“The only thing we have left is the quiet,” he says. “Now they want to take that away.”

By Candice Vetter – AgriNews Staff Writer

ST. ISIDORE — André Castonguay’s dairy farm lies between Casselman and St. Isidore in The Nation Township, a few minutes north of Highway 417, where his family has farmed for four generations.

A tour of the area, going within 15-minute drives (or less) in different directions from his farm, reveals what appears to be disregard for the rich soil and long-established agricultural community there. The land is flat, very fertile, and lies lush between tributaries of the South Nation River, and it is well drained and dotted with farms and barns. It is also covered with unpleasant land uses, most of which surround Castonguay’s 200-cow operation and large farm…..

Almost home, he arrives at the place marking the latest intrusion into the community. It’s the meteorological tower which measures wind, and is one of the places where a wind turbine is proposed as part of a huge array of turbines that will spread across the landscape. The Parc eolien Gauthier project was recently given the green light by the province, even though the township declared itself “not a willing host” and its citizenry voted 80 per cent against allowing the large turbine project into the community. He stops and opens the truck windows. “What do you hear?” There is silence. “The only thing we have left is the quiet,” he says. “Now they want to take that away.”

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