Energy professionals: Coal plan requires environmental assessment

 

TORONTO, Jul 20, 2005 -- Canada NewsWire

 

A full environmental assessment is required before the Ontario government can implement its plan to shut down the coal-burning generating stations, says the union representing the province's energy professionals.

"Energy Minister Dwight Duncan is required by law to submit his Coal Replacement Plan to an environmental assessment before he implements it," said Leslie Forge, Executive Vice President of the Society of Energy Professionals. "The plan, and the impact of the Plan on the environment and the economic life of this Province, must be fully disclosed to the public. As well, a complete examination of the alternatives is crucial to the assessment process."

The Society has taken a number of actions to ensure that the Liberal government's plan for the coal stations meets the requirements of the Environmental Assessment Act, including:

If it goes forward, the GEC project will replace the Lambton Generating Station with a natural gas-fired generator. It is one of two natural gas-fired generating stations awarded contracts in the Sarnia area under the so-called "Clean Energy Supply" RFP.

"The Coal Replacement Plan is largely about building expensive natural gas-fired generation stations in our neighbourhoods," Forge said. "The problem is, it isn't generally known in the public that burning natural gas has its own negative effects on the environment, or what the socio-economic impact of the coal replacement plan will be."

The Society of Energy Professionals represents more than 6,000 professional employees in the electricity industry in Ontario, including engineers, scientists, supervisors, and others. The Society is an affiliate of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers.

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