Item - 2016.EX16.46

The Executive Committee deferred the item indefinitely.

City Council on June 7, 8 and 9, 2016, referred Motion MM19.7 to the Executive Committee.

The Pickering Nuclear Station was expected to shut down on August 31, 2018 when its existing Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission licence expires. The Ontario Power Generation wants to extend its operation until 2024.

The Pickering Nuclear Station is the 4th oldest nuclear station in North America and the 7th oldest in the world. It is surrounded by more people – 2 million people within 30 kilometres – than any other nuclear plant in North America. Ontario has a large electricity surplus and no longer needs the Pickering Nuclear Station to keep our lights on. In 2015, Ontario exported more electricity than the Pickering Nuclear Station produced.

The Pickering Nuclear Station is one of the highest cost nuclear plants in North America. Closing the Pickering Nuclear Station will reduce Ontario's electricity costs by $900 million per year. The decommissioning and dismantling of the Pickering Nuclear Station could create 16,000 person-years of employment between now and 2030.

Ontario's future electricity needs can be met at a lower cost by water power imports from Quebec, energy efficiency investments and cost-effective Made-in-Ontario green energy. Closing the Pickering Nuclear Station will increase public safety for the residents of Toronto, Pickering, Ajax, Whitby, and Oshawa.