, inspired by its country of origin.
Ling Ling Cocktail Flight
The Bitter Fortune is the original, created fifteen years ago at the first Ling Ling bar at Hanway Place in London, and as such, was built around Tanquery No. 10 gin, and you can understand why. Gin provides a soft underpinning of each drink, staying strong but flexible, allowing the other flavors and notes –Aperol, peach bitters, and pink grapefruit – to flourish.
These flavors are present in all drinks, but as it moves through Mykonos as the Golden Mare and through Marrakesh as the Chilli Coupette, it builds upon itself. From the Greek islands come hints of rosemary and basil and anise, and from Morocco cardamom, chili and mint.
While the cocktail flight pairing is only available through tomorrow (Wednesday, August 31st), you still need to check out the drinks at this Midtown restaurant. Stat.
Complexity in a cocktail can be a risk, but these drinks provide the return. Citrus and spice balanced with bitterness and booze, and each drink stands on its own while complementing the others. Hakkasan, in Hell's Kitchen, is just around the corner, but there's a wealth of worldly knowledge waiting for you in the Ling Ling Lounge.
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EESL to set up 10,000 EV charging stations in next three years
The state-run firm has tied up with various private and public companies such as Apollo Hospitals, BSNL, Maha-Metro, BHEL and HPCL, among others
New Delhi: Power PSUs' joint venture EESL is set to ramp up its capital expenditure to set up around 10,000 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in the next two to three years.
A joint venture of PSUs under the Ministry of Power, the Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) has undertaken this project to boost the e-mobility ecosystem in India.
Presently, the state-run firm has tied up with various private and public companies such as Apollo Hospitals, BSNL, Maha-Metro, BHEL and HPCL, among others, to set up public charging infrastructure.
It has also partnered with urban local bodies in Hyderabad, Noida, Ahmedabad, Jaipur and Chennai, and is in discussion with others to erect such infra.
"We are working towards strengthening the charging infrastructure with an objective to set up 10,000 charging stations over the next two to three years across India," EESL Managing Director Saurabh Kumar told IANS.
"We are in the process of signing MoUs with various states and government departments to promote EV adoption in India, which will further boost interest among the public," Kumar added.
One of the main capital requirements to set up charging infrastructure is the availability of 'land', which as of now is provided free of cost by most municipal bodies or firms for public chargers to EESL.
The clean energy major then sets up the charging station in that area and operates it for 10 years.
In return, EESL pays a certain proportion as land rental to the entity for every kilowatt hour (kW/h) the company utilises.
Till now, EESL has installed 68 public charging points, which are currently operational across the country.
"By the end of FY20, we aim to install around 100 charging stations in Delhi-NCR, Chennai and Nagpur," Kumar told IANS.
"We are aiming to install around 1,500 EV public charging stations by the end of FY21 in Delhi-NCR, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Gujarat, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Chandigarh and Karnataka," he added.
Currently, many automobile companies and others, including standalone charging infrastructure developers, are also installing these facilities.
Besides, the company has registered an annual turnover of Rs 2,565 crore in FY19.
"In less than one year, we have earned a revenue of over Rs 9.3 lakh from our charging stations. EESL Capex is expected to be Rs 3,000 crore in 2019-20 and Rs 6,000 crore in 2020-21," he said.
As of now, apart from creating an e-mobility ecosystem in the country, EESL is scaling up smart meters and smart grids, storage and other clean energy technologies.
Furthermore, the company is in the process of aggregating the demand generation for EVs in the country via bulk purchases.
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Upper Darby, Pennsylvania, Church and Cemetery
"On this site stood 1830 to 1913, the House of Worship of the Delaware County Society of the New Jerusalem Church, instituted in 1828. This tablet is set up as a memorial of the Society and its faithful members. To acknowledge a God and not to do evil because it is against God, are the two things by virtue of which religion is religion. Divine Providence No. 326. NEW JERUSALEM TEMPLE."
