Another successful year has passed with exciting activities and results. Quarterly newsletters went out to our members, as well as to a number of federal and provincial members of Parliament, and leading environmental organizations. We received many favourable comments and gained new members by circulating our newsletters.

Our membership keeps growing by leaps and bounds. Many of our initial members are renewing at the favourable 3 year rate of $15. Some of the renewals even contain donations in appreciation of our work!

Our workshops were very much in demand, especially the "Build-your-own-wind generator-from-scrap" with Bob Budd. It had to be repeated and is still going during the farm off-season due to the demand. Our Annual General Meeting was held in conjunction with an inspiring workshop featuring slide presentations on solar and wind energy applications.

As a result, we had a small delegation from the PEUMA group based in Cordoba, Argentina visit with the co-ordinator that took them on a week-long tour of sites featuring renewable energy projects. The return visit took place in September. The coordinator and CFRE member, Beatriz Oliver, acting as translator, travelled to Cordoba and spent 2 weeks exploring sites in the area, holding discussions in schools and at the university. Our final reports on the project were submitted to CIDA in December and received favourable marks. We were encouraged to proceed with applying for funding for a full project.

CFRE was represented by the coordinator at the OEN Spring Conference in Hamilton, the Canadian Windenergy Association conference in Richmond Hill and an Ontario Government workshop on Electricity Deregulation in Toronto. Beatriz Oliver attended the Solar Energy Society's conference in Montreal in June on behalf of CFRE.

We had display tables at the annual Organic Conference at the University of Guelph in January, the OntarBio and Ecological Farmers of Ontario events in Spring and Fall and at the Natural Life Festival in St. George on the Civic Holiday weekend, where we picked up 47 new memberships, with more trickling in in the following weeks! All the great volunteer help at these events was much appreciated!!

As part of our organization's objectives, submissions and presentations were made at the Atomic Energy Control Board (AECB) in connection with operating license renewal hearings regarding Pickering and Bruce Nuclear Power plants. We were expressing our concerns about unsafe practices and were asking for special conditions to be included in those licenses. Our submissions were supported and endorsed by Great Lakes United, an international coalition of environment groups, and by the Bruce Peninsula Environment Group.

In regard to the new legislation, called the Nuclear Safety and Control Act, we provided several submissions providing comments pointing to the need for improvements.

In June the coordinator travelled to Milwaukee to present a resolution on behalf of CFRE to the Great Lakes United Annual Meeting calling for continued and improved monitoring of radio nuclide emissions from nuclear power plants by the International Joint Commission (IJC). And in July, at the GLU Citizens Hearings in Detroit, he made a presentation addressing the health implications from nuclear plant emissions.

In August he appeared before the Ontario Standing Committee on Resources Development in Mississauga to present our recommendations to include provisions for Green Power generation and transmission into Bill 35, the Energy Competition Act.

A lot of research went also into a submission to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (CEAA) on pointing out the dangers of Hydro's plan to store highly radioactive nuclear waste above ground close to Lake Huron at the Bruce Nuclear Power Development.

This "Comprehensive Study" before the CEAA is still ongoing and only consistent pressure from the public can force the Minister of Environment to call for a full, transparent hearing by an independent panel to investigate all the issues of this highly dangerous project!

All in all a productive year with positive results in many areas, but still more need for all our members' involvement to lobby Government for SAFE, CLEAN, RENEWABLE ENERGY!

My sincere thanks goes out to the directors and all who helped carry forward our urgent message!!

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