Specialty Crop and Canada Land
Inventory Mapping for the Feed-in Tariff Program
On September 24, 2009, the Ontario government announced the new Feed-in
Tariff (FIT) Program under the Green Energy and Green Economy Act.
In conjunction with the announcement, the Minister of Energy and Infrastructure
issued a directive to the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) indicating that
the OPA is not to enter into contracts for ground-mounted solar PV projects
greater than 100 kilowatts (kW) on lands with:
- Canada Land Inventory (CLI) class 1 soils
- CLI class 2 soils
- Specialty Crop Areas within the meaning of the 2005 Provincial Policy
Statement (PPS)
The directive allows the OPA to procure energy from ground-mounted solar
PV projects greater than 100 kW located on CLI Class 3 agricultural lands
up to a province-wide cap of 500 megawatts (MW). On Class 3 soils, the
500 MW capacity cap has been divided among the four Ontario
Realty Corporation Regional Administrative Boundaries (RABA) (PDF).
| West | Central | East
| North |
West

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Central

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East

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North

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Information on the Feed-in Tariff Program and how Specialty Crop
and CLI mapping is to be used is outlined on the OPA
website.
To identify whether land proposed for ground-based solar PV may be eligible
under the Feed-in Tariff Program, proponents must confirm the avoidance
of Specialty Crop Areas and Classes 1 and 2 soils.
Specialty Crop Areas
Niagara Peninsula Tender
Fruit and Grape Area (Purple Area) (MAH) (PDF - 1.02 MB)
Holland Marsh (Purple
Area) (MAH) (PDF - 2.91 MB)
Grey
County ("Special Agriculture" area) (Grey County) (PDF -
3.76 MB)
CLI Classification
Information on CLI.
For handy reference, the CLI maps have been adapted based on the Minister
of Energy and Infrastructure's directive to the OPA. OPA may not enter
into FIT contracts for ground-mounted solar PV greater than 100 kW where
those facilities are located on Classes 1 and 2 soils and Specialty Crop
Areas (white area). Class 3 soils (green area) may be used up to a capped
limit. The remaining area, comprised of Classes 4 to 7 soils (beige area)
and Unclassified Land (grey area), can be used for ground-mounted solar
PV.
The official source of CLI mapping must be used to confirm CLI
classification for purposes of the FIT program.
OPA's website provides
direction on the use of CLI mapping.
Southwestern Ontario
Eastern Ontario
North Western
North Central 1
North Central 2
North Eastern
For more information:
Toll Free: 1-877-424-1300
Local: (519) 826-4047
E-mail: ag.info.omafra@ontario.ca
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