These words were written on a stone monument erected in 1915, in memory of the Upper Darby church building that had been demolished a few years previously. The church (see photo, top) had been vacant since the late 1800s when the congregation worshipping there became inactive. The historic cemetery surrounding the church remained intact until the late 1960s and 70s, at which time the effects of years of vandalism could no longer be ignored, and it was decided to remove the bodily remains and try to resolve the issue of headstones. Many of the headstones had been irreparably damaged, so a decision was made to bury the ones that could not be saved, and offer the undamaged ones to their descendants (Communication from Philip Alden to David B. Glenn, 8/31/1978). The bodily remains were transferred to an unmarked grave in Mt. Zion Cemetery in Delaware County (http://files.usgwarchives.net/pa/delaware/cemeteries/newjerus.txt).
The Upper Darby cemetery was the original resting place of some of the most notable individuals in the history of the New Church in America: Francis Bailey (d. 1817), Rev. Richard De Charms, Sr. (d. 1864), Rev. David Powell (d. 1855), and Rev. James P. Stuart (d. 1882). The headstone of Francis Bailey still exists and is currently located at the Swedenborgian Church at Temenos in West Chester, Pennsylvania. Francis Bailey was one of the individuals present at Bells Book Store, Philadelphia, in 1784, when James Glen of Scotland delivered his historic lectures on Emanuel Swedenborg. Bailey became convinced of the truth of Swedenborg's teachings and is generally credited with being the first New Churchman in America. A printer by profession, he produced the first publication of a New Church work in America, A Summary View of the Heavenly Doctrine of the New Jerusalem Church, which he distributed free of charge. He went on to publish True Christian Religion serially; Benjamin Franklin, a fellow Philadelphia printer, was one of the subscribers. (See William Whitehead, "Forgotten Pages of New Church History: I. Francis Bailey," New Church Life 1951, 1-4). Francis Bailey's headstone reads as follows:
"FRANCIS BAILEY
American New Churchman
American Publisher
of the Writings of
A bright example of active love
and of doing good to others" (see photograph).
It is interesting to note that Bailey died in 1817, a number of years before the church was built in 1830. A footstone accompanying his headstone provides something of an explanation: "F.B., Ter sepultum, Requiescat in pace. J.H.J., 1863″ (F.B. Thrice buried, rest in peace. J.H.J., 1863).
Richard de Charms, Sr., whose headstone was also in this cemetery (see photo), is remembered for his pioneering work in the formulation and application of New Church Doctrine, and is considered a spiritual forebear of the Academy of the New Church movement. Rev. James P. Stuart, one of the founding members of the Academy, was buried in the churchyard in 1882, requesting that he be placed beside the Rev. David Powell (New Church Life 1882, 96). Powell had at one time been pastor of the Upper Darby congregation, and was instrumental in the growth of the New Church in Western Pennsylvania and Ohio.
The photographs of the church and headstones included in this New Church History Fun Fact, as well as additional materials related to the Upper Darby church and cemetery, are available on the Swedenborg Library Digital Collections Website in the Archives section. To access the collection go to http://www.brynathyn.edu/academics/swedenborg-library. Click on Digital Collections, "Archives," "New Church History," "Early New Church Groups" and then click on the folder titled "Upper Darby New Jerusalem Church and Cemetery." The easiest way to use the collection is by entering keywords into the "Search For" field.
The editors of NewChurchHistory.org would like to thank Marvin B. Clymer, Academy of the New Church Archives, Bryn Athyn, PA, for suggesting this New Church History Fun Fact and for providing access to the photographs.
Photos: The photograph of the Upper Darby church was taken in 1903 and is in the collection of the Academy of the New Church Archives, Bryn Athyn, PA. The two photographs of headstones were taken by Michael Pitcairn in the 1970s and are also in the collection of the Academy Archives. The photograph of Richard de Charms, Sr., is from the book Bryn Athyn and the Academy of the New Church, published in 1904.
October 31, 2009 | Posted by: Ed and Kirsten Gyllenhaal in New Church History Fun Fact


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10th in Carlton's Best and Fairest Award	1978	1978 Best and Fairest Votes	1978 Brownlow Votes	1978 Reserves	1979 Brownlow Votes	1979 Reserves	1980 Reserves	At Richmond	At the Bulldogs	Best and Fairest Votes all years	Broken Father-Sons	Brothers at other Clubs	Brownlow Votes All Years	Cachia to Curtis	Carlton Obituaries	Debuts 1975 to 1979	Elimination Final, 1978	From Western Metro, Vic	Guernsey 1	Trades (including FA)	Pre-Season/Night Series Player Summary
Career : 1978 - 1979
Debut : Round 3, 1978 vs Melbourne, aged 24 years, 333 days
Carlton Player No. 873
Games : 30
Goals : 12
Last Game: Round 12, 1979 vs Geelong, aged 26 years, 36 days
Guernsey No. 1
Height : 178 cm (5 ft. 9 in.)
