Interpretation
 1. (1) In this Regulation, “alvar” means a naturally open area of thin or no soil over essentially flat limestone, dolostone or marble rock, supporting a sparse vegetation cover of mostly shrubs and herbs; “anaerobic digestion” has the same meaning as in Ontario Regulation 160/99 (Definitions and Exemptions) made under the Electricity Act, 1998; “anaerobic digestion facility” means a renewable energy generation facility at which biogas made from anaerobic digestion is used to generate electricity; “applicant” means a person who applies for the issue of a renewable energy approval or for an alteration to the terms and conditions of a renewable energy approval; “archaeological resource” means, subject to subsection (2), an archaeological site or a marine archaeological site, both within the meaning of Ontario Regulation 170/04 (Definitions) made under the Ontario Heritage Act; “area of natural and scientific interest (earth science)” means an area that has earth science values related to protection, scientific study or education; “area of natural and scientific interest (life science)” means an area that has life science values related to protection, scientific study or education; “biofuel” has the same meaning as in Ontario Regulation 160/99 made under the Electricity Act, 1998; “biofuel facility” means a renewable energy generation facility at which biofuel is used to generate electricity; “biogas” has the same meaning as in Ontario Regulation 160/99 made under the Electricity Act, 1998; “biogas facility” means a renewable energy generation facility at which biogas is used to generate electricity but does not include an anaerobic digestion facility; “biomass” has the same meaning as in Ontario Regulation 160/99 made under the Electricity Act, 1998; “board area” means, when used in relation to a Local Services Board, the geographical area within which the Local Services Board may exercise its jurisdiction; “coastal wetland” means a wetland that is located, (a) on Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, Lake Huron, Lake Superior or Lake St. Clair, (b) on the St. Mary’s, St. Clair, Detroit, Niagara or St. Lawrence River, or (c) subject to subsection (3), on a tributary to any water body mentioned in clause (a) or (b) and, either in whole or in part, downstream of a line located two kilometres upstream of the 1:100 year floodline of the water body; “conservation reserve” means a conservation reserve within the meaning of the Provincial Parks and Conservation Reserves Act, 2006; “consultant archaeologist” means a consultant archaeologist as defined in subsection 1 (1) of Ontario Regulation 8/06 (Licences under Part VI of the Act — Excluding Marine Archaeological Sites) made under the Ontario Heritage Act; “dam” means a structure or work forwarding, holding back or diverting water and includes a dam, tailings dam, dike, diversion, channel alteration, artificial channel, culvert or causeway; “digestate” means any solid or liquid material that results from anaerobic digestion of biomass, source separated organics or farm material; “dwelling” means one or more habitable rooms used or capable of being used as a permanent or seasonal residence by one or more persons and usually containing cooking, eating, living, sleeping and sanitary facilities; “earth science values” means values that relate to the geological, soil and landform features of the environment; “farm material” means organic matter, other than biomass, that is derived from a plant or animal and that is available at a farm operation; “farm operation” has the same meaning as in Regulation 347 of the Revised Regulations of Ontario, 1990 (General — Waste Management) made under the Act; “Financial Assurance Guideline” means the publication of the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change entitled “Guideline F-15 Financial Assurance” and dated November 2005, as amended from time to time and available from the Ministry; “generation facility” has the same meaning as in Ontario Regulation 116/01 (Electricity Projects) made under the Environmental Assessment Act; “Greenbelt Plan” means the Greenbelt Plan established under subsection 3 (1) of the Greenbelt Act, 2005 and by the Lieutenant Governor in Council by Order in Council No. 208/2005; “heritage resource” means real property that is of cultural heritage value or interest and may include a building, structure, landscape or other feature of real property; “IESO-administered markets” has the same meaning as in the Electricity Act, 1998; “inaccessible vacant lot” means a vacant lot, (a) on private land that cannot be accessed, or in respect of which the owner of the land does not have a legal right to access in the future, through the use of a road by a motor vehicle, as defined in the Highway Traffic Act, or (b) on private land that cannot be accessed through the use of a navigable waterway by a watercraft; “intermittent stream” means a natural or artificial channel, other than a dam, that carries water intermittently and does not have established vegetation within the bed of the channel, except vegetation dominated by plant communities that require or prefer the continuous presence of water or continuously saturated soil for their survival; “kettle lake” means a depression formed by glacial action and permanently filled with water; “Lake Simcoe watershed” has the same meaning as in the Lake Simcoe Protection Act, 2008; “lake trout