Two county groups who are opposed to the way the province has handled wind farms will be taking part in a provincial demonstration at Queen’s Park in Toronto on April 28.
The Oppose Belwood Wind Farm action Group (OBWF) is joining Wind Concerns Ontario and community groups from over 50 other municipalities in a campaign to restore the rights of local municipalities and their citizens to have any say in what they perceive as the industrialization of rural Ontario through massive wind turbine projects.
Under the new provincial Green Energy Act, the Ontario Liberal government is fast tracking renewable energy projects in a bid to meet its promise to eliminate coal-fired generating plants.
The groups believe that in so doing, it has bypassed planning powers of municipalities and infringed on the democratic rights of their citizens.
Mapleton Township resident John Krul opposes the plans for wind turbines in northeast Mapleton, near Arthur. He said in an interview on Monday, “We’re still really concerned about the uncertainty of them.”
He and his group have been citing concerns with turbines causing health problems. He said, “Maybe it’ll be nothing. Maybe I will say I overreacted – but right now, I’m concerned.”
There have been many complaints about health problems cited, and farms and homes have been abandoned where wind turbines are operating – but proponents say there are no concerns about health.
Mapleton Township has sent a petition, supported by over 100 municipalities, asking the province to stop granting licences until the health concerns have been studied by a neutral party.
The province recently announced a $1.5-million grant to a University of Waterloo professor, an electrical and computer engineer (as one of three Ontario Research Chairs named by the Council of Ontario Universities), to study the safety of the renewable energy technologies and the effects on the health of people and the environment.
Sivo Siboththaman will receive $300,000 a year for five years.
“It’s the right time to investigate the health and safety element – offering a complete solution for society,” said Siboththaman in a News release.
But Krul found little comfort in that announcement.
“When I’m sick, I go to a doctor. I don’t go to an electrician,” he said, adding the study will take five years, but the projects will keep on coming in the meantime.
James Virgin, one of the leaders of the Belwood group, said what really bugs him about the wind turbines is ‘they just don’t work.” He said they are being fast tracked because McGuinty promised to do something about carbon dioxide emissions and so he is allowing turbines as replacements.
But, Virgin said, the problem is the turbines themselves work at minimal capacity and need gas powered motors to help drive them, thus creating more carbon dioxide emissions.
He added he is also “dissatisfied with losing the right to control our destiny in our back yards.”
Wind Concerns Ontario, a coalition of citizen’s groups from across the province, is organizing a demonstration on April 28 at 11am at Queen’s Park to demonstrate the growing opposition to the Green Energy Act.
Perth-Wellington MPP John Wilkinson said on Monday he was not previously aware of the planned demonstration. He said anyone opposed to wind turbines should look at the renewable energy process in its entirety.
He noted any project, including wind farms, must meet the strict standards set by the Ministry of the Environment, including guidelines for turbine location and setbacks that are among the largest in North America.
Wilkinson said the province is taking all the precautions necessary, though he encourages anyone with concerns to voice them through the approval process for the projects.
Virgin noted that the Shelburne area started small and now has dozens of huge turbines. He said he expects there are plans for similar projects in his area, and he has heard of a third proposal coming soon.
The group also states the impact of wind turbines on human and animal health and their potential effect on wildlife, including birds and bats, are still not well understood. There are no adequate, independent studies to determine why some people living near industrial wind turbines are getting ill and are often forced to move.
They predict “Ontario consumers will pay for this misguided strategy for years to come through higher taxes and higher electricity bills. To entice energy companies to develop industrial wind and solar energy, the province is guaranteeing substantial 20-year premiums for the electricity they feed into the grid.”
Round trip bus tickets for Queen’s Park on April 28, can be purchased for $25 at the following locations, including:
– Belwood Country Market , 6 George Street;
– Natural Choice, 105 Queen Street West, Unit 1, Fergus;
– Roxanne’s Reflections Book & Card Shop, St. Andrew Street West, Fergus;
– Shaw Music, St. Andrew Street West, Fergus;
– Ennotville Garage; on Highway 6;
– Walsh’s Pharmacy, Arthur;
– The Harvest Table, in Parker, at the corner of County Roads 7 and 12;
– George’s Family Restaurant in Grand Valley; at the corner of County Roads 109 and 25; and from
– Cathie Keeler, 9021 Erin/East Garafraxa Townline.
Space is limited. The deadline to purchase tickets is April 25.
Buses will depart at 8am from the Centre Wellington community Sportsplex at 550 Belsyde Avenue East in Fergus. Return buses are scheduled to depart Toronto at 4pm. Anyone wanting more information can email opposebelwoodwindfarm@gmail.com.
with files from Chris Daponte
