Category Archives: Environment

Animals and turbines, Corruption, Destruction from turbines, Environment, ERT Appeal, harm to wildlife, legal challenges, Ontario Wind

Sad news Ostrander Point ERT Appeal Decision revoked by divisional court

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Court favours wind turbines over Blanding’s turtle

An Ontario court has ruled that an environmental tribunal erred when it rejected a proposed wind farm that threatens the habitat of Blanding’s turtles.

By John Spears Toronto Star

Blanding’s turtle is in trouble again: An Ontario court has cleared the way for a wind farm that an environmental tribunal says will threaten the turtle’s habitat.

The modest reptile had stood in the way of a wind farm at Ostrander Point in Prince Edward County.

But a divisional court panel ruled Thursday that the environmental tribunal made six errors of law in reaching its conclusion that the wind farm would cause “serious and irreversible harm” to the turtle.

The court restored the decision by provincial officials, allowing Gilead Power to proceed with the project, which would erect nine big wind turbines on the site.

It was a bitter blow to local nature and conservation groups. They had argued the wind farm – and the increased traffic associated with it – would harm not just the turtles, but also birds, bats and the rare “alvar” ecosystem at Ostrander Point.

The court sided with Gilead.  Read rest of article.

Animals and turbines, Destruction from turbines, Environment, fighting big wind., harm to wildlife

Birds and wind turbines at a crossroads

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Written by Donna Lueke –   Beacon News, Dec. 3 2013

Two environmental issues are at a crossroads here on the shores of Lake Erie. Two of our most prominent natural resources seem to be on a collision course.

Birds and birders flock to the shores of Lake Erie. There is more of a concentration of bald eagle nests here than anywhere in the United States except Alaska. The Atlantic and Mississippi Flyways converge near here. Each spring this area is the home of the largest birding event in the country, The Biggest Week in American Birding, which last year helped attract more than 70,000 birders from all over the world. Economic impact studies conducted by Black Swamp Bird Observatory (BSBO) and Bowling Green State University show that visiting birders spend more than 30 million dollars in the local area each spring. The internationally renowned Kaufman Birding Guides and the Black Swamp Bird Observatory (BSBO) have made Ottawa County their home.

Energy costs are high in Ottawa County. Here where the water meets the shore, the winds are frequent and strong. Wind turbines are being constructed at schools and private industries all over the area. As a green, clean, renewable alternative to the fossil-fuel-fired plants, wind power is becoming a popular choice. Yet, even with government subsidies, wind power is still an expensive alternative form of energy. The other significant negative with wind power is that birds, especially songbirds, eagles and other raptors, can be killed by wind turbines.

Read rest of article here.

Environment, Ontario Wind, Property Rights, Willing Hosts

No guarantee town safe from turbines

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No guarantee town safe from turbines

Niagara This Week – St. Catharines

Re: Grimsby to examine turbine question, Nov. 7.

I chuckled at comments made by Mayor Bentley and Ald. Seaborn assuring residents that Grimsby will not be considered for wind turbines.

Mayor Bentley seems to think that there is a lack of wind that makes Grimsby unsuitable but I suggest that residents check out the wind speed maps on the Ministry of Natural Resources website. They will see that the wind speeds in Grimsby may actually be slighter better than those documented for both Wainfleet and West Lincoln where wind projects have been approved or are in process. In fact, the maps show many parts of Ontario where the wind speed is no different than that experienced in Grimsby yet they now have hundreds of wind turbines.

Mayor Bentley and Ald. Seaborn are dead wrong if they think Grimsby is somehow safe from the onslaught.  The wind speed maps on the MNR website show many areas where the wind speed is considered less than acceptable yet wind turbine projects have been approved.

Once the wind projects start, they continue to get approved. Look at the experience of other areas where over the past few years; many projects were approved and have resulted in hundreds of wind turbines. It starts with one small project and then it continues. Chatham-Kent has 629 wind turbines either already erected or in process, Huron is at 512 and Thunder Bay is at 537.  Check out the wind speed maps for those areas and then ask if Grimsby is safe.

I would suggest that the part of Grimsby above the escarpment is a very likely target, particularly after the infrastructure for transmission is in place. Two projects have now been approved for Niagara and the third is in process. It won’t stop there, and residents in other parts of Niagara should be aware of that. Chatham-Kent is approximately the same size as Niagara and to achieve the numbers that the provincial government is committed to, they will have to look beyond Wainfleet and West Lincoln.

Courts have recently ruled that Trillium Energy could sue the province for pulling their contract to place wind turbines in Lake Ontario. It was the Liberals that chose to declare a moratorium on off-shore wind turbines prior to the last election. The recent court decision may affect the province’s policy on wind turbines in the Great Lakes. Residents of Grimsby could very well find themselves looking at wind turbines in the lake and atop the escarpment, as they can be seen from miles and miles away.

Mayor Bentley and Ald. Seaborn should not be making promises that they may not be able to keep. Although it doesn’t guarantee anything, residents of Grimsby should be demanding that Council declare the town to be a unwilling host.

 Henry Van Ryn,

Grimsby

 

No guarantee town safe from turbines.

Destruction from turbines, Environment, fighting big wind., France Wind

French Tilt Against More Wind Farms

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The Japan Times  Nov. 18 2013

PARIS – Plans to dot France with wind farms are facing fierce opposition from critics worried they will blight a landscape that has helped make the country the world’s top tourist destination.

France relies heavily on nuclear power but is working to shift to renewable energy sources and triple by 2020 its number of wind turbines from the current 4,000 that are spread across 1,127 sites.

But opponents are urging the government to tread carefully so as not to damage France’s thousands of kilometers of stunningly beautiful countryside — which range from Europe’s longest strip of beaches to the peaks of the Alps.

Some critics have already won court cases outlawing turbines, and more legal challenges are on the way.

Read rest of article here.

Contracts Cancelled, Environment, UK Wind

Windfarm subsidies will be axed, says Cameron

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By Robert Merrick, September 29, 2013 – The Northern Echo – UK

Blindfold Green Energy PicSUBSIDIES for wind farms will be axed, David Cameron said – potentially scaling back development in County Durham, a wind power ‘hotspot’.

In an eve-of-conference interview, the prime minister revealed he did not want to keep the subsidies for “a second longer than they’re necessary”.

The move appeared to be in response to Ed Miliband’s eye-catching pledge to freeze energy bills for 20 months, from 2015, to tackle a “cost of living crisis”.

Critics claim the so-called ‘renewables obligation’ – which subsidises wind farms – piles £23 on each household bill.

But scrapping subsidies would be bitterly criticised by environmental campaigners, who argue the expansion of wind farms is crucial to cutting carbon emissions.

That includes in County Durham, which – on one calculation – has the second highest concentration of wind turbines in England, after Cornwall.

More than 20 farms have been built, or have permission, with another 13 in planning – and a controversial 24-turbine development earmarked for The Isles near Newton Aycliffe.

Speaking to the Sunday Telegraph, Mr Cameron said: “Recently, I opened the London Array, the biggest offshore wind farm anywhere in the world, and it’s good that Britain is leading the way in this technology.

E.ON recently agreed to reduce the output of The Isles wind farm from 63.5 megawatts (mw) to 48mw, which means it will be decided by local planners, rather than the Government.

Original Article Here: http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/10705835.Windfarm_subsidies_will_be_axed__says_Cameron/

Environment, Gas Wells

Gas Well Issues and Turbines in Ontario – Listen to Radio Broadcast Here

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http://www.zoomerradio.ca/uncategorized/podcast-goldhawk-fights-back/gfb-podcast-anne-fairfield/