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Weekly UpdatesIn February 2009, like many Ontarians, I was eager to get my eyeballs on Bill 150.I had hopes it would provide clear guidance and the right legislative context to push us through to a greener economy Carefully crafted legislation would permit us to create new economic opportunities, and improve environmental quality at the same time. This column will present a light version of my comments posted on the Environmental Registry.
With respect to Bill 150, the government is like an athlete training for a marathon run: working hard at remaining injury-free during training, eating nutritious foods, sleeping well and doing the right stretching exercises before the race. But then, it seems to me like the government ran out of energy half-way along the course. Was it because the course was too difficult or was it because there were too many photo opportunities along the way?
While Bill 150 is aimed at green energy, with an emphasis placed on power generation electricity, fuels such as gasoline, diesel, coal are left without articulated targets. Much of the language emphasis is on power production and conservation, but none of the other renewable energy sources are really promoted.
What does this mean? We might get green power if the planets line up. That's great. But we won't get other forms of green energy, at least not from the current proposal, unless the universe twists itself into a pretzel to turn fossil fuels into green fuels.
Why is the current proposal focusing mainly on power production? I suspect it is to reflect Ontario's Climate Change and clean air strategies. To clean up our environment and revamp our economy, there is a need to take a more comprehensive approach to Ontario's energy consumption and to use Ontario's energy budget, rather than its power demand as a basis for the Green Energy Act. Without the proper inclusion of energy sources, other than power generation, there is a strong possibility Bill 150 will be obsolescent the moment it is enacted. 1 fear the current reprieve in the commodity pricing of fossil fuels, which might turn 180 degrees anytime, provide us with a sense of false security.
What about entrepreneurship? Entrepreneurship is to green energy what clothing is a marathon runner. Without it there is a chance we will be running naked. In my views, a bill promoting a green economy should include entrepreneurs. Oops. Bill 150 omits the potential of innovation and entrepreneurship, which we should expect are critical to the deployment of green energy in Ontario, partly because energy solutions will need to be demonstrated in Ontario and/or developed in Ontario. There should be a clearly articulated vision which shows how innovative solutions will be integrated and favoured by the policy and how entrepreneurs will be assisted on a timely basis.
What does this mean to the North? Well, either we wait for entrepreneurs to show up and help us along or we create our own entrepreneurs. I would rather trust our home-grown version because we know they will show up. Bill 150 delves on the issue of tariff setting, how much should we pay for green power? We're not sure yet. Tariffs are partly defined from the valuation of green energy Green energy in Ontario has potential to positively alter the economic fabric of the province; however, Bill 150 does not really create monetary incentives based on progressive evaluation methods. If health and environmental benefits are not directly included in the valuation, then there has to be a method to capture and generate these benefits to protect promoters. The lack thereof, puts green energy initiatives on the same footing as fossil fuel initiatives and creates a negative barrier against the development of green energy in Ontario.
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Anyone trying to develop a green energy project in Ontario will tell you how painful it is to meet the regulations in Ontario. I'm not sure how the new Act will deal with old regulations. It's like being told to run a marathon race with steel toe boots. They're safe but you won't break a speed record for sure, if you finish at all. My good friend Harry Kelly in Greenstone calls this, "to be smothered by government kindness." The problems are created by the fact that project proponents are submitted to regulations from various bodies which don't seem to communicate well among each other.
I'm proud to be an Ontarian and I love the fact we are talking about a green economy. We've just started the race and it seems to me the biggest roadblock is we're not exactly sure where the finish line is and what it looks like.
Luc Duchesne, PhD, is President/CEO of Forest BioProducts Inc. and SITTM Technologies Inc. in Sault Ste. Marie.
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