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Environmental Activity and Sector Registry: What It Is, and What It Does

The Ontario Ministry of the Environment works hard to protect the natural environment. It regulates businesses and operations that, while necessary, can impact the environment in negative ways. The MOE has extensive application and approval processes to ensure that businesses maintain the most environmentally safe practices possible.

Six years ago, the MOE began implementing a public, online process developed by the Environmental Protection Act, called the Environmental Activity and Sector Registry. The EASR can make these processes faster and simpler for certain qualifying businesses and/or individuals, depending on things such as pollution control methods, good management practices, and design requirements. For these businesses or equipment pieces, this easy online process replaces the lengthy applications and numerous forms required to obtain the Environmental Compliance Approvals or Renewable Energy Approvals necessary to create, expand, or continue operations that may impact the natural environment. The EASR is, simply put, a public site on which people and businesses participating in, or operating, certain functions can register activities or machinery requiring regulation by the MOE according to the EPA.

The EASR was designed to target small, ground-mount solar systems. Some of the criteria for equipment and/or activities involved in operating these solar systems include, but are not limited to:

• No less than 15 unobstructed meters from the system to the borders of the property on which the system operates.
• The unit must be no larger than a 500-kW capacity system.
• The system must be located on property or land with related, specific uses. Residential locations do not meet the EASR criteria for small ground-mount solar systems.

There are, of course, other activities and/or machines that could be eligible for EASR. These activities and equipment include:

• Gas-powered, comfort heating systems
• Standby power units
• Booths that handle automotive refinishing tasks, such as spray-painting booths

Any business or machine which operates in such a way that it releases, or has the potential to release, toxins or impurities into the air, or alters the way or rate in which the impurities are released, also meets the criteria for the EASR, and must always remain updated via your online account. All exceptions to this regulation can be found online in the guidelines.

The MOE works continually to improve and increase the efficiency of the processes required to run and operate businesses and equipment that impacts the natural environment. It’s in the process of incorporating a new program in the EASR that will include more sectors and activities. The MOE hopes to encourage more use and development of clean, small power sources, and subsequently remove unnecessary and harmful environmental effects imposed by current issues. Therefore, it hopes to include certain renewable energy missions to the EASR-qualified list soon.

To register for the EASR, access the Service Ontario’s One-Source for Business Portal. There, you can find the steps necessary to apply, as well as links to the lists of qualification guidelines. In the appendix, you will find sample templates and forms to help you get started.

For efficient and effective network installation, an experienced and competent Mississauga network cabling installer is important. A good installer should use components that meet the industry’s standards in order to reduce performance problems and outages in the future. This means knowing how to identify a network cabling installer who will not let you down.

Look for the most Experienced
Hiring someone with several years of working experience is important in the networking field and also in other areas of work. Ensure that you hire someone who is a data cabling specialist. In most cases, electrical contractors attempt to offer data cabling services. This is great as long as the electrician has training and experience in data cabling installation.

The best way to identify the best network cabling installer is to seek recommendation from the nearby schools, banks or business organizations. In addition, trade unions may also have a list of some of the best network personnel or contractors in your area. Government also contracts the services of these networking contractors for their countrywide projects, making it a good point of reference.
Come up with a Plan
Before calling a network cabling contractor, ensure you have a cabling plan in place. This will include a well-drawn map of location and site of your networking area. Ensure that you are aware of where the internet connection will link with the network, where the switch or hub will be placed. Have a sketch of where the cables will pass through. Labor is the most expensive aspect and you cannot afford to screw up.

In your plan, consider future expansion of your network. So, instead of thinking just about your current computers; have the contractor run a few more meters of cables to cover the entire building. This will be much cheaper than when you call the installer later for the expansion. The plan does not necessarily need to be technical since it is just the beginning.
Communicate clearly with the Contractor.

Talk to the contractor and ensure you are well aware of what their plan is right before they start working. Request for their blueprints to verify whether it conforms to what you need. Lack of communication may result to complex issues in the future.

Let the installer inform you about their charges and keep in mind that cheap is expensive. In case you opt for bid process, do not choose the lowest bidder. The lowest bidder is normally the least experienced or the smallest.

Check the Standard of the Items used
Cable grade – Data cables will come in different grades and some are of very low categories. As much as these lower categories may be genuine, they carry very low capacity of data. Ensure that the installer uses Category 5 of the cables. In case you are not sure, check the stamps on the data cables.

Jacks – There are cases where you may need to save costs, data cables should therefore not be terminated with jacks at the wall. Keep in mind that the length might limit where the computer will be placed.

Cable testing – This is a very important step in the networking. Ensure that the installer does an end-to-end connectivity. It is absolutely necessary to check whether the cable is capable of carrying data. Keep in mind that these cables may pass the end-to-end connectivity test but fail to transmit data – perform both tests.

Post-Installation Services
Just like in other area of service, there should be a well written guarantee after job completion. Research indicates that most of the networking problems arise from poor cabling installation. To protect yourself from future headaches, ensure that your network cabling contractor has the right tools, experience and is willing give a work guarantee.