Governments Must Do More to Involve Local Electricity Distribution Companies in Promoting Conservation

Local Distribution Companies can to play a greater role in the design and delivery of conservation demand management programs (CDMs), but need a framework of more stable and comprehensive policies and institutional arrangements to do so. Failure to optimize Ontario’s CDM policy framework means that more power plants will be built than are really needed, resulting in higher environmental impacts and higher costs to electricity consumers.York's Knowledge Mobilization Unit provides services and funding for faculty, graduate students, and community organizations seeking to maximize the impact of academic research and expertise on public policy, social programming, and professional practice. It is supported by SSHRC and CIHR grants, and by the Office of the Vice-President Research & Innovation. kmbunit@yorku.ca www.researchimpact.c