SAUGEEN SHORES – The Clean Energy Frontier program has won an Economic Developers Council of Ontario (EDCO) Award of Excellence for Rural Planning and Strategy. This award celebrates the innovative, unique and impactful public-private partnership of the Clean Energy Frontier, which has brought together local governments from across Bruce, Grey and Huron counties and more than 60 clean energy companies – all working together to achieve sustainable growth and long-term economic success.
The Clean Energy Frontier program has its roots in a 2016 initiative formed by Bruce County and Bruce Power, with a mission to attract and retain nuclear suppliers to the area. Now delivered by the Nuclear Innovation Institute, the Clean Energy Frontier program has been instrumental in driving economic development in the region.
This is the second EDCO Award of Excellence the program has won. The program is active in promoting Bruce, Grey and Huron counties and local Indigenous communities both locally and across the province as the Clean Energy Frontier region, citing the economic impact and business opportunity in this sector to support investment attraction.
“The team is thrilled to be recognized by EDCO for our strategic vision and collaborative attitude toward economic development, with a focus on the clean energy sector,” said Jessica Linthorne, director of the Clean Energy Frontier program. “The growth of the local supply chain in the Bruce, Grey and Huron region is creating well-paying jobs, increasing local assessment for our municipalities and helping shape our clean energy future.”
Bruce County Warden and Clean Energy Frontier program co-chair Chris Peabody echoed this sentiment. “We are proud to see the Clean Energy Frontier program recognized for its dedicated work in supporting this region’s communities and the local economic development opportunities presented by the clean energy sector.”
John Peevers, director of community, media relations and economic development at Bruce Power and co-chair of the Clean Energy Frontier program, said the recognition for the strategy is particularly rewarding as it acknowledges the amount of work done behind the scenes to ensure the region benefits from the economic opportunities created, in part, by Bruce Power’s Life Extension Program.
“It’s becoming increasingly clear the path to a net-zero future in Ontario and Canada runs through the Clean Energy Frontier and we believe that is excellent news for the people of our region,” Peevers said.
The EDCO Awards of Excellence is an annual program which aims to seek distinctive ideas and initiatives that can become economic development best practices of the future.
