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Armow Wind Project gets chilly reception at council meeting By Liz Dadson |
Kincardine council To Comment on this article Click Here |
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 A crowd fills up the Kincardine council chamber last night (Dec. 7) for discussion about the Armow Wind Project | |||||
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The Armow Wind Project received a chilly reception at the Kincardine council meeting last night (Dec. 7). In fact, one councillor boldly asked the proponents what it was going to take before they go away. That comment was greeted with mighty applause from the crowd of anti-wind protesters in the audience. The project is located between Highway 21 and Bruce County Road 1, and between the Northline and Bruce County Road 20, in the northeast part of Kincardine. It was purchased from Acciona Energy, by Pattern Energy and Samsung Renewable Energy earlier this year. They have now almost doubled the size of the wind farm, to 90 turbines from 54, to produce 180 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 55,000 homes. Construction would begin in early 2013, with the project set to start up operation in late 2014. It would provide 200 construction jobs, and up to 15 permanent jobs, and bring tax revenue of about $500,000 per year to the municipality.
Law told council that given the strict rules of the Ontario government's Green Energy Act, the requirements of the Renewable Energy Approval process, and Kincardine's wind development policy, only five of the 90 turbines could be installed. This was again greeted with applause from the audience. Law pointed out that the benefits to the community would also drop by about $34-million over the 20-year lifespan of the turbines. "We would like to re-engage council and discuss the benefits of this project for the community," said Law. "We want to be a responsible community member. We plan to open a local project office, staffed by local people." He said the proponents are prepared to discuss community concerns, electricity topics, community benefits, and are open to suggestions. Deputy mayor Anne Eadie said the intent of the municipal guidelines for wind developments was to maintain the 200-metre setback at the back of each lot on which turbines would be sited. However, Law said with all the other restrictions, that 200-metre setback cannot be maintained in all locations. "We need to protect our municipality for future growth," said Eadie. "Are you planning to respect the airport vicinity restrictions?" "Yes," said Law. "We want to work with the municipality to find out what's driving the municipal setbacks and the airport setbacks." Councillor Jacqueline Faubert said she has been following the Ontario auditor general's report which states numerous flaws in the process for renewable energy by the provincial government. The report claims a lack of analysis of renewable energy, no economic analysis or business case was done, nor was there any consultation with the Ontario Energy Board. "The provincial government has violated all of its own business practices with its own agencies," she said. "We can't accept this in our community. "What is it going to take before you go away?" "We believe in green energy and renewable energy, and the reliability of the provincial regulations," said Law. "We want to develop this project in the most responsible way we can." "Are you going to follow the municipal policies we brought forward or dig your feet in and just do what the province requires?" asked councillor Randy Roppel. "We're not digging our feet in anywhere," said Law. "We want to work with the municipality and the planning department. You saw how your policies impact our project." Eadie said the previous developers of the Armow Wind Farm had suggested establishing a working group, including council members, municipal staff, the developer's staff, and concerned community members. "That's a great suggestion," said Law. "We would consider that as a way to improve collaboration and consultation." "What solution is there?" asked Faubert. "We have a policy, and it allows only five turbines. What are you looking for?"
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Law said there could be instances were the 800-metre setback could be reduced because there are no homes in the vicinity. That type of discussion would be helpful. Mayor Larry Kraemer told council to remember that the municipality does not have any authority over these projects. "The intent of the guidelines was to keep the developments at the back of the farms," he said, "not shade them right out of existence." Councillor Maureen Couture agreed, saying the policy was drawn up in the spirit of co-operation with developers. "I support a working group with the company, the concerned property owners, municipal staff and a councillor or two, to look at this in more detail." Law noted that the proposed Armow Wind Project is 15- to 30-per-cent less dense than the existing wind developments in the area. "As an opponent of the Green Energy Act, that makes the project 15-per-cent less of a mistake," said Faubert.
"The strict MOE (Ontario Ministry of the Environment) guidelines amount to nothing," he said, adding that there should be an enforceable dispute resolution protocol for the Armow Wind Farm, unlike what was done for the Enbridge development. He called on the municipality to fix the problems with the Enbridge project so residents feel confident moving ahead with the Samsung project; and put enforceable protections in place because Ontario's noise rules won't protect residents once Samsung gets its Certificate of Approval. Couture said one of the major problems for municipalities trying to do something about wind developments, is that the provincial government won't do anything to help. "We can't change provincial government policy and regulations," she said. "All we can do is work with the developer to protect our municipality." "We're not the approval authority," added Kraemer. "We have guidelines, but they are not enforceable by law." Council agreed establishing a working group is a good idea and will carry that proposal forward. One member of the audience accused Kraemer of having property in the proposed Armow Wind Farm. Kraemer noted he has no property in the project area. "That's the only reason I can discuss this issue, because I don't have a conflict of interest." Scrolling stops when you move your mouse inside the scroll area. You can click on the ads for more
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