Navigating the permitting landscape for renewable energy projects

Regulatory approvals and permits are required for many energy projects in various jurisdictions across North America. But there is another type of approval all clean energy projects need: social license. Communities need to be ‘on board’ with the proposed project to accept, respect and enable the operation to succeed. Achieving this can be an uphill endeavour if communities are not engaged early and properly, taking their questions, requests, needs and wants into account.

Many locations across North America are looking to decarbonize their energy grid, like Ontario, which is on the path to carbon-free energy. Having started on the road to renewable energy projects some 20 years ago, Ontario faced difficulties, especially in rural areas where communities opposed the change in land use and infrastructure installations that come with renewable power generation. Two decades later, although Ontario has a diversified clean energy grid composed of a mix of hydroelectric, biomass, nuclear, wind, natural gas and solar energy, demand for energy is projected to increase significantly, with a projected shortfall of up to 23,000 megawatts by 2050 if no new energy projects are developed. Therefore, the province needs to scale generation and storage capacity through socially acceptable plants that provide the province with the power it needs. As part of a suite of recent procurement announcements from IESO for energy generation and storage, the ongoing LT2 procurement has introduced a framework to secure 2,000 MW of energy-producing resources this year. Under the LT2, community and Municipal support and partnership with Indigenous communities are key to a winning bid.

Renewable Energy Approval (REA), outlined in Ontario Regulation 359/09, is required for most solar, wind and bio-energy projects in Ontario. Although a prescribed process intended to streamline the securement of provincial and municipal approvals, achieving a renewable energy approval (REA) is not easy. Successful community engagement and partnerships are key to both the LT2 bid process and subsequent REA. Four of the key elements that make the road to a successful LT2 bid and REA easier include choosing a successful site, finding the right Indigenous partnership(s), conducting meaningful community engagement activities and partnering with a consultant with the requisite technical experience and capabilities. Cost schedule risks can be mitigated by working with the right consultant who can provide integrated services, as listed below.

Identify the parameters that determine which site will be successful or not. There are certain aspects that can help accumulate points towards a successful LT2 and REA application, such as avoiding agricultural areas. Everything from access to transmission capacity to availability of skilled workforce to winter accessibility for maintenance to social acceptability and opportunities for Indigenous partnerships is all part of the broader siting criteria that developers will consider. The LT2 procurement process has been designed to minimize conflict of use and thus reduce project risk. 

Public consultation is a key component of the REA process. A good facilitator grounds engagement in community values. Understanding what the community’s priorities and values are and identifying how they can have input on aspects of the project that are most important to them. In addition to the global benefits of supporting the energy transition, having the right public consultation team helps to alleviate community concerns, allows opportunities for the public to feel heard, and decreases opposition. 

Technical due diligence, environmental studies, leadership in energy projects, and in-house community engagement specialization are key aspects of the renewable energy project lifecycle, including securing REA.

GHD has several decades years of global experience in completing impact assessments and acquiring permits for renewable energy projects under different legislations and regulatory frameworks. We provide guidance throughout the overall REA application process as well as in-house completion of the various activities required for the approval process including siting, ecological studies, noise and vibration, air quality assessments, traffic studies, geotechnical investigations, soil and groundwater modelling, among other services.

We also have an in-house group of community engagement specialists who have completed public consultation for several high-profile energy projects and know how to achieve public approval and facilitate the social license to proceed with renewable energy projects. Our team of engagement specialists in Ontario are all IAP2-trained, with knowledge and understanding towards achieving public buy-in.

With more renewable energy projects getting off the ground and into the permitting stages, it is an exciting time for energy project development and the energy transition in general. Contact our team to discuss renewable energy projects in the Ontario region.