Report to/Rapport au :

Planning and Environment Committee

Comité de l'urbanisme et de l'environnement

and Council / et au Conseil

2 April 2009 / le 2 avril 2009

Submitted by/Soumis par : Nancy Schepers, Deputy City Manager

Directrice municipale adjointe,

Infrastructure Services and Community Sustainability

Services d’infrastructure et Viabilité des collectivités

Contact Person/Personne-ressource : Carol Christensen, Manager/Gestionnaire, Environmental Sustainability/Durabilité de l’environnement, Community and Sustainability Services/Services de viabilité et des collectivités

(613) 580-2424 x21610, Carol.Christensen@ottawa.ca

City Wide/à l'échelle de la Ville

Ref N°: ACS2009-ICS-CSS-0023

SUBJECT:	Bill 150 - GREEN ENERGY AND GREEN ECONOMY ACT, 2009

OBJET :	Projet de loi 150 – *Loi de 2009 sur l’énergie verte et l’économie verte*

REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS

That Planning and Environment Committee recommend that Council:

1. Approve the comments on Bill 150 - Green Energy and Green Economy Act, 2009 as outlined in Document 1 attached; and

2. Direct that these comments be forwarded to the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure and to the Standing Committee on Bill 150.

RECOMMANDATIONS DU RAPPORT

Que le Comité de l’urbanisme et de l’environnement recommande au Conseil :

1. d'approuver les commentaires sur le projet de loi 150 – Loi de 2009 sur l’énergie verte et l’économie verte comme il est expliqué dans le document 1 ci-joint;

2. de demander que ces commentaires soient transmis au ministère de l’Énergie et de l’Infrastructure et au Comité permanent à propos du projet de loi 150.

BACKGROUND

Bill 150 - Green Energy and Green Economy Act, 2009 (GEA) received first reading in the Ontario Legislature on Monday, February 23, 2009. This is an Omnibus Bill which affects a number of Acts including the Planning Act. The proposed GEA is enabling legislation designed to facilitate development and distribution of renewable energy, and assist in creating a culture of energy conservation. It carries forward a number of provisions in existing legislation, such as the Energy Conservation Leadership Act, 2006, and the Energy Efficiency Act, and introduces new measures related to the provision of green energy, a feed-in tariff system for green energy projects, and exemptions for green energy projects from Planning Act approvals. The Association of Municipalities of Ontario has produced a synopsis of the Act from a municipal perspective which is included as Document 2, and further details can be found at Ministry web site http://www.mei.gov.on.ca/english/energy/gea/.

Some major components from a municipal perspective are listed below:

Certain Provisions from the Energy Conservation Leadership Act have been carried forward into the proposed GEA including the requirement for prescribed public agencies, which may include municipalities, to:

establish municipal energy conservation and demand management plans, and
consider energy conservation and efficiency when acquiring goods and services and making capital investments.

These provisions require regulations to define the measures, and the regulations have not yet been developed.

All restrictions established in a municipal by-law, condominium by-law, encumbrance on real property or an agreement that would serve to prevent or restrict the use of any designated goods, services or technologies in renewable energy projects/sources, and their associated transmission and distribution infrastructure, are removed in circumstances to be prescribed by regulations.

Anyone who intends to sell or lease real property (for longer than a prescribed period) must be prepared to supply information on the energy consumption and efficiency rating of a prescribed building.

A system of feed-in tariffs (whereby the Province will "buy" green energy from producers at varying rates depending on the amount and technology) will be established to replace the current standing offer program. The system has been designed in part to encourage smaller scale renewable energy installations such as rooftop solar arrays. The proposed GEA also creates measures to improve or facilitate the connection of renewables to the electrical grid.

A Renewable Energy Facilitation Office will be established by the Province to facilitate development of renewable energy projects.

Energy Conservation will become a core objective of the Ontario Building Code and the Code will be reviewed every five years from an energy conservation perspective. The Province will also create a new Building Code Energy Advisory Council to provide guidance to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing on this issue.

Renewable Energy projects will be exempt from Planning Act provisions and will be subject to a either a Provincial approvals process under the Environmental Protection Act, or in the case of smaller accessory renewable technologies, subject to designation through regulations to create exemptions from planning controls.