lake” means a lake that has been designated by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry for lake trout management, as set out in records maintained by and available from that Ministry; “life science values” means values that relate to the living component of the environment; “liquid digestate” means any digestate that is not solid digestate; “local roads area” means a local roads area established under the Local Roads Boards Act; “local roads board” means a board of a local roads area under the Local Roads Boards Act; “Local Services Board” means a Local Services Board within the meaning of the Northern Services Boards Act; “municipal planning authority” means a municipal planning authority established under subsection 14.1 (1) of the Planning Act; “name plate capacity” means, when used in respect of a renewable energy generation facility or a part of a renewable energy generation facility, (a) if the facility is a solar facility, the lesser of, (i) the total of the design electricity generating capacities of all the generation units in or at the facility or the part of the facility, and (ii) the maximum power output of all of the inverters in or at the facility or the part of the facility, and (b) if the facility is not a solar facility, the total of the design electricity generating capacities of all the generation units in or at the facility or the part of the facility; “natural feature” means, subject to subsections 25 (2), 26 (2), 41 (3) and 43 (2), all or part of, (a) an area of natural and scientific interest (earth science), (b) an area of natural and scientific interest (life science), (c) a coastal wetland, (d) a northern wetland, (e) a southern wetland, (f)  Revoked:  O. Reg. 333/12, s. 1 (1). (g) a wildlife habitat, or (h) a woodland; “Natural Heritage Assessment Guide” means the document entitled “Natural Heritage Assessment Guide for Renewable Energy Projects”, published by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry and available on the website of that Ministry, as amended from time to time; “Natural Heritage System” means the Natural Heritage System shown in Schedule 4 to the Greenbelt Plan; “Niagara Escarpment Commission” means the Niagara Escarpment Commission continued under subsection 5 (1) of the Niagara Escarpment Planning and Development Act; “Niagara Escarpment Plan” means the Plan approved under the Niagara Escarpment Planning and Development Act, as amended and revised in accordance with that Act; “noise receptor” means a location described in subsection (4) at which noise discharged from a renewable energy generation facility is received; “northern wetland” means a wetland located north of the northern limit of Ecoregions 5E, 6E and 7E as shown in Figure 1 in the Provincial Policy Statement issued under section 3 of the Planning Act and approved by the Lieutenant Governor in Council by Order in Council No. 140/2005; “Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan” means the plan established under section 3 of the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Act, 2001 and by Ontario Regulation 140/02 (Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan) made under that Act; “Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan Area” means the area shown as the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan Area on the map entitled “Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan Land Use Designation Map”, numbered 208, dated April 17, 2002 and on file in the offices of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing at Toronto, as that map is amended from time to time; “Oak Ridges Moraine settlement area” means an area shown as a Settlement Area on the map entitled “Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan Land Use Designation Map”, numbered 208, dated April 17, 2002 and on file in the offices of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing at Toronto, as that map is amended from time to time; “odour receptor” means a location described in subsection (5) at which odour discharged from a renewable energy generation facility is received; “parcel of land” means a lot or block within a registered plan of subdivision or any land that may be legally conveyed under section 50 of the Planning Act; “permanent stream” means a stream that continually flows in an average year; “planning board” means a planning board established under section 9 or 10 of the Planning Act; “professional engineer” means a person who holds a licence, limited licence or temporary licence under the Professional Engineers Act; “professional geoscientist” means a person who holds a certificate of registration under the Professional Geoscientists Act, 2000 and is a practising member, temporary member or limited member of the Association of Professional Geoscientists of Ontario; “project location” means, when used in relation to a renewable energy project, a part of land and all or part of any building or structure in, on or over which a person is engaging in or proposes to engage in the project and any air space in which a person is engaging in or proposes to engage in the project; “Protected Countryside” means the Protected Countryside shown in Schedule 1 to the Greenbelt Plan; “Protected Countryside settlement area” means a town, village or hamlet that is located in the Protected Countryside and is shown in Schedule 1 to the Greenbelt Plan; “provincial park” means a provincial park within the