OPG’s environmental stewardship in action

At a glance

• Since 2000, OPG has been committed to protecting the environment and strengthening biodiversity across Ontario.
• This commitment is reflected in the numerous Gold Certifications OPG’s operations have received from the Wildlife Habitat Council.
• These achievements recognize the impactful conservation projects and initiatives taking place on-site at OPG’s operations.

Across Ontario, OPG continues to enhance natural landscapes and protect the species that rely on them.

It’s been a cornerstone of the company since 2000.

Whether it’s creating and restoring wetlands, grasslands, forests, and other habitats, or helping protect vulnerable species, this important work is mitigating climate change, building ecological resilience, and providing many other social, economic, and spiritual benefits.

It’s a commitment that continues to be recognized.

Over the years, numerous OPG operations have received Wildlife Habitat Certifications from the Wildlife Habitat Council (WHC), a non-profit organization that promotes and certifies habitat conservation and management on corporate lands. OPG, through its predecessor company, has been a WHC member since 1996.

These achievements reflect the company’s environmental stewardship in action.

In 2023, OPG’s Nuclear Sustainability Services – Western (NSS-W) site, located in Bruce County, received a Gold Certification from the WHC, the highest tier, and was recertified Gold in 2024.

The conservation program at this site includes a robust avian nest box and monitoring program focused on the protection and study of migratory songbirds, ducks and waterfowl, and species at risk such as the eastern Meadowlark.

Site staff also focus on habitat enhancement projects, which include installing native pollinator gardens outside of office buildings, restoring native grassland habitat in some large field areas, planting trees in public parks, and removing invasive reeds from the wetland in Baie Du Dore.

And we can’t forget about reptiles and amphibians. NSS-W has created a turtle nesting program at a wetland on site, installed basking structures, and set out snake cover boards for predator protection.

Elsewhere in the province, OPG’s group of stations within southeastern Ontario were collectively certified Gold by the WHC in 2023. The sites included in this certification include OPG’s Chats Falls Generating Station (GS), Chenaux GS, Calabogie GS, and OPG’s Renfrew County office.

In this region, OPG continues to protect and enhance wetland, grassland, and forest habitat. The company has also built nesting structures for migratory songbirds, birds of prey, and species at risk, and staff regularly participate in and support biological studies of specific species.

For example, OPG has supported a science-based initiative to collect turtle reproductive success in the Morris Island Conservation Area. This data was then used to build an island specifically designed to provide sandy nesting habitat for turtles away from mainland access, thus reducing the likelihood of predators such as raccoons accessing or consuming the newly laid eggs.

In addition to turtles, OPG also builds nesting and roosting habitat for bats, snakes, and pollinators.

OPG’s Southeast Operations has also supported community education and environmental stewardship events, such as providing trees to the local Boy and Girl Scouts so youth can earn their tree-planting badges as part of their environmental education program.

And this is just a snapshot of the work happening across the company to protect, conserve, and strengthen the environment.

In the past, many other OPG sites have received Gold certification from the WHC, including R.H. Saunders GS, Lennox GS, the Darlington and Pickering nuclear stations, and Niagara Operations.

Learn more about our commitment to the environment here.