MPP’s motion to stop wind turbines defeated
In an ongoing fight to halt the installation of wind turbines near the Collingwood Regional Airport, MPP Jim Wilson brought a private member’s motion before the Legislature April 21.
Wilson’s resolution – that the government put an immediate and permanent stop to the wpd wind turbine project, in the name of pilot safety and public safety, as well as protecting economic development and jobs – was defeated 43-15.
“The Premiere herself, which is very unusual, voted against my resolution to stop the project. It was private members’ time, which is on Thursday afternoons and has been for decades, and it’s very, very rare that the leader of a party would come in and vote against you. There’s something very fishy about it all,” Wilson told The Echo, adding the Liberals voted as a block instead of members having a free vote.
About 60 people from the area, many travelling by bus, made the trip to Queen’s Park to support the effort.
Wilson said, during debate and at a press conference held beforehand with Clearview Aerodrome owner and Clearview Township Councillor Kevin Elwood and Chuck Magwood, representing Preserve Clearview, he tried to paint a picture of the scale of the turbines. He said at 500 feet tall, there’s nothing like it in Canada.
“These are bigger than any turbine you’ve ever seen,” said Wilson. “To sandwich them between two airports is just criminal.”
“It’s not a matter of if there’s going to be a tragic accident and probably a death. It’s a matter of when,” he said.
The Elwoods and Preserve Clearview are among those appealing the provincial government’s approval of the eight-turbine project, along with John Wiggins and the municipalities of Clearview, Collingwood and Simcoe County.
“It’s ludicrous. Simply put, it’s the strangest plan I’ve heard in my more than 25 years as an MPP,” said Wilson at the press conference. He said planes landing and taking off at the airport will be just seconds from colliding with these structures.
The appellants are aiming to prove the wind turbines will cause serious harm to human health.
Elwood, a pilot and owner of Clearview Aerodrome, to the south of Collingwood Regional Airport, said the turbines lie well within the operational airspace of both aerodromes.
“They will be a serious safety hazard to both aerodromes. The province has ignored the information and they have also ignored third-party consulting reports that were provided during the approval process that clearly outline the risk and the high potential hazard for a turbine-aircraft collision,” said Elwood.
He said the federal government has adopted safety standards for the operation of airports and aerodromes to ensure pilot safety through the safe locating of tall structures and obstacles within the operational airspace but the Ontario Green Energy Act does not provide setbacks when siting wind turbines in close proximity to such facilities, causing a serious aviation hazard. Turbulence from the turbine and poor visibility due to weather off the bay are among factors, he said.
“Ontario’s Green Energy Act does not address the gap in the legislation between the province of Ontario and the federal government. The province was made well aware when drafting the Green Energy Act, by the Canadian Owners and Pilots Association, that they should address this gap in legislation.”
He asked, if the province and the members of the legislature want to have blood on their hands from the first airplane-turbine crash in Canada?
“These eight wind turbine locations are killers, there is no doubt in my mind,” said Elwood.
Magwood, speaking for Preserve Clearview, spoke to the economic impact, the visual stain the wind turbines would create and the affect on tourism, but the appeal process does not allow for those arguments.
“What is our chance of succeeding in that kind of environment and furthermore the basis for the appeal is limited only to human harm and animal life. It’s a narrow focus. We are going to fight that fight to the bitter end but the odds are stacked hugely against us,” said Magwood.
“We are bringing in and the other appellants are bringing in the best experts that we can find from all over the world. We’re going for it because human health is the focus and safety is human health so hopefully that board can see the sanity of this and feel that they are compelled to protect the safety of the community with respect to that hearing… If we fail with that, the only thing left, short of sabotage, is judicial revue which would be focused on a bunch of other issues that deal with this file independent of the safety issue.”
The appeal was launched after the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change approved the wpd project, subject to prescriptive conditions designed to ensure the safety of pilots. The approval was issued the day before a judicial process initiated by wpd to force a decision on the project. Clearview Township and Collingwood were slated to argue that the project would have a negative economic impact on the airport.
After the Queen’s Park vote on April 21, wpd spokesperson Kevin Surette said, “Aviation safety will not be affected in the Collingwood area.”
As required by the approval, wpd has consulted with their own expert, Transport Canada and NAV Canada, the project meets regulations and standards that apply to the Collingwood Regional Airport.
“NAV Canada has indicated that limiting circling to the north of the airport will mitigate the impact to the instrument flight approaches; this is done at other airports in Canada and around the world.”
Opponents of the wind turbine development say that is where the gap lies; because the aerodromes are not certified airports, they are not subject to oversight from the national bodies.
The group fighting the turbine development at the Environment and Land Tribunals Ontario, which continues on May 16, has launched a petition and a campaign to help cover costs. Visit Change.org/p/fund-fight-the-collingwood-airport-turbines. A TD bank account has been set up under the name “Fight The Turbines” to accept donations.