meaning of the Provincial Parks and Conservation Reserves Act, 2006; “regulated mixed anaerobic digestion facility” has the same meaning as in Regulation 347 of the Revised Regulations of Ontario, 1990 made under the Act; “renewable energy source” has the same meaning as in the Electricity Act, 1998; “sand barrens” has the same meaning as in Ontario Regulation 140/02 made under the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Act, 2001; “savannah” has the same meaning as in Ontario Regulation 140/02 made under the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Act, 2001; “seepage area” means a site of emergence of ground water where the water table is present at the ground surface, including a spring; “sewage” has the same meaning as in the Ontario Water Resources Act; “solar facility” means a renewable energy generation facility at which one or more solar photovoltaic collector panels or devices use light to generate electricity; “solid digestate” means digestate that has a dry matter content of 18 per cent or more or a slump of 150 millimetres or less using the Test Method for the Determination of Liquid Waste (slump test) set out in Schedule 9 to Regulation 347 of the Revised Regulations of Ontario, 1990 made under the Act; “sound power level” means the rating, expressed as an apparent value, that, (a) is given to a wind turbine by the manufacturer of the wind turbine calculated in accordance with the applicable standard and rules specified in subsections (6.1) to (6.4), and (b) applies in respect of the wind turbine when the wind turbine is operating at 95 per cent of its name plate capacity; “source separated organics” has the same meaning as in Ontario Regulation 160/99 made under the Electricity Act, 1998; “southern wetland” means a wetland located south of the northern limit of Ecoregions 5E, 6E and 7E as shown in Figure 1 in the Provincial Policy Statement issued under section 3 of the Planning Act and approved by the Lieutenant Governor in Council by Order in Council No. 140/2005; “storm water” means rainwater runoff, water runoff from roofs, snowmelt and surface runoff; “storm water management facility” means a facility for the treatment, retention, infiltration or control of storm water; “tallgrass prairie” has the same meaning as in Ontario Regulation 140/02 made under the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Act, 2001; “thermal treatment” has the same meaning as in Regulation 347 of the Revised Regulations of Ontario, 1990 made under the Act; “thermal treatment facility” means a renewable energy generation facility at which the thermal treatment of biomass is used to generate electricity; “unorganized territory” has the same meaning as in the Municipal Act, 2001; “water body” includes a lake, a permanent stream, an intermittent stream and a seepage area but does not include, (a) grassed waterways, (b) temporary channels for surface drainage, such as furrows or shallow channels that can be tilled and driven through, (c) rock chutes and spillways, (d) roadside ditches that do not contain a permanent or intermittent stream, (e) temporarily ponded areas that are normally farmed, (f) dugout ponds, or (g) artificial bodies of water intended for the storage, treatment or recirculation of runoff from farm animal yards, manure storage facilities and sites and outdoor confinement areas; “water power facility” means a renewable energy generation facility at which the movement of water is used to generate electricity; “wetland” means land such as a swamp, marsh, bog or fen, other than land that is being used for agricultural purposes and no longer exhibits wetland characteristics, that, (a) is seasonally or permanently covered by shallow water or has the water table close to or at the surface, and (b) has hydric soils and vegetation dominated by hydrophytic or water-tolerant plants; “wildlife habitat” means an area where plants, animals and other organisms live or have the potential to live and find adequate amounts of food, water, shelter and space to sustain their population, including an area where a species concentrates at a vulnerable point in its annual or life cycle and an area that is important to a migratory or non-migratory species; “wind facility” means a renewable energy generation facility at which wind is used to generate electricity through the use of one or more wind turbines; “wind turbine” means, (a) the structure that supports an electrical generator used to convert wind energy into electricity, (b) the electrical and mechanical equipment, including electrical generators, used to convert wind energy into electricity, and (c) the base and foundation to which the structure mentioned in clause (a) is attached; “woodland” means a treed area, woodlot or forested area, other than a cultivated fruit or nut orchard or a plantation established for the purpose of producing Christmas trees, that is located in Ecoregions 6E and 7E as shown in Figure 1 in the Provincial Policy Statement issued under section 3 of the Planning Act and approved by the Lieutenant Governor in Council by Order in Council No. 107/2014, excluding islands in Lake Huron and the St. Mary’s River; “woodwaste” has the same meaning as in Regulation 347 of the Revised Regulations of Ontario, 1990 made under the Act. O. Reg. 359/09, s. 1 (1); O. Reg. 521/10, s. 1 (1, 2); O. Reg. 195/12, s. 1; O. Reg. 333/12, s. 1; O. Reg. 131/14, s. 1; O. Reg. 97/16, ss. 1 (1, 2), 13, 14; O. Reg. 122/19, s. 1. (2) For the purposes of the definition of “archaeological resource” in subsection (1), an archaeological resource is real property but does not include buildings or structures, other than ruins, burial mounds, petroglyphs and earthworks.  