This is the first in an occasional series looking at the growth of green energy in Canada.

Lawmakers in Ontario are inching closer to passing one of the most far reaching green energy measures in North America.

Premier Dalton McGuinty’s Green Energy Act, which was introduced in February, will invest $5 billion (Canadian) to upgrade Ontario’s transmission and distribution system, introduce smart grid technology, offer incentives to utilities that produce green energy and encourage the growth of solar and wind power.

“Ontario’s Green Energy Act could propel the province past California as the most innovative North American leader in the renewable energy field,” said Denis Hayes, former director of the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

The bill has won support from the provincial labour movement due to its promise of new jobs in construction, manufacturing and other sectors, which could kick-start central Canada’s economy. It is expected to create upwards of 50,000 jobs if passed. Ontario, Canada’s manufacturing hub, lost more than 70,000 jobs in February alone.

The challenge is making sure that new green jobs are good-paying union positions.

“We need to make sure that this work isn’t done with unskilled labour,” said Toronto Local 353 Education Director Bradley Watt.

So far, the majority of wind energy work—the most developed of renewable energy industries in Canada besides hydro—is done by the IBEW, said First District International Representative Jerry Wilson.

Last year one of Ontario’s largest wind farms, Erie Shores, opened thanks to the work of electricians from Hamilton Local 105 and London Local 120, with assistance from linemen from Toronto Local 353 and Sudbury Local 1687.

The key to getting the work was convincing wind contractors that the IBEW had the right skills and training to get the job done in a timely and efficient manner.

“We wanted to show them that a skilled journeyman already had the know-how to do everything from wiring turbines to maintaining them,” Wilson said.

The still-infant solar industry is shaping up to be more of a challenge. At the center of the fight is Sarnia, located near Lake Huron, where work started last year on what will be Canada’s largest solar farm. More than 100 members of Sarnia Local 530 went to work on the 60-megawatt facility, installing and wiring panels.

But last November, the minister of labour ruled that solar installation work didn’t require trained electricians, leading the contractor to fill the positions with untrained, nonunion workers. “The moment the sun hits the panels, we’re talking about live power,” said Local 530 Business Representative Michael Lalonde. “To fully understand the dangers of this work, you need to understand the principles of DC electricity.”

The local has filed a complaint with the labour board over the minister’s decision. Lalonde says that the board’s decision, which could take months, will be precedent-setting in how provinces throughout Canada view jurisdictional lines in solar.

In the meantime, Local 530 continues to go after green energy work, planning for its first solar training sessions, modeled after curriculum from the National Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee in the United States.

Locals throughout Ontario have begun incorporating both solar and wind training into curriculums in preparation for future green growth, setting up wind turbines and solar panels at their union halls.

While most wind work in Ontario is union, nonunion contractors are trying to break into the market, particularly with the likely passage of the Green Energy Act, making it vital that the IBEW continues to aggressively go after the work, First District International Representative Peter Routliff said.

“It’s coming and it’s coming fast,” First District Vice President Phil Flemming said. “We have to be ready for it.”