Photography by Bob Buckton Photography.
TC Energy and the Ontario government want to spend $7–$10 billion to build an outdated open-loop pumped storage mega-project on contaminated military land in Meaford.
If allowed to proceed, the project would blast a 375-acre reservoir into the Escarpment—destroying critical habitat for more than 36 Species at Risk—and carve giant tunnels to connect it to Georgian Bay.
The threat to drinking water is real. Decades of live-fire training have left the base heavily contaminated with toxic chemicals and unexploded ordnance. Disturbing that land risks flushing pollutants into the Bay.
Once operational, the facility would pump 23 billion litres of water—and anything in it—through the system every day, for decades.
Once considered state-of-the-art, pumped storage has long been surpassed. Ontario now has better options—like grid-scale batteries—that are faster to deploy, far less costly, and don’t require new transmission line infrastructure. Modern battery technology is efficient, flexible, and already being built across the province.
We could also tap into Hydro-Québec’s existing clean energy reserves—1.6 times larger than Ontario’s annual electricity needs—by expanding the east-west transmission grid. It’s cost-effective, reliable, and identified by Ontario’s own energy system operator as a smart solution. All it takes is political will.
And taxpayers? You’re already on the hook. The provincial government has committed $285 million just for TC Energy’s pre-development work. And after spending $7-10 billion to build the mega-project, energy consumers would be locked into decades of payments to operate it, guaranteeing TC Energy’s corporate profits.
Why risk our water, our environment, and billions in public funds on outdated technology—when Ontario has cleaner, smarter solutions ready right now?
Please consider donating. Our dedicated volunteers power Save the Bay’s crucial work, and your financial support allows us to do the work we do. Your donation will help us to stop TC Energy’s proposed pumped storage mega-project. Will you help us to protect Georgian Bay and the Escarpment? Thank you for your support!
