Posts Tagged ‘CanWEA’
Perth-Wellington Has a Message for John Wilkinson – Sayonara!
I’m writing this from the front seat of our vehicle as the ‘Winds of Change Tour’ barrels down the highway from Stratford, en route to Searchmont for tomorrow’s rally with folks in Algoma-Manitoulin.
It has been an amazing two days in Perth-Wellington! Seeing so many supporters of the local Wind Concerns Ontario groups come out to send a message to John Wilkinson, followed by a canvas for his PC opponent Randy Pettapiece was a real treat. We had a great turn out in Stratford, turn out was much closer t0 300, not the 150 estimated by media. We’ve seen chronic under-reporting of crowd sizes, but based on the number of signs that we went through and signatures on petitions it is clear what it was.
CanWEA and OSEA sent their funded ‘Friends of Wind’ supporters – all four of them – hundreds of kilometres from Kincardine to try to stir it up, but once again it didn’t work. It’s a sad statement when the industry has to pay people to support their position, and even then can only find someone who also has a lease with a wind developer to do it.
We covered a lot of ground today in Stratford during the canvas, and it was a pleasure to meet and speak to so many people last night in the parking lot at Wilkinson’s office as we unveiled a ‘final eviction notice’ for him. The coward chose not to come, but did have his paid staff lurking from the otherside of the parking lot.
His bizarre and shameful press conference at the Stratford Hospital earlier in the day failed to turn the media message and further re-enforced how unqualified and unable Wilkinson is of the tasks assigned to him as Minister of the Environment.
I look forward to coming back again soon for future canvasses and rallys. Wind Concerns Ontario will be working very hard with our local supporters ot unseat Wilkinson especially.
1 Comment »Is the Air Out of the Industrial Wind Lobby Sails in Ontario?
The announcement that the Ontario Liberal Government recognized the merits of the position Wind Concerns Ontario and its member groups from Lake Superior to Lake Ontario, on Lake Huron, the Georgian Bay, Lake Erie and Lake St. Clair had been advancing is good news. It vindicated our arguments and recognized the flaws in the government position.
By agreeing with our position, the government recognized all these ‘wind welfare’ special interests and industry representatives the government either funds or that receive money from special interests tied to the wind industry, just aren’t credible and can’t be relied on for reasonable, responsible advice. Simply put, the Government of Ontario acknowledged by backing down that all of those who irresponsibly convinced them they didn’t need to do science in the first place were wrong and not credible for setting policy going forward.
Is it any wonder then that groups like Environmental Defence found out about the announcement from a reporter – not the government? Frankly, if I were the Minister of Energy and had been receiving such bad, self interested, incomplete advice from an orgy of special interests who came together to become the “Green Energy Act Alliance” I wouldn’t want to talk to them either as I cleaned up their mess.
The fight on land continues and will be won there as well, because these same special interests who were anti science, anti democracy and pro corporate welfare offshore hold the same views on land and offered even worse bad advice there. We will continue to fight for those who are being harmed on land, to restore local democracy and end the bizarre notions put out by pro industrial wind special interests.
Wind energy isn’t green, it isn’t reliable and it shouldn’t be considered a genuine form of power production because it can’t stand on its own and virtually every form of power production in the grid today besides wind and large scale solar can and don’t need subsidies to do it.
Electric generation from wind dates back to 1887 and scientists have been saying since 1865, that wind is an admirable form of energy production and favourable to coal, but the matter of storage (reliability) needs to be sorted out if it is to be a viable alternative. This is a problem that has been worked on and studied for the last one hundred and forty years with no meaningful improvement. Instead, the game plan is to pay for the power even when we don’t need it at multiples of what it’s worth, to back up 100% of wind energy’s capacity with fossil fuels to make up for the dips and surges and build them dangerously close to people because it’s convenient. The jobs arguments are just lies. The economic impact of wind energy is absolutely negative because of the harm it does to real, private sector, unsubsidized honest work.
In short, instead of becoming a viable form of energy production, industrial wind is an expensive PR statement government’s make, that has nothing to do with generating clean energy – because wind turbines can’t on their own without fossil fuels burning in the background. The negative effects on people, the environment and economy are unconscionable and cannot be allowed to stand.
Those who push industrial wind can’t honestly claim they care about the environment. They support fossil fuel expansion, oppose environmental assessments, local democracy and refuse independent science on the impacts and benefits of the technology. They are mere puppets for someone’s profit – incidentally those who often fund their misinformation campaigns.
