Coal is out; natural gas and windmills are in, according to recommendations by the Ontario government’s Select Committee on Alternative Fuel Sources, which called for a new provincial Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) that will be among the most aggressive in North America.

It calls for the complete elimination of coal-fired electricity generation in the province by 2015 with a significant amount (the Atikokan and Thunder Bay coal-fired plants) in northwestern Ontario shut down by 2005. The committee recommends that the coal-fired plants be replaced by gas-fired and wind generation.

“The committee believes that Ontario should work to eliminate its reliance upon coal-based power generation unless future technological advances result in dramatically reduced air emissions that are equivalent to or lower than emissions from natural gas generation,” the report stated. Currently about 21% of Ontario’s power generation is coal-fired; 44% is nuclear; 27% is hydroelectric; 6.5% is natural gas-fired; and 1% is oil fired.

The committee said the coal industry claims it can perfect clean coal technology by 2007. Some observers also testified that converting the existing coal plants to natural gas may increase gas prices and affect the long-term supply of gas in the province.

The committee called for a study to be completed in 12 months on the conversion of all existing coal-fired generation to natural gas. It also recommends the government set stringent emissions limits on coal and oil generation plants, limits that are no greater than the limits for natural gas-fired stations. It recommends the Atikokan and Thunder Bay coal plants be shut down by July 1, 2005 and be replaced with windfarms. All remaining coal plants are to be shut down by 2015 and until then coal-fired generation should be given the lowest dispatch priority.

The RPS is scheduled to take effect in mid-2003 but first must be adopted by the provincial government.

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