F2-What are the opportunities, challenges, barriers, risks, for our rural economy to benefit from the coming transformation of our energy economy?

Led by Ted Hsu - director of Switch.  Non profit organization working in the field of sustainable energy.  Wants to learn more about the rural economy.

Present:  David Hahn (maple syrup producer, NFU member), ?Baker (Stonehedge BioResources, processes hemp for fibre insulation), Pat Dawson (co-owner operator of Desert Lake Gardens, NFU member), Stewart Fast (PhD student in Ottawa - biofuels research), Dan Beals (Kingston and Islands NDP critic), Beth Staples (Kingston), Margaret Lesage (Kingston), Rick Munroe (Peak Oil researcher, NFU member), Shelagh McDonald (Eastern Ontario..?), Bette Jean Crews (4th generation farmer, OFA member).

 David Hahn:15 of 57 farmers in a village in Germany - initial windmill project.  20 years later, 55 of 57 farmers joined in to a larger project

Ontario relies on 'distributive generation'.  Government needs to make a commitment to renewable.  Ontario Hydro infrastucture is very old and unable to accept the risk of many small contributors.  prohibitively expensive

- how to ensure ability to connect solar power and other to grid with barriers of grid infrastructure

- what is profitability of using land for food vs energy

(did not finish the session after the lunch break...)

 Wonder if waste from this enterprise would be useful as energy.