Ron Stephens exposes the wind farm scam as part of the plan to run people off the land and into human settlements.
Melancthon wind farm
Editor: First I wish to thank a reader – Norma, from South Africa for sending me this information.
Since 2006 I have been educating people on wind farms and the scam of MMGW. Unfortunately ever time I brought up the fact that wind farms are a fraud as is MMGW, I ended up being shunned by others fighting wind farms. They never wanted to deal with the fraud of MMGW even though without MMGW there was no case to build wind farms.
While I have fought to bring truth to the table, the vast majority fighting wind farms have remained under the delusion that “we need to embrace renewable energy” and “we just want the turbines sited farther from our homes”
Had those fighting wind farms pushed the “real truth” to the forefront the threat of wind farms would have be crushed long ago.
From my earliest posts I have always put the truth forward, concerning Wind Farms, MMGW and the people connected to these scams which threaten both the people of this country and the world.
Fighting the industry, govt. and the “wind fighters” has been a long and draining experience but hopefully this article from New Zealand will give those in Ont., Canada and the World the strength they need to beat back both the fraud of Wind Farms and MMGW.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – WIND FARM DECISION
The New Zealand
Climate Science Coalition Hon Secretary, Terry Dunleavy MBE, 14A Bayview Road, Hauraki, North
Shore City 0622
Phone (09) 486 3859 – Mobile 0274 836688 – Email -
terry.dunleavy@nzclimatescience.org.nz
13 November 2009 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Huge wind farm in New Zealand canned on environmental, economic and
“climate change” grounds
Project Hayes was a 630 MW wind farm proposed for an upland plateau in
Central Otago in the South Island of New Zealand. An appeal to the
Environment Court has resulted in a judgement revoking the consent
granted about two years ago under New Zealand’s Resource Management Act.Several groups of local residents appealed the original consent on the
grounds that it would destroy an area of outstanding natural beauty. A
businessman from Auckland with property in Central Otago appealed on the
grounds that it was seriously uneconomic compared to alternative
generation and that, because fears of dangerous man-made global warming
were not supported by the evidence, there was no grounds to build it to
“fight climate change”. As expert witnesses, he engaged Professor Bob
Carter, Professor Chris de Freitas and Dr Kesten Green to put the case
that there were no grounds for believing in dangerous man-made global
warming and Bryan Leyland, a very experienced power systems engineer, to
demonstrate that wind power was expensive and an “uneconomic use of
resources”The hearing was held before four Commissioners at the Environment Court
where expert witnesses from both sides presented evidence and argued the
costs and benefits both for and against the wind farm over a period of
nearly two years.
In consideration of climate change matters under Section 7 of the Act,
the court listened carefully to arguments countering