GBA Update Spring 2024

ED ADVOCACY REPORT

By Rupert Kindersley, Executive Director

W e have been working hard since we last updated you on our GBA advocacy action. We continue to follow long-standing files, as well as more recent issues. One of those newer issues is our push for appropriate regulation of floating homes . Transport Canada’s designation of floating cottages as vessels is our main concern, as it exempts these structures from adhering to building codes, municipal zoning regulations, and taxation. In 2001, British Columbia declared that float homes are not vessels. The Float Homes Not Vessels strategy group that GBA helped form with Gloucester Pool Cottage Association (GPCA) has put forward solid arguments to Transport Canada (TC) on safety, environmental oversight, and licensing. It should have made it an easy and quick decision to allow the same British Columbia rules to apply in Ontario to resolve this matter, but so far TC hasn’t made those changes. Nevertheless, Float Homes Not Vessels has successfully built awareness of this issue, and the group has now grown to include more than 40 cottage associations, 35 mayors, and five MPs, with thousands of cottagers weighing in to help drive our collective advocacy efforts. Progress is being made: ≥ The Ontario government has been helpful with new camping regulations in 2023. ≥ Parks Canada is developing mooring regulations for Floating Homes for Spring 2024. ≥ Transport Canada solicited comments via a Let’s Talk: Long-term Anchoring consultation. Float Homes Not Vessels will continue to push for appropriate floating homes regulations to protect the environment and keep everyone safe. There is plenty of news on the Trans Canada Energy (TCE) 1,000 MW pumped electricity storage proposal at Meaford , and GBA continues to to ensure that GBA members have full, complete and accurate information on the project, its potential environmental impacts, and how it stacks up financially against alternative storage methods for Ontario taxpayers. Since we started working on this project in September 2019, GBA, Save Georgian Bay (SGB), and others have been instrumental in persuading TCE to change the design to minimize the potential environmental impacts. More recent developments include the following:

≥ Following input from the Township of the Archipelago (ToA), SGB, GBA, and others, the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) and the Ministry of Energy (MoE) have delayed their decision on the project until July 31, 2024. ≥ IESO has advised against proceeding with the project, as the estimated capital cost keeps climbing. According to a TCE announcement on Jan 11, 2024, the capital cost will not exceed $7 billion. Their previous estimate was $4.5 billion. Their revised cost must be confirmed by July 31, as requested by the MoE, but it appears to be approaching SGB’s recent estimate of the project cost at $8-10 billion. ≥ To address IESO’s opinion that the project is a bad financial deal for Ontario, SGB is asking MoE and IESO to make the project subject to a competitive tender process. This process is currently underway for seven planned 250 MW battery storage projects that are out for tender; another is already under construction. However, MoE has asked for funding from the federal government to support TCE’s pre-development costs for this project, which appears to be inconsistent with the IESO's competitive tender recommendation. Here are a few short updates on some other GBA priorities: Water Quality ≥ Recently we confirmed that the Ontario Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) is not working on developing any regulations related to unencapsulated dock foam . Bill 228 (Keeping Polystyrene Out of Ontario's Lakes and Rivers Act, 2021) received Royal Assent almost three years ago, but MECP is waiting for this issue to be addressed at national or international levels before they take action. Meanwhile, we urgently need concrete legislation to be enacted to reduce this major contributor to plastics pollution in the Great Lakes. ≥ Similarly, we continue to build support amongst Ontario’s MPPs for introducing a bill that would require new clothes washing machines be fitted with microfibre-catching filters to significantly reduce the amount of microfibres/ microplastics entering our waters. ≥ Now that microplastics have been nominated as a chemical of mutual concern under the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, we hope this will give new impetus to support the above legislation.

www.georgianbay.ca

GBA UPDATE Spring 2024

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