O. Reg. 359/09, s. 1 (2). (3) For the purposes of the definition of “coastal wetland” in subsection (1), the 1:100 year floodline includes wave run-up.  O. Reg. 359/09, s. 1 (3). (4) Subject to subsection (6), for the purposes of the definition of “noise receptor” in subsection (1), the following locations are noise receptors: 1. The centre of a building or structure that contains one or more dwellings. 2. The centre of a building used for an institutional purpose, including an educational facility, a child care centre, a health care facility, a community centre or a place of worship. 3. Subject to subsection (4.1), if the construction of a building or structure mentioned in paragraph 1 or 2 has not commenced but an approval under section 41 of the Planning Act or a building permit under section 8 of the Building Code Act, 1992 has been issued in respect of the building or structure, the centre of the proposed building or structure. 4. A location on a vacant lot, other than an inaccessible vacant lot, that has been zoned to permit a building mentioned in paragraph 1 or 2 and in respect of which no approval or building permit to which paragraph 3 applies and at which a building would reasonably be expected to be located, having regard to the existing zoning by-law and the typical building pattern in the area. 5. A portion of property that is used as a campsite or campground at which overnight accommodation is provided by or on behalf of a public agency or as part of a commercial operation.  O. Reg. 521/10, s. 1 (3); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 1 (3-5). (4.1) Paragraph 3 of subsection (4) does not apply if, (a) subject to subsection (4.2), the person proposing to engage in the renewable energy project sent a request in respect of each location to which paragraph 3 of subsection (4) would apply for a copy of each approval issued under section 41 of the Planning Act and each building permit issued under section 8 of the Building Code Act, 1992 to the clerk of each municipality responsible for issuing each approval or permit and the requested copy was not provided to the person within 60 days after the day the request was received; (b) the person referred to in clause (a) submitted an application for a renewable energy approval or an environmental compliance approval or made a draft site plan available in accordance with subsections 35 (1.4), 54 (1.4) or 55 (2.4) within 60 days after the end of the 60-day period referred to in clause (a); and (c) the approval or building permit was not otherwise brought to the attention of the person referred to in clause (a) before an application referred to in clause (b) was submitted or a draft site plan referred to in clause (b) was made available. O. Reg. 97/16, s. 1 (6). (4.2) The person proposing to engage in the renewable energy project must send the request referred to in clause (4.1) (a), (a) in a form and format approved by the Director; (b) by registered mail; and (c) if there is more than one location mentioned in paragraph 1 or 2 of subsection (4) to which paragraph 3 of that subsection would apply, to all of the applicable municipalities on the same day. O. Reg. 97/16, s. 1 (6). (5) Subject to subsection (6), for the purposes of the definition of “odour receptor” in subsection (1), the following locations are odour receptors: 1. A building or structure that contains one or more dwellings. 2. A building used for an institutional purpose, including an educational facility, a child care centre, a health care facility, a community centre or a place of worship, 3. A portion of a property used for recreational purposes that is not accessory to a building or structure mentioned in paragraph 1. 4. A portion of a property that is used as a campsite or campground at which overnight accommodation is provided by or on behalf of a public agency or as part of a commercial operation. 5. A portion of a property used for commercial activity.  O. Reg. 359/09, s. 1 (5); O. Reg. 521/10, s. 1 (4-6); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 1 (7). (6) For the purposes of subsections (4) and (5), an odour receptor or noise receptor does not include a location on a parcel of land if any part of the renewable energy generation facility will be located on that parcel of land once the facility is installed, constructed or expanded in accordance with the environmental compliance approval or renewable energy approval.  O. Reg. 195/12, s. 1 (4); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 1 (8). (6.1) For the purposes of clause (a) of the definition of “sound power level” in subsection (1), the following standards and rules are specified: 1. CAN/CSA-C61400-11-07, “Wind Turbine Generator Systems – Part 11: Acoustic Noise Measurement Techniques”, dated October 2007 and available as described in subsection (6.5), is specified as the standard for a wind turbine for which an application for a renewable energy approval, a certificate of approval or an environmental compliance approval was submitted before May 1, 2016 or for which a renewable energy approval, a certificate of approval or an environmental compliance approval was issued before May 1, 2016. 