An Analysis of the Ontario Power Authority’s Consideration of Environmental Sustainability in Electricity System Planning

This report focuses on the Ontario Power Authority’s (OPA) consideration of environmental sustainability in the development of the proposed Integrated Power System Plan (IPSP). The research was centred on a comparison of what the OPA did with what should reasonably be expected of the OPA in meeting the requirement, contained in Ontario Regulation 277/06 (The IPSP Regulation), for ensuring due consideration of environmental sustainability in plan development. In its decision on issues to be considered in the IPSP hearing, the Ontario Energy Board indicated that in order to meet this requirement the OPA is required to demonstrate that it has “weighed and evaluated” environmental sustainability in a way that is “meaningful” in the development of the IPSP.