Problems with Ontario’s Green Energy Act

In this article from the Globe and Mail called Does Ontario’s Green Energy Act pass the ‘net benefit’ test? the author, Jatin Nathwani from the University of Waterloo argues that there are serious problems with the Green Energy Act of Ontario. These problems put our entire electrical supply system in jeopardy and make its sustainability questionable.

The most pressing issue is the Ontario government’s commitment to pay incentives of up to 10 times the going rate for electricity to individuals and organizations who install alternate energy sources (solar panels, wind turbines) and hook them up to the grid. This was a serious mistake when it was first brought in, and attempts to correct it have been vigorously opposed by environmental lobbyists.

The second problem is the cost of actually hooking up these small sources. This puts a strain on local utilities that certainly can’t help their sustainability.

Add to this the massive costs involved in installing so-called “smart meters” across the province, as well as upgrading the entire system to be “smart” – both measures supposedly aimed at reducing peak demand for electricity and “saving money”.

The result is a massive black hole into which Ontario residents’ money is sucked, never to be seen again. Rather than saving money for consumers, prices for electricity are rapidly rising, and there is no end in sight for the increasing debt of our major utilities in Ontario.

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