This has become a losing battle for the industrial wind industry and its special interest groups. It’s a battle we need to continue to fight, if our province is to have a bright future and citizens, not special interests and corporate welfare seekers are to control the destiny of our province.
1 Comment »Your Ottawa Region: Wind turbine info session draws concerned residents
Your Ottawa Region: Wind turbine info session draws concerned residents
Wind Turbine discussion. Theresa Clemen of North Gower and Laforet of Scarborough distribute “No Turbines” buttons during the Jan. 23 turbine information meeting at the Alfred Taylor Centre in North Gower which was filled to capacity. Laforet spoke about the effects the Green Energy Act is having on Ontarians. He is the president of the Wind Concerns Ontario. LJ Matheson
By LJ Matheson
Three Ottawa-area communities concerned about proposals for industrial scale wind turbine developments held a public meeting on Sunday Jan. 23 at the Alfred Taylor Centre in North Gower.
About 150 people were in attendance at the centre where they heard personal stories from three people whose lives have been changed by turbine projects in their areas.
The North Gower Wind Action Group, the South Branch Wind Opposition Group, and the Beckwith Responsible Wind Action Group hosted the event.
“It’s a way for us to get information out to people so they can make informed decisions about wind turbines,” said Jane Wilson of the North Gower Wind Action Group.
Posters dotted the walls of the community centre, outlining some of the issues residents are concerned about – like health risks of living close to a wind turbine, and how property values will be affected.
Posters to stop the wind turbine projects and buttons declaring “No to Turbines” were also prevalent.
One of the guest speakers was Ian Hanna of Prince Edward County who has launched a lawsuit against the Ontario government and the Green Energy Act.
He says he has travelled extensively throughout Ontario and doesn’t feel any of those communities should be home to a cluster of wind turbines.
“There isn’t a community in Ontario that I want to see destroyed by an enormous industrial disaster,” he said.
Hannah says that the government failed to comply with the Precautionary Principle, as it is required to do, when it established the Green Energy Act regulations.
The Precautionary Principle requires that, in situations where there is scientific uncertainty about environmental or human health effects of a proposed action, the proponent should not proceed until the uncertainty is satisfactorily resolved.
“If there is a health risk to people, animals or the environment, then there is cause for further study,” he said.
“We need to try and stop things (the progress of wind turbine projects) until we can find out what those health risks are.”
Hannah said he will continue with his efforts, regardless of the court’s decision.
Wolfe Island resident Janet White was one of a few people who were against the wind turbines in her area.
The passionate advocate and stay-at-home mother and wife said she and her family were hounded for 10 years to lease part of their heritage property to Canadian Hydro.
“They didn’t understand when we said ‘no’ we meant ‘no’,” she said. “What they offer (in terms of rental fees) and what we receive… there is no comparison. They spent billions on our island and there is not one millionaire.”
White urged those in attendance to not sell out and to learn the health risks above all else.
She spoke about a time when her children were outside when the turbines were running.
“Within 15 minutes, both their noses exploded with blood,” she said.
“It makes you wonder, but can I prove it… I’m just a housewife and no Kingston lawyer will take on the case. They don’t want anything to do with it… I have to go to Toronto to find a lawyer.”
The third speaker was John Laforet, president of Wind Concerns Ontario, a coalition of more than 50 community groups.
Laforet spoke about the effects of the removal of local democratic powers under the Green Energy Act, and what Ontario’s energy plan is doing to electricity bills.
“We are having an impact,” he said. “Projects are being slowed down. But we have to wake up the government… they need to get real and listen.”
“The province and industry say these industrial machines don’t make noise, but they do,” noted Wilson.
“They say property values won’t decline, but we know from other places in Ontario that they can. Worst of all, we’re told there will not be health effects from the constant noise and vibration, yet we’re learning that people all over Ontario are getting sick and some are having to leave their homes. We want the truth. ”
Gary Thomas of North Gower says he’s feels more information is needed before decisions should be made. His home will be close to about three proposed turbines.
“There should be proper health studies done,” he said. “Delay the projects for a year and implement the precautionary measure… if it’s delayed a year, then the health studies can be done.”
Another North Gower resident Stephen Nourse says he’s been at public meetings since the proposed projects started two years ago.
He says these turbines “have a habit of mushrooming” and he wants to know why they can’t be located farther away from homes.
“Why do they have to be practically on top of homes?” he asked. Each of the three communities is facing an industrial wind turbine project with as many as 10, 190-meter or 60-storey tall turbine towers.
Wilson added that more than 70 municipalities in Ontario are demanding that the province halt wind turbine development, and return planning powers to communities for renewable energy projects so they can protect their citizens.
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