Rich Garton (reporter): Paul Chorus woke up this past weekend to find to learn his job and his livelihood were in jeopardy.

Paul Chorus (Automatic Earth): Basically it just feels like I have been betrayed.

Rich Garton: Paul is the owner of Automatic Earth a marketing firm that promotes environmentally responsible products. Most recently he championed the ecoENERGY Retrofit program which helps offsets the cost of replacing inefficient insulation, aging doors and windows, to reduce home energy bills, create jobs and save the environment. But that program is no more. Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver announced recently the government has stopped accepting applications two months earlier than planned.

Paul Chorus: To literally pull the plug with zero notice and immediately strand people with no ability to plan, when they were planning for this two month timeline is irresponsible, inconsiderate and it is actually self-defeating.

Rich Garton: The federal government had originally committed $400 million toward the ecoENERGY Home Retrofit program in its 2011 Budget. But according to critics the government would spend less than half of that in the end.

In a written statement to CTV Windsor this afternoon Minister Oliver stated, “the ecoENERGY program is fully subscribed ahead of schedule.” But the program was capped off because it reached its goal of 250,000 applicants who received up to $5,000 each to make their homes more energy-efficient. But Chorus says that implementing a cap of applications goes against the point of the program. That the government has fallen short of its promises and in the process will add many Canadians to the unemployment rolls.

Paul Chorus: The last time the Harper government did this, pull the plug one year early with one day notice, there was a mass sell-off of equipment and companies closing left and right. And they will all now be virtually defunct. So there is potentially dozens, if not hundreds of layoffs coming in Windsor immediately, effective this week. And that translates into thousands across the country.

Rich Garton: Oliver responded by saying, “the program is expected to generate up to $4 billion of economic activity, creating and protecting jobs for thousands of Canadians.” Chorus and those in the industry are calling on the provincial government to reinstate the Ontario Home Energy Savings Program to keep the rebates alive and save a now fledging industry. Rich Garton CTV news.

[CTV news London Windsor - Contractors angered by surprised axing of ecoENERGY]
Click here to view at CTV London