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The sun was shining and the wind was blowing yesterday afternoon (July 4) so it was the perfect backdrop for Ontario energy minister Brad Duguid to announce 25 new large-scale renewable energy projects will soon be under way.

Duguid and Huron-Bruce MPP Carol Mitchell, surrounded by Hydro One workers and media, made the announcement under the Bruce to Milton corridor towers, just south of Bruce County Road 20 and Sideroad 15 in the Municipality of Kincardine.

The contracts were awarded through Ontario's Feed-in Tariff (FIT) program and will provide almost 1,046 megawatts of electricity to the provincial grid, said Duguid. 

They include 19 wind projects and six solar projects. In the Bruce area, are 14 wind projects:

• Q1WEC in Tiverton, 2.5 megawatts (MW)
• Majestic Wind Farm in Paisley, 2 MW
• Meyer Wind Farm in Paisley, 4 MW
• Bluewater Wind Energy Centre in Zurich, 60 MW
• Jericho Wind Energy Centre in Thedford, 150 MW
• Bornish Wind Energy Centre in Keyser, 73.5 MW
• Goshen Wind Energy Centre in Dashwood, 102 MW
• Cedar Point Wind Power Projects Phase II in Forest, 100 MW
• Adelaide Wind Energy Center in Kerwood, 60 MW
• East Durham Wind Energy Centre in Priceville, 23 MW
• Grand Bend Wind Farm in Zurich, 100 MW
• Grand Valley Wind Farms (Phase 3) in Grand Valley, 40 MW
• St. Columban 2 Wind Energy Project in Seaforth, 15 MW
• St. Columban 1 Wind Energy Project in Seaforth, 18 MW

In the area west of London are four wind projects and six solar projects:

• Erieau Wind in Chatham-Kent, 99 MW
• East Lake St. Clair Wind in Wallaceburg, 99 MW
• RE Adelaide 1 in Strathroy, 40 MW (solar)
• RE Sunningdale 1 in Thorndale, 7 MW (solar)
• RE Adelaide 1a in Strathroy, 2.5 MW (solar)
• RE Adelaide 1b in Strathroy, 2 MW (solar)
• Gunn's Hill Wind Farm in Woodstock, 25 MW
• Silvercreek Solar Park in Aylmer, 10 MW (solar)
• Napier Wind Farm in Kerwood, 5.4 MW
• Ruby Farms Solar One in Strathroy, 2 MW (solar)

Duguid said these projects will create 5,000 new jobs in Ontario, and provide enough clean, renewable electricity to power more than 280,000 homes or a community the size of Windsor each year. They will also help attract about $3-billion in new private-sector investment to the province, he said.

"Our efforts are transforming our electricity system, attracting investment, creating thousands of jobs and building a better future for our children and grandchildren," said Duguid. "These projects will create more good jobs for Ontario families and provide new, clean power for local communities to grow and prosper."

These projects will be brought on-line through the Bruce to Milton reinforcement project, Ontario's largest transmission project in 20 years, said Duguid. "So far, more than 2,000 mid-size and large-scale FIT projects have been announced, representing enough electricity each year to power about 900,000 homes."

Prior to making the announcement, Duguid and Mitchell toured the Bruce A Restart project at the Bruce Nuclear site.

"A clean, reliable energy system relies on a balance of supply," said Duguid. "Nuclear power is an important part of this diverse supply mix - powering our homes, our businesses and our clean energy economy, now and into the future."

Mitchell noted that the Bruce Nuclear site produces one-quarter of Ontario's electricity, and refurbishing all the remaining six units after the current project is completed, is an important piece of Ontario's Long-Term Energy Plan. "I congratulate the workers and Bruce Power for undertaking this significant effort to renew our nuclear fleet and on the significant milestone reached last week (refuelling Unit 2)."

Duguid said he is disappointed in the federal government's decision to sell Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL), which means lost jobs in Ontario.

He added that the Ontario New Democrats and Conservatives would dismantle the great energy system that the Liberals have worked so hard to put in place, and that would put thousands of people out of work, hurting Ontario families.

"It's time to take responsibility for the next generation and not let our children down," he said. "We have a great opportunity to build a cleaner and healthier future and a strong and healthy economy here in Ontario."

Gideon Forman, executive director of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, said the association is delighted with Ontario's plan to phase out coal plants.

"Renewable energy is not creating acid rain or smog or contributing to global warming and climate change," he said. "Green energy is a great boost to the economy and it is healthier for our people and for our economy. To dismantle the Green Energy Act would be to destroy our economy, our health and our environment."

Laura Formusa, president and chief executive officer of Hydro One, said the Bruce to Milton transmission reinforcement project is 180 kilometres long and parallels the two existing lines.

"It is an important investment in Ontario's electricity delivery system and supports Ontario's move to clean and renewable sources of energy," she said. "We were able to complete 90 per cent of the project without expropriation of land. Hydro One is proud to be part of the Clean Energy Solution."

Jutta Splettstoesser of Kincardine, spoke as a mother, a farmer and a member of Friends of Wind.

"The Government of Ontario has made some bold and exciting decisions to encourage the development of renewable energy," she said. "Many landowners are proud to host wind projects in our community."

To help residents understand the benefits of renewable energy, she is conducting an educational tour of Ontario at the end of July, taking her "Friends of Wind" banner and encouraging supporters to sign it.

Duguid and Mitchell both signed the banner which already carries 156 signatures.

Splettstoesser hopes to help shift the attitude of local residents toward clean, renewable energy. "With wind, we'll all win," she said.

In response to the vocal opposition to wind projects, Duguid said the government has to take the responsibility to provide clean, renewable energy in this province.

"We can't keep making excuses," he said. "We have to get rid of the coal plants."

He said scientific studies and the Ontario medical officer of health state there are no adverse health effects related to wind energy.

"There are lots of excuses, but we need to take leadership and build a healthier future for the people of Ontario."

By the end of 2014, Ontario will replace its coal-fired generation with clean energy sources which is comparable to removing up to seven-million cars off Ontario's roads.

So far, the Green Energy Act has helped create more than 13,000 jobs and is on track to create 50,000 jobs by the end of 2012.

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Monday, July 04, 2011