Letter: The Energy Power Play & Pumped Spin in Meaford
David Wood challenges the messaging driving the TC Energy pumped-storage project outside Meaford, and the long-term impact of such a project on our shoreline.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Dear Editor,
TC Energy’s proposed 1,000-megawatt pumped-storage project at the Meaford military base has been sold to the public as a “clean-energy battery.” But for many who live along Georgian Bay, it feels more like another power grab — one that risks both our natural heritage and the integrity of local decision-making.
The plan calls for excavating a massive upper reservoir on Department of National Defence land above the bay, then cycling billions of litres of water up and down a 150-metre drop to generate electricity during peak demand.
On paper, it sounds tidy: no emissions, no smoke, no oil slicks. In practice, it’s an industrial megaproject that would forever change one of the last relatively wild stretches of the southern Georgian Bay shoreline.
The affected lands and near-shore waters host a rich web of life — forests, wetlands, and rocky habitats supporting turtles, amphibians, and migratory birds. Many of these species once had a voice through Ontario’s Endangered Species Act.
That voice was silenced when the Ford government gutted the Act under Bill 5, effectively allowing industrial projects to proceed with fewer environmental constraints and minimal public accountability. Communities like Meaford are now asked to trust corporate assurances instead of science-based protections.
Equally troubling is the secrecy around costs and benefits. The company promotes the project as a way to “stabilize Ontario’s grid,” but has yet to provide a transparent breakdown of who pays, who profits, and how the project compares to less destructive storage options such as grid-scale batteries or demand-side management.
Even Hydro One’s projected transmission expansion to service the project has drawn questions about ballooning costs that will ultimately land on ratepayers.
This is not a case of locals being anti-energy. Most residents understand the need to store renewable power and move away from fossil fuels.
What they reject is the notion that environmental harm can be rebranded as “clean innovation.” The rhetoric of progress has become a substitute for real consultation and ecological stewardship.
If the Meaford proposal proceeds without independent review, it will signal something larger — that in Ontario, corporate convenience outweighs environmental conscience.
The government’s dismantling of conservation authorities, its cavalier use of Minister’s Zoning Orders, and now its rollback of species protection laws all point to a pattern: removing obstacles to development rather than balancing growth with genuine care for the land.
There are better ways to meet our energy needs than draining the trust and biodiversity of Georgian Bay. Meaford deserves a future built on transparency and respect for the ecosystems that sustain it — not another exercise in pumped spin.
David Wood is a Bruce County environmental columnist whose Jeopardy Earth essays appear in regional papers. He writes from Mildmay-South Bruce. This piece was submitted as a Letter to the Editor.
Letters to the Editor do not necessarily reflect the opinions or beliefs of The Owen Sound Current and its editor or publisher.