The McGuinty government is serious about expanding green energy in Ontario. To do so, however, it must take the following seven steps over the next 24 months:

REPLACE — Make room for renewables by choosing green power over dirty energy

1. Replace Pickering B and Bruce B nuclear reactors with green power, as these reactors come to the end of their lives over the next decade.

REDUCE — Start first with all cost-effective conservation to reduce baseload

2. Direct the OPA to acquire all cost-effective Conservation and Demand management (CDM) resources as per the intent of the Supply Mix Directive, rather than treating the minimum target for CDM as a cap. And direct the OPA to change its approach to conservation from going after the "low hanging fruit" to acquiring deep energy efficiency savings as per the recommendations submitted to the Ontario Energy Board hearing on behalf of the Green Energy Coalition.

RENEW — Then increase renewable energy sources

3. Transform the Renewable Energy Standard Offer Program (RESOP) into an effective advanced renewable tariff system (ARTs) to include the following: prices differentiated by technologies, tiered pricing within technologies, prices set according project costs and reasonable return on investment, 20-year contracts, no caps on project size or the program, and guaranteed access to the grid.

4. Use ARTs as the primary procurement mechanism for renewable energy, empowering all Ontarians to become generators and conservers at a fair price.

5. Direct Hydro One to develop and implement a Smart Green Grid Upgrade Plan that gives renewable energy priority in Ontario's transmission and distribution system. In parallel, enable a regulatory regime that encourages local distribution companies to acquire the technical and financial resources to upgrade their systems to accommodate distributed energy from clean and renewable sources.

6. Embed these items in legislation via a Green Energy Act that includes an obligation for grid connections for green energy.

RECYCLE — Use conventional fuels more efficiently with more CHP and waste heat recovery

7. Implement the Clean Energy Standard Offer Program for cogeneration and recycled energy but without capacity limits and with a feed-in tariff that provides a reasonable return for investors.