The proposed GEA was posted in the Environmental Bill of Rights (EBR) registry with a 30-day comment period. To ensure that the comments/concerns expressed below were recorded prior to the expiry of the comment period on the registry, staff provided a staff comment that is attached as Document 1. Most recently, a standing committee has been struck on the Bill and this committee will be in Ottawa the week of April 13 and written comments can be submitted by April 22.

DISCUSSION

As an initial comment, many of the components of Bill 150 are very general and implications are difficult to assess in the absence of regulations and guidelines on matters such as renewable energy project approvals. In other cases, the proposed GEA enables the Province to take actions such as designating goods, services and technologies and enabling their use over and above any other restrictions that may otherwise restrict their application. It is therefore difficult to provide definitive comments on many provisions in the Bill in the absence of regulations.

The overall intent of the proposed GEA aligns well with stated objectives to encourage energy conservation, promote renewable energy, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in approved Council documents such as the Environmental Strategy and the Air Quality and Climate Change Management Plan. Corporate efforts to manage energy consumption, move towards green procurement, and set targets for GHG reduction are all aligned with the requirements of the former Energy Conservation Leadership Act.

Efforts to raise the profile of energy conservation, focus on provisions in the Ontario Building Code, creation of a Renewable Energy Facilitation Office, and measures related to enabling smaller scale renewable installations through the feed-in tariffs, right to connect, and creation of a smart grid all tend to support municipal objectives in these areas. In the case of installation of small scale renewables as accessory uses, staff have suggested that the Province also needs to look at potential measures which could provide additional assistance with upfront costs, such as enabling use of local improvement charges on a property basis or use of Community Improvement Plans, and measures to remove potential unintended disincentives such as increased property assessment as a result of a small scale accessory installation.

Municipal concerns emerging with the Bill 150 - Green Energy and Green Energy Act, 2009, revolve primarily around the planning approvals component. As noted above, there is very little detail or guidance provided in the proposed GEA to explain how the approvals process would work and what kinds of guidelines would be in place to protect municipal interests. While staff agree that some clarity and consistency between municipalities is required to enable renewable energy development, it is also critical that the approvals process provide appropriate opportunities for municipal input and address municipal concerns. Material provided to date is simply not sufficient to judge this component of the Act. The following comment was provided in response to the EBR posting:

With respect to the approvals of renewable energy facilities, we support the need to provide an efficient and effective approvals process and we acknowledge the need for some clarity and consistency in approvals for renewable energy projects between municipalities. We do, however, have some difficulty in commenting on the proposed provisions in the absence of a clear approvals process and guidelines at the Provincial level. Two points should be made:

· Any approval process must ensure that there is municipal notification, input and consultation. Provisions will need to ensure that there is a mechanism in place to ensure protection of areas defined at the municipal level which would not be appropriate locations for most renewable energy systems such as components of the natural heritage system, cultural heritage landscapes, and hazard lands.

· There also needs to be a mechanism to ensure that municipal requirements related to such matters as access, servicing and site plan provisions are respected. In this respect, we question the removal of Site Plan control from renewable energy installations. In the absence of site plan control, what mechanism will be available through the approvals process to ensure that installations are built as approved, that appropriate landscaping and buffers are established, and that municipal requirements related to such matters as access, road improvements if necessary, etc. are met?

We assume that the EPA approvals process will be applied to larger, utility grade installations as opposed to accessory uses. In terms of smaller accessory installations, we note that provision is being made for the exemption of particular technologies through regulation from planning restrictions or other agreements such as restrictive covenants. This could be an effective tool in some cases, such as historical restrictions on heat pumps or geothermal systems, and has already been applied to eliminate restrictions on outdoor clotheslines. While we could support the creation of this ability, municipal input into enabling regulations will be important as some types of technologies may have implications on community character and design which should be identified and considered through the process and in consultation with municipalities.

The current Draft Official Plan Amendment resulting from the five-year review of the Official Plan, does contain policies related to Renewable Energy installations. These attempt to create a system of increasing zoning and site plan approval requirements as the size and potential impact of installations increases. These policies were developed based on provision in the Provincial Policy Statement which directs that renewable and alternative energy systems are to be permitted in most land use designations, as well as comments on early drafts from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs. These draft policies would not, however, conform to the provisions in the proposed GEA and as a result, there is some question as to how to proceed with this component of the Official Plan review. Currently, the approved comprehensive zoning bylaw permits utility installations in most land use designations while providing some provisions related to smaller accessory uses.

