[greenon-l] Green Energy Act introduced

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February 23, 2009 

 

Power to the People.  Right on.

 

The provincial government introduced the Green Energy Act today.  Definitely
a step in the right direction.  

 

There will be much work to be done in following through on what the Act
promises, from regulations to greening the grid, but it certainly is a
pleasure to see the government place such a strong emphasis on conservation
and renewable power.  

 

Let's be realistic. We are still a long way from the solar age and conserver
society, and over the next few years we will still be facing the prospect of
expensive and polluting mega-projects.  But the Green Energy Act has given
us a new suite of tools to promote conservation and renewable power, and it
is a strong signal that Ontario is moving towards an efficient energy
system, with an emphasis on distributed generation, renewable power, and
conservation.   For the first time since the first energy crisis in the
early 1970's, Ontario is shifting the emphasis from centralized
mega-projects to community and green power projects.  We are finally seeing
the transition to the Conserver Society model first proposed over
thirty-five years ago.

 

Here's some of the features of the Act, and for more information go to
http://www.mei.gov.on.ca/english/energy/gea/: 

*	Creating a Feed-in Tariff that guarantees specific rates for energy
generated from renewable sources.
*	Establishing the right to connect to the electricity grid for
renewable energy projects that meet technical, economic and other regulatory
requirements.
*	Establishing a one stop streamlined approvals process, providing
service guarantees for renewable energy projects that meet regulatory
requirements.
*	Implementing a 21st century "smart" power grid to support the
development of new renewable energy projects, and prepare Ontario for new
technologies like electric cars.
*	Making energy efficiency a key purpose of Ontario's building code. 
*	Establishing North American leading energy efficiency standards for
household appliances, making energy efficient products more available to
more consumers. 
*	Requiring home energy audits prior to sale of homes. 
*	Creating new financing tools to help consumers manage the up-front
costs of small-scale renewable energy projects. 
*	Setting electricity conservation targets for local utilities and
helping them to deliver effective programs to households and businesses. 
*	Increasing productivity in the Ontario industrial sector through
energy efficiency programs and demand management plans. 
*	Requiring targeted conservation measures to protect low income
Ontarians from increases in energy prices.



 

Chris Winter
Excutive Director
The Conservation Council of Ontario

 

 





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