Weight : 85 kg (13 stone, 5 lbs.)
DOB : 17 May, 1953
Anyone who has seen the best-selling Channel 7 football highlights package "Sensational Seventies" will be familiar with Denis Collins as the Carlton player involved in a famous confrontation with St Kilda's Robbie "Mad Dog" Muir, late in the last game of the 1978 season at Moorabbin.
Victory in that important match against the Saints would have given Carlton a berth in the Qualifying final rather than the Elimination final, but that was not to be, as we went down by 40 points. The only drawback on a day of joy for Saints supporters was Muir's last quarter report, for striking his former team-mate Val Perovic. As usual, Muir was furious when he was booked, and after flinging his mouthguard away, he began abusing the umpire. Meanwhile, Collins bravely - but unwisely - decided to rub it in. He came up beside Muir right in front of the infamous Animal Enclosure (packed with St Kilda's most vocal supporters) and ruffled the volatile Saint's hair. Instantly, Muir exploded – flinging back a left forearm that hit Denis flush on the jaw and knocked him flat on his back. As the umpires rushed in to book him again, the final siren sounded. Muir was hustled off the field by a couple of trainers, but not before he had also lashed out at a young spectator who got too close!
Collins had joined Carlton earlier that same year from Footscray. A bushy-bearded winger/half forward whose key asset was his pace, he had played exactly 100 games and kicked 60 goals for the Bulldogs over six seasons, before looking for a fresh start elsewhere. At Princes Park, he was honoured with our number 1 guernsey for his debut match, which came against Melbourne at Princes Park in round three. Playing on a wing, he was solidly effective in a 13-point win, and held his position in the senior team right through the season.
The week after his clash with Robbie Muir, Collins lined up for only his second career final when Carlton met Geelong in the Elimination Final at the MCG. His experience, and his speed in the open spaces on the wing, proved valuable in helping the Blues to an emphatic win by 33 points. In the following week's Semi Final clash with Collingwood, a tough, fiery encounter was indispersed with some brilliant passages of play from both sides. Collingwood jumped away to an early good lead and although the Blues fought back to within four points at the last break, the Pies weathered the storm and ran out 15-point winners. Denis Collins was the Blues top vote scorer in the 1978 Brownlow with 12 votes.
After a solid pre-season, Collins played the first seven matches of 1979 in succession, only to then be sent back to the Reserves while Carlton's match committee took a close look at one of that year's promising recruits; a red-haired terrier from South Bendigo named Peter Francis. However, being relegated at that particular time did not sit well with Collins. Although he was reinstated for rounds 11 and 12, he fell out of favour with his captain-coach Alex Jesaulenko after that, and spent the remainder of the year with the seconds. While the Navy Blues went about claiming their twelfth Premiership with a controversial Grand Final triumph over Collingwood, Collins requested a clearance to Sydney club North Shore, but it was refused.
Eventually, Collins returned to training with the Blues as the 1980 pre-season got underway, although it was already obvious by then that his days at Princes Park were numbered. In March of that year, he was cleared to Richmond, where he knuckled down, and rounded off his 147-game VFL career with another 17 appearances in his only season for the Tigers.
In later years, Denis and his wife Sheenagh settled at Hyden, in country Western Australia. There, on Wednesday, August 30, 2011, he suffered a massive heart attack, and passed away at the tragically young age of 58.
Carlton tearaway Collins dies
Denis Collins, the 30-game wingman with Carlton in two seasons through 1978 and '79, has died suddenly of a heart attack in the Western Australian town of Hyden. He was 58. The son of former Fitzroy and Essendon premiership player Jack Collins, and brother to Footscray's one-game player Daryl, Denis was a born and bred Braybrook boy and a contemporary of Doug Hawkins. Collins represented Footscray in 100 senior matches over six seasons before crossing town to Princes Park. He was 24 years and 333 days old when he first turned out for the Blues in the No.1 guernsey, against Melbourne in the third round of '78 at Princes Park. Carlton won. Collins, who inherited the nickname "Scruffy" due to the full beard he sported when he played, is remembered as an aggressive running player. The 1979 Carlton premiership captain-coach Alex Jesaulenko said of Collins: "To play in the VFL as it was known you had to be a very good player, but he'd be a sensational AFL player now - he had good skills and a ton of pace". "If memory serves he was in the mix for the 1979 Grand Final team," Jesaulenko said. "It was a toss-up between him, Michael Young and Peter Francis for the two wing positions, and our decision to go with Michael and Peter proved right because they finished amongst the team's best."