In conclusion, Bill 150 - Green Energy and Green Economy Act, 2009, is an ambitious omnibus bill which includes a wide variety of measures, most of which involve enabling measures which would not come into effect until detailed regulations have been brought forward. The general intent of the proposed GEA and most provisions align well with municipal objectives. The primary concern from a municipal perspective relates to the approvals process for renewable energy installations and the lack of detail in terms of how the approval process would reflect municipal concerns.

CONSULTATION

There has been no consultation on this report although the proposed draft Official Plan Amendment, which does contain some policies related to renewable energy installations, is currently going through a public consultation process.

LEGAL/RISK MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS:

There are no legal/risk management impediments to implementing any of the recommendations in this report.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

There are no direct financial implications in the report recommendation.

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION

Document 1 Staff comment as submitted to the Environmental Bill of Rights Registry

Document 2 AMO synopsis of Bill 150 - Green Energy and Green Economy Act, 2009

DISPOSITION

If approved, Community Sustainability staff will provide the staff comments previously registered on the Environmental Registry to both the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure and the Standing Committee on Bill 150 as formal comments from the City of Ottawa.

STAFF COMMENT AS SUBMITTED TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL

BILL OF RIGHTS REGISTRY DOCUMENT 1

As an initial comment, the 30-day response period for the EBR posting is not adequate to meet timelines required for report presentation and consideration by Committee and Council. As a result, the following comments should be viewed as an interim response for your consideration and more formal comments may be forthcoming from the City.

This initial response presents several comments from the perspective of staff of the Environmental Sustainability Division in consultation with other relevant staff.

Staff is supportive of the overall objective and direction of the proposed GEA. Steps to provide for more renewable energy capacity and increased conservation align with objectives expressed through such Council approved documents as the City of Ottawa Environmental Strategy and the Air Quality and Climate Change Master Plan. Provisions designed to improve energy conservation in the Building Code and make it a core objective, provide for a renewable energy facilitation office create a smart grid and improve access for, and creation of renewable energy projects.

We support the efforts to provide additional tools for small scale and rooftop renewable installations through the feed-in tariff provisions. We would offer the following additional comments for consideration on this component of the Act:

Some consideration should be given to tax and assessment implications of accessory small-scale renewable installations, including increased property assessment as a result of, for example, a rooftop solar array. Any measures that the GEA can take to ensure that indirect disincentives are avoided would be helpful.

Additional financial tools to assist in the up-front cost of small scale, accessory renewable installations should be assessed and incorporated into the GEA. Use of Local Improvement Charges to provide incentives for installation of renewable or alternative energy systems is an idea that has been explored by a number of municipalities including Ottawa. Community Improvement Plans are also a tool which has potential. Most recently, the City of Toronto has completed a working paper on the use of LIC’s. It would be worthwhile to examine tools and legislation such as the Municipal Act to assess the potential for additional provisions in the GEA to enable creative financing programs for smaller scale renewable capital costs.

With respect to City facilities, most of the relevant provisions in the Act - such as the preparation of Energy Conservation Plans and establishment of targets - are carried forward from previous legislation and are currently awaiting regulations to guide implementation. The City is prepared to continue its efforts at energy conservation through the provisions in the Act and our ongoing efforts to improve efficiency and reduce GHG emissions from corporate sources.

Any approval process must ensure that there is municipal notification, input and consultation. Provisions will need to ensure that there is a mechanism in place to ensure protection of areas defined at the municipal level which would not be appropriate locations for most renewable energy systems such as components of the natural heritage system, cultural heritage landscapes, and hazard lands.
There also needs to be a mechanism to ensure that municipal requirements related to such matters as access, servicing and site plan provisions are respected. In this respect, we question the removal of Site Plan control from renewable energy installations. In the absence of site plan control, what mechanism will be available through the approvals process to ensure that installations are built as approved, that appropriate landscaping and buffers are established, and that municipal requirements related to such matters as access, road improvements if necessary, etc. are met?

Staff supports consumer education and the concept of providing energy information as a component of property transactions. We do however suggest that the implementation plan for this component must consider the capacity to deliver home energy audits and to provide a mechanism to ensure quality control in the energy rating process.

AMO SYNOPSIS OF THE GREEN ENERGY AND GREEN

ECONOMY ACT, 2009 DOCUMENT 2