Renewable Energy

D&A provides detailed Natural Heritage Assessments, consultation, agency liaison and implementation for Renewable Energy Act (REA) approvals under Ontario Regulation 359/09. We also provide technical peer reviews of the Natural Heritage Assessment reports and other documents on behalf of stakeholders.

The core of the REA approval process is the Natural Heritage Assessment. This includes four key reports: Records Review report, Site Investigation report, Evaluation of Significance report, and Environmental Impact Study. Combined, these reports provide a comprehensive understanding of natural heritage context within and adjacent to the proposed project location. This helps to ensure that the project’s environmental impacts are minimized or avoided.

Our Approach

Navigating the REA process demands a very close collaboration between the proponent, an interdisciplinary group of consultants, and regulatory organizations. D&A will work with you and your team to liaise with the government and its agencies.  

We provide you with the expertise needed in:

• Project management
• Ecology
• Regulatory agency liaison
• Policy interpretation

We conduct background reviews, field inventories, constraint assessments, and impact analysis for your renewable energy project, and will successfully guide you through the NHA component of the REA process.

Choosing D&A

D&A has worked on a number of renewable energy projects under the REA process that have received MNR approval. We have worked with upper tier municipalities to guide their approach to renewable energy. Our team has also taken a lead role as technical reviewer for NHA reports prepared for major wind energy projects proposed in the Saugeen Ojibway Nation’s (SON) Traditional Territory. The combined experience of completing NHA reports and technical reviews gives us a comprehensive understanding of the REA regulation as it applies to natural heritage assessment for solar and wind energy projects in Ontario.