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06-14-2006, 05:27 AM
Landmark power plant smokestacks demolished
CTV.ca News Staff
A 43-year-old Toronto landmark that helped mariners and pilots navigate their way around the city came crashing down in a spectacular explosion Monday morning.
The four smokestacks at the defunct coal-fired power plant in the suburb of Mississauga, Ont., just west of Toronto, were purposely demolished because they were labelled a heavy polluter by the Ontario government.
The towering smokestacks that reached nearly 500 feet high and 40 feet wide were collapsed in a slow-motion-like series of timed explosions set seconds apart.
The smokestacks, commonly referred to as "The Four Sisters," were leveled in about 20 seconds.
Demolition charges had been placed on a 180-degree arc on the base of each tower to topple the smokestacks to the side, and not into the water or onto the Lakeview Generating Station.
The charges were detonated about four seconds apart.
Hundreds of spectators turned out at McMillian Headland Park, at Lakeshore Boulevard and Cawthra Road, and clapped as they watched the 7:30 a.m. ET spectacle.
The collapse shot a cloud of dust into the air and over the edge of Lake Ontario, but onlookers stood at a safe distance and were not affected.
Many children watched before they went off to school, and former plant workers who still couldn't believe what they saw also attended.
One ex-employee said he them saw them being constructed when he was in Grade 2, and watching them come down gave him an eerie feeling.
"I guess it's the passing of an area. They've outlived their usefulness," another man said.
"For a lot of people this is kind of a sad day," CTV Toronto's Austin Delaney said.
"One woman told me she told her kids, 'Look for The Four Sisters if you're lost and you'll find your way home.'"
Those who navigate ships or planes in the area said they used the landmark to help pinpoint their location.
Some residents, however, were pleased to see the silos brought down.
"I think some people are really happy to see it go because it was a dirty pollutant," Delaney said.
Operations at the plant were shutdown by the government last year as part of the Dalton McGuinty Liberals' promise to shut all five coal plants in the province by 2009.
The government, however, recently admitted it will not be able to reach that goal.
Ontario Power Generation plans to build another generating station of some kind when all buildings and structures of the existing facility are removed by the end of 2007.
The entire project is expected to cost about $17 million.
Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion, also on-hand at the demolition, insists the land will remain industrial, and no condominiums will go up at the site.
According to a report in The Toronto Star, McGuinty will announce Tuesday the government's intention to build or refurbish more nuclear power plants to replace the coal-fired plants.
The premier reportedly confirmed the plan in an off-the-record weekend speech.
An Ontario Power Authority report last year recommended the province spend up to $40 billion over the next 20 years to increase nuclear power production.
Last week the Liberals said power consumption is increasing so quickly, the province is having a hard time keeping up with demand.
Ontario already has many nuclear facilities. There are six nuclear units at Tiverton's Bruce plant, plus two more are being refurbished.
There are nuclear units in Pickering and Bowmanville, and one decommissioned reactor at Deep River.
Some facts about The Four Sisters power plant:
When it was built in 1962 it was considered the largest coal-fired station in the world (2,400 megawatts);
The plant, built on 52 hectares, cost $274 million;
During the 1970s, when all units were operating, the station employed 430 regular staff;
When operating as a baseload station in the 1970s, it could supply 17 per cent of Ontario's electricity needs;
Operation in the 1990s was reduced to a four-unit peaking plant (from eight); and
During its operating life, the station has generated more than 215 billion kWh of electricity -- enough to supply all of Ontario's energy needs for about 1 1/2 years based on 2005 consumption.
CTV.ca News Staff
A 43-year-old Toronto landmark that helped mariners and pilots navigate their way around the city came crashing down in a spectacular explosion Monday morning.
The four smokestacks at the defunct coal-fired power plant in the suburb of Mississauga, Ont., just west of Toronto, were purposely demolished because they were labelled a heavy polluter by the Ontario government.
The towering smokestacks that reached nearly 500 feet high and 40 feet wide were collapsed in a slow-motion-like series of timed explosions set seconds apart.
The smokestacks, commonly referred to as "The Four Sisters," were leveled in about 20 seconds.
Demolition charges had been placed on a 180-degree arc on the base of each tower to topple the smokestacks to the side, and not into the water or onto the Lakeview Generating Station.
The charges were detonated about four seconds apart.
Hundreds of spectators turned out at McMillian Headland Park, at Lakeshore Boulevard and Cawthra Road, and clapped as they watched the 7:30 a.m. ET spectacle.
The collapse shot a cloud of dust into the air and over the edge of Lake Ontario, but onlookers stood at a safe distance and were not affected.
Many children watched before they went off to school, and former plant workers who still couldn't believe what they saw also attended.
One ex-employee said he them saw them being constructed when he was in Grade 2, and watching them come down gave him an eerie feeling.
"I guess it's the passing of an area. They've outlived their usefulness," another man said.
"For a lot of people this is kind of a sad day," CTV Toronto's Austin Delaney said.
"One woman told me she told her kids, 'Look for The Four Sisters if you're lost and you'll find your way home.'"
Those who navigate ships or planes in the area said they used the landmark to help pinpoint their location.
Some residents, however, were pleased to see the silos brought down.
"I think some people are really happy to see it go because it was a dirty pollutant," Delaney said.
Operations at the plant were shutdown by the government last year as part of the Dalton McGuinty Liberals' promise to shut all five coal plants in the province by 2009.
The government, however, recently admitted it will not be able to reach that goal.
Ontario Power Generation plans to build another generating station of some kind when all buildings and structures of the existing facility are removed by the end of 2007.
The entire project is expected to cost about $17 million.
Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion, also on-hand at the demolition, insists the land will remain industrial, and no condominiums will go up at the site.
According to a report in The Toronto Star, McGuinty will announce Tuesday the government's intention to build or refurbish more nuclear power plants to replace the coal-fired plants.
The premier reportedly confirmed the plan in an off-the-record weekend speech.
An Ontario Power Authority report last year recommended the province spend up to $40 billion over the next 20 years to increase nuclear power production.
Last week the Liberals said power consumption is increasing so quickly, the province is having a hard time keeping up with demand.
Ontario already has many nuclear facilities. There are six nuclear units at Tiverton's Bruce plant, plus two more are being refurbished.
There are nuclear units in Pickering and Bowmanville, and one decommissioned reactor at Deep River.
Some facts about The Four Sisters power plant:
When it was built in 1962 it was considered the largest coal-fired station in the world (2,400 megawatts);
The plant, built on 52 hectares, cost $274 million;
During the 1970s, when all units were operating, the station employed 430 regular staff;
When operating as a baseload station in the 1970s, it could supply 17 per cent of Ontario's electricity needs;
Operation in the 1990s was reduced to a four-unit peaking plant (from eight); and
During its operating life, the station has generated more than 215 billion kWh of electricity -- enough to supply all of Ontario's energy needs for about 1 1/2 years based on 2005 consumption.
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