On December 4th, Toronto City Council’s Infrastructure & Environment Committee quietly stalled one of the most important climate decisions before our city. Instead of directing Toronto Hydro to develop a plan to phase out the Portlands gas plant, the Committee sent Councillor Dianne Saxe’s motion to a single municipal bureaucrat for “consideration.”
And they failed to attach any date for when that bureaucrat — the City’s Executive Director of Environment, Climate and Forestry, James Nowlan — must report back.
Here’s why we need Toronto Hydro to develop a real plan to phase-out the Portlands gas plant and lower our electricity bills ASAP:
- Portlands is Toronto’s #1 smog and #1 climate polluter — and pollution from the plant is increasing.
- The provincial government’s Independent Electricity System Operator has ignored City Council’s request to develop a plan to phase-out Portlands by 2035 and replace it with energy efficiency, local renewables and energy storage.
- City Staff have been clear: phasing out Portlands is necessary for meeting Toronto’s climate goals.
- Investing in energy efficiency, renewables and storage will lower electricity bills across Ontario, avoiding the need for extremely costly new U.S. nuclear reactors and new gas plants.
- Efficiency and renewables will strengthen our energy security by eliminating our dependence on imported American enriched uranium and gas to keep our lights on.
What you can do — and why it matters now
Please ask Mayor Chow and City Councillors to pass a motion requiring City Staff to deliver their report on the merits of Councillor Saxe’s motion to the next (February 25, 2026) meeting of the Infrastructure & Environment Committee.