Toronto City Council asked Ontario’s electricity operator to come up with a plan to phase-out the polluting Portlands gas fired power plant by 2035. Last month, the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) came back with a draft plan that completely misses the mark.
The IESO’s plan is all about doubling down on the status quo of polluting gas and expensive nuclear. It includes no pathway for getting rid of Toronto’s No. 1 source of air polluting NOx emissions and greenhouse gases.
That’s not just bad for the air we breath and for the stability of our increasingly dangerous climate, it is bad for our economy and our city’s future because the IESO’s plan squanders numerous opportunities to shift to a more efficient, lower cost electricity system.
Instead, the IESO is proposing to make us dependent on cumbersome, centralized American nuclear technology and imports of enriched uranium fuel from the U.S. This is a terrible idea at a time of such political uncertainty.
Instead of dragging Toronto backwards, we need the IESO to recognize that the world is rapidly changing and that modern renewables plus storage are taking the globe by storm. Combined with a deeper commitment to energy efficiency, these technologies can help us meet our electricity needs at a lower cost, improving air quality while increasing climate resilience and energy security.
Here’s what we really need to do to phase out the Portlands gas plant and build an electricity system that will make us competitive in a low carbon future:
☑️ Fully deploy rooftop and parking lot solar;
☑️ Invest deeply in energy efficiency and demand management;
☑️ Develop a Lake Ontario wind farm; and
☑️ Embrace energy storage – including the use of EV batteries to feed power back into the grid when needed.
For more information about how Toronto can move to an affordable, renewable electricity future please click here.
Please contact Premier Ford and tell him that Toronto deserves an affordable, renewable electricity future. Ask him to direct the IESO to develop a plan to phase-out the Portlands gas plant by 2035 or sooner by investing in all of Toronto’s cost-effective energy efficiency, renewable energy and energy storage options.