2. Subject to paragraph 3 and subsection (6.2), CAN/CSA-IEC 61400-11:13, “Wind Turbines – Part 11: Acoustic Noise Measurement Techniques”, dated August 2013 and available as described in subsection (6.5), is specified as the standard for a wind turbine for which an application for a renewable energy approval or an environmental compliance approval is submitted on or after May 1, 2016 and, subject to subsections (6.3) and (6.4), must include the positive uncertainty value, consisting of either, i. the value provided by the manufacturer and calculated in accordance with that standard, or ii. an additional 2 dB. 3. Subject to subsection (6.2), if CAN/CSA-IEC 61400-11:13, “Wind Turbines – Part 11: Acoustic Noise Measurement Techniques”, available as described in subsection (6.5), is amended and the adoption of the amendment comes into effect in accordance with subsection 177 (6) of the Act, the standard in that amended version is specified as the standard for a wind turbine for which an application for a renewable energy approval or an environmental compliance approval is submitted on or after the day the amended version comes into effect and, subject to subsections (6.3) and (6.4), must include the positive uncertainty value, consisting of either, i. the value provided by the manufacturer and calculated in accordance with that standard, or ii. an additional 2 dB. O. Reg. 97/16, s. 1 (9). (6.2) Paragraph 1 of subsection (6.1) continues to apply to a wind turbine described in that paragraph in respect of changes to the wind turbine, unless an application in respect of a change to the wind turbine is submitted on or after May 1, 2016 and the change, (a) would result in a change to the wind turbine’s location; or (b) would increase the wind turbine’s octave-band sound power levels (linear weighted), as calculated in accordance with the standard specified in paragraph 1 of subsection (6.1), unless there would be no resulting increase in the sound level at any noise receptor within 1,500 metres of the turbine. O. Reg. 97/16, s. 1 (9). (6.3) The requirement in paragraph 2 of subsection (6.1) to include the positive uncertainty value as part of the calculation of the sound power level does not apply in respect of a wind turbine if, (a) the supply of renewable energy from the wind turbine is provided for in a power purchase agreement with the Independent Electricity System Operator entered into as part of the first phase of the Large Renewable Procurement process; and (b) as part of the application for a renewable energy approval, the person proposing to engage in the renewable energy project in respect of the wind turbine elects not to include the positive uncertainty value as part of the calculation of the sound power level. O. Reg. 97/16, s. 1 (9). (6.4) The requirement in paragraph 2 of subsection (6.1) to include the positive uncertainty value as part of the calculation of the sound power level does not apply in respect of a change to a wind turbine described in subsection (6.3) unless an application in respect of a change to the wind turbine is submitted after the renewable energy approval has been issued and the change, (a) would result in a change to the wind turbine’s location; or (b) would increase the wind turbine’s octave-band sound power levels (linear weighted), as calculated in accordance with the standard specified in paragraph 2 of subsection (6.1), unless there would be no resulting increase in the sound level at any noise receptor within 1,500 metres of the turbine. O. Reg. 97/16, s. 1 (9). (6.5) The standards mentioned in subsection (6.1) shall be available for review on request to the Director at the Ministry’s district offices and the Ministry’s Public Information Centre. O. Reg. 97/16, s. 1 (9). (6.6) In the following provisions, a reference to the sound power level of a wind turbine is a reference to the sound power level rounded to the nearest whole number: 1. The Table to section 6. 2. Clause 33 (4) (b). 3. Paragraph 2 of subsection 33 (5). 4. Paragraph 3 of subsection 54 (1). 5. Clauses 54 (4) (a) and (b). 6. Clauses 54 (5) (a) to (e). 7. Clauses 55 (1) (a) to (e). 8. Paragraph 3 of subsection 55 (1.1). 9. Paragraphs 1 and 2 of subsection 55 (2). 10. The Table to section 55. 11. Paragraph 3 of subsection 55.1 (2). O. Reg. 97/16, s. 1 (9). (7) In this Regulation, a reference to the Director means, (a) the Director appointed under section 5 of the Act in respect of the section of this Regulation in which the reference appears; or (b) if no Director described in clause (a) has been appointed, any Director appointed under section 5 of the Act in respect of section 47.5 of the Act.  O. Reg. 195/12, s. 1 (4). (8) In this Regulation, a reference to a lake includes a kettle lake.  O. Reg. 359/09, s. 1 (8). (9) In this Regulation, a reference to a lake trout lake that is at or above development capacity is a reference to a lake trout lake that has been identified by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry to be at or above development capacity, as set out in records maintained by and available from that Ministry.  O. Reg. 359/09, s. 1 (9); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 14. (10) In this Regulation, unless otherwise specified, a reference to a project location is a reference to any part of the project location.  O. Reg. 359/09, s. 1 (10). (11) In this Regulation, “environment” has the same meaning as in section 47.1 of the Act.  O. Reg. 359/09, s. 1 (11).