That Collins' old team should meet St Kilda in the final round of the home and away season this Saturday night is somewhat ironic, for it was in the final round match of 1978 between the two teams that Collins found himself face-up on the Moorabbin turf following a confrontation with the Saints' volatile footballer Robert "Mad Dog"Muir. That clip found its way to the Seven Network's well-worn "Sensational Seventies" package and still gets a run from time to time. Following the tete a tete with Muir, Collins took to the field for what was only his second career final when Carlton met Geelong in an eliminator at VFL Park, and he contributed significantly to the team's 33-point triumph. At the conclusion of his time at Carlton, in what was a premiership season under Jesaulenko, Collins pursued his career with Richmond. There he managed a further 17 matches, and was named as an emergency for the 1980 Grand Final. In the early 1980s, after a brief run with WAFL club East Perth, Collins made his way to Hyden, about 330 kilometres east of Perth in the Western Australian wheatbelt. He chased the leather for the local football club and together with his future wife Sheenagh managed the local Wave Rock Hotel Motel near the famous geological formation. It was at Hyden that Carlton Assistant Coach Mark Riley forged a friendship with the Collins's, who became godparents to his daughter. "I'd never been outside the city and they sent me out there with teaching, and they really looked after me. He and I became great mates," Riley said. "He was a very giving person, very community-driven and incredibly generous . . . any profits that he and Sheenagh made were pumped back into the town, and If you can imagine where he lived - this tiny little town in the middle of an arid wheatbelt where it rains once every ten years and suffers drought the other nine.
"I remember seeing him at a recent Spirit of Carlton day. I left him at the bar with 'Sellers' (Mark Maclure), Jimmy Buckley and those sort of blokes, and it would have been the first time in 20 or 30 years that he'd had the chance to catch up with them because he'd put so much time and energy into his work." Maclure, Carlton's 243-game triple premiership player who last saw Collins in Port Douglas, remembered his old teammate as tearaway footballer who'd fared well against the Blues in earlier contests. "They got him from Footscray because he was speedy and quick, and he always gave us a lot of trouble when we played them," Maclure said. "I'm not quite sure why he missed out in '79, but he fitted into the club quite well. He was a very affable sort of bloke and quite a nice guy." A family friend Bernie Mouritz, said from Perth yesterday that the entire Hyden community was shocked and deeply saddened with the loss of one of its own. "Denis was here in Perth only ten days ago having a kick of the footy with my young bloke," Mouritz said. "I spoke to him again the other day, he'd been to the doctor about his high blood pressure, but he'd had tests and was on medication and everybody thought 'Okay, he's got it under control'". He was feeling good about life and was looking forward to the coming season .It was all coming together, then this. We are all gutted." Mouritz said that Collins complained to his wife early yesterday that he was feeling unwell and promptly checked himself in to the local Silver Chain Medical Centre. The flying doctor was called, arrived and every care was available and taken. But Collins suffered a massive heart attack while being stabilized and could not be revived. "Denis was a good man, he was community-spirited and didn't ever ask you to do anything he wasn't able to do himself on or off the footy or cricket field. Anybody who has a hard word to say about him is probably jealous because he could actually do it," Mouritz said. "He leaves a massive void, a huge hole in the community. Ironically he'd just helped raise funds for the Royal Flying Doctor Service. He built the infrastructure and had automated the lighting system at The Hyden airstrip so that the flying doctor could arrive at any time at all. Collins is survived by his loving wife Sheenagh and the many friends he had made over his time in Hyden. - Tony De Bolfo.
1978 - 10th Best & Fairest
1978 - 12 Brownlow Votes (leading vote scorer for Carlton)
Blueseum: Summary of playing statistics for Denis Collins | At Richmond | At the Bulldogs | Collins' Blueseum Image Gallery
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