The groups say there has never been a better time not to buy a
nuclear reactor, and they urge the Premier to forgo spending
billions on new nuclear and instead put his Green Energy Act to
work by replacing the aging Pickering B nuclear station with green
energy.
"Nuclear costs are increasing, electricity demand is falling and
the province has put in place the conditions for green power to
play an increased role in Ontario's electricity sector," said
Cherise Burda, Policy Director for the Pembina Institute. "It's a
perfect storm in favour of green power rather than nuclear."
The groups say that the Premier should delay the decision to buy
new reactors until the province's plan for electricity is reviewed
again in three years. Groups signing the letter include the
Canadian Environmental Law Association, Council of Canadians,
Ecojustice, Environmental Defence, Great Lakes United, Greenpeace,
Low-Income Energy Network, Ontario Clean Air Alliance, Ontario
Sustainable Energy Association, Pembina Institute, Sierra Club
Ontario, Toronto Environmental Alliance and WWF-Canada.
"Investments in green energy and nuclear power are competing for
limited space on the electricity grid of the future," added Keith
Stewart, Climate Change Campaign Manager for WWF-Canada. "The Green
Energy Act points us toward a sustainable energy future, but to get
there we now need to make more space for green power within the
province's electricity plan."
The province's current electricity plan caps the long-term
development of new renewable power by reserving at least 50 per
cent of the electricity grid for nuclear generation. For the Green
Energy Act to be successful, say the groups, the government must
remove the long-term cap on green power development.
The next and best opportunity to do this would be a decision to
replace the Pickering B nuclear station with green energy when it
reaches the end of its operational life beginning in 2013. The
government is expected to decide Pickering B's fate later this
summer.
"New reactors are neither needed nor economical today. What is
needed, however, is more space on the electricity grid for Green
Energy Act to be put to work. Committing to replace Pickering with
green power is the next positive step the government must take
toward expanding green energy and jobs," said Shawn-Patrick
Stensil, Energy and Climate Campaigner for Greenpeace.
The groups highlighted the assumptions used by the Ontario Power
Authority in 2005 to limit green energy and plan for the expansion
of nuclear generation that are no longer valid in 2009. The
expansion of nuclear power should be reconsidered because:
- Electricity demand has continued to fall since 2005,
eliminating the need for additional reactors.
- Nuclear costs are more than double what they were estimated to
be in 2005 and nuclear vendors are unwilling to assume the risks of
cost over-runs.
- The Independent Electricity System Operator has warned that
excess and inflexible nuclear supply is a threat to system
stability.
- The passage of the Green Energy Act creates the conditions for
green power to thrive if green power is provided additional space
on the electricity grid.
Last September, Minister Smitherman directed the Ontario Power
Authority (OPA) to revise its targets for green power and
conservation. The OPA is expected to submit its revised plan later
this summer, after assessing the impact of the Green Energy
Act.
For more information, please
contact
Pembina Institute
Cherise Burda
Ontario Policy Director
(416) 824-0256
or
WWF-Canada
Keith Stewart
Climate Change Campaign Manager
(416) 985-5936
or
Greenpeace-Canada
Shawn-Patrick Stensil
Energy and Climate Change Campaigner
(416) 884-7053
or
Ontario Clean Air Alliance
Jack Gibbons
Chair
(416) 926-1907 ext. 240
or
Canadian Environmental Law Association
Theresa McClenaghan
Executive Director
(416) 960-2284 ext. 219
or
Ecojustice Canada
Hugh Wilkins
Coordinating Lawyer
(416) 368-7533 ext. 34