tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5288464702346155032.post7123747736534891320..comments2022-12-02T05:18:07.991-05:00Comments on Ontario Farmland Preservation: Comment #1: The IssueUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5288464702346155032.post-45734916647382222272010-07-07T16:28:43.792-04:002010-07-07T16:28:43.792-04:00The following is an excerpt from the Ontario Build...The following is an excerpt from the Ontario Building Official Association's June 2010 Journal.<br /><br />The Green Energy Act and its Effects on Building Permits<br /><br />The Green Energy and Green Economy Act (“Green Energy Act”) is now in force and effect. On September 24, 2009, Ontario Regulation 359/09 (“O.Reg. 359/09”) was prescribed under the Environmental Protection Act that outlines the process for individual parties to obtain a Renewable Energy Approval (REA). The Province’s streamlined application process and curbs on municipal review and approval of “renewable energy projects” are now in force and<br />effect. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of the REA Review process and the impacts of the Act on the issuance of building permits for such projects.<br /><br />Green Energy and Green Economy Act<br /><br />The purpose of the Green Energy Act is to encourage the development of renewable energy generation by both the public and private sectors. To achieve this, the Act created<br />a streamlined renewable energy approval process through the Ministry of the Environment (MOE) and exempts applicable projects from municipal planning approvals. The Province believes that by promoting and removing barriers to constructing renewable energy generation, additional jobs will be created and energy efficiency improved while reducing overall demand for more traditional forms of energy,<br />in particular fossil fuel generation. The Province is supporting this policy by providing $2.3 billion in investment financing to 2012, of which half is to be spent in northern Ontario, as well as pricing guarantees for generators.<br /><br />Over the past five to ten years, many municipalities have amended their Official Plans and Zoning By-laws to regulate renewable energy uses, buildings and structures such<br />as wind turbines, solar panels and larger commercial generators or renewable energy. These policies apply to projects as diverse as commercial generation facilities to individual<br />turbines and solar panels on individual lots, and in some cases, diverse generation sources such as biomass and waste to energy conversion.<br /><br />The Green Energy Act exempts all such projects from municipal planning documents. In effect, a municipality cannot use an Official Plan or Zoning By-law to impose any prohibition, setback or operating restriction on any renewable energy project (although some setbacks from environmental features are required by the O.Reg. 359/09). In fact, certain projects will not require any municipal approval at all.<br /><br />Ontario Regulation 359/09 and Renewable Energy<br />Approvals<br /><br />Larger projects will still require an application, review and public process. The Green Energy Act provides for a slightly modified Certificate of Approval process for such projects. The process for obtaining a Renewable Energy Approval (REA) is detailed in O.Reg. 359/09, which was published on September 24, 2009. This process is coordinated through the district office of the Ministry of the<br />Environment.<br /><br />O.Reg. 359/09 creates a series of classes, or tiers, of projects defined by the scale of the project within each type of renewable electrical generation facility. <br /><br />...<br /><br />Council [City/Municipal] approval is not required for any small-scale renewable energy generation development<br />...<br />projects. The consultation process could consider Development<br />Guidelines approved by Council, but any such<br />guideline cannot be used to stop a project from proceeding.<br />When a Building Permit is required<br />Building officials are required by law to issue a permit for<br />any proposal that complies with all applicable law. If a proponent’s<br />design meets the standards of O.Reg. 359/09<br />and the Building Code, a building permit must to be issued.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com