Premier Dalton McGuinty tried to reassure protesters that a gas-fired power plant that will sit relatively close to an Oakville school won't pose any safety hazard.

But he wasn't mollifying people.

"The idea of putting this power plant 320 metres from schools and 400 metres from homes is crazy," said Ruth Hayman on Tuesday, who took her children to the protest.

Some media reports put the crowd size at 500 people, but people affiliated with the protest say the crowd was more like 2,000 people.

The premier told reporters at Queen's Park that all appropriate rules and regulations will be followed to ensure safety and guard against a disaster such as the explosion at a gas-fired plant in Connecticut that left five people dead.

CTV Toronto's Paul Bliss said the TransCanada-operated plant will be located on Royal Windsor Drive near Ford's Oakville plant.

According to protesters outside the legislature, about 11,000 people and 16 schools are located within a three-kilometre radius of the proposed plant. They are questioning why the plant needs to be so close to residential areas.

Wind turbines must be set back at least 500 metres from residences.

Oakville mayor Rob Burton told reporters the plan is a "dumb" idea."(McGuinty) can see it's dumb. I don't know why he wants to take so long to come to his senses and change it, but it's time to shut this down," he said.

The proposed plant will produce 900 megawatts of electricity, which Bliss said is equivalent to about two nuclear reactor units. McGuinty said the electricity is needed to meet Ontario's growing energy demands.

"At one point in time, we're going to want to plug in our cars. We're going to need electricity to do that," he said.

"We keep buying these flat-screen TVs that use a lot more electricity. So as a society, we keep demanding more electricity, but it's always a challenge for us to put new generation in place."

Bliss said planning studies suggest the GTA needs some generating capacity, but the protesters say there must be a better place.

Liberal backbench MPP Kevin Flynn, who represents Oakville, will be introducing a private member's bill next week calling for a legislated setback from communities of 1,200 metres for any gas-fired plant constructed in Ontario.

He suggested the premier will take a second look at the plant and might consider building near an existing coal-fired generating station near Nanticoke on Lake Erie.

“Gas plants should only be a last resort, after all conservation, energy efficiency and renewable energy options have been pursued, and they should be built away from densely populated areas," NDP environment critic Peter Tabuns said in a news release.

In a Nov. 20 open letter to Oakville residents, the Ontario Power Authority said gas-fired plants currently operate safely in Mississauga, Toronto and Brampton. It also said residential consumption was 10 per cent higher in Oakville than it was in Mississauga.

The public comment period for the draft environmental review ends on March 4.

With a report from CTV Toronto's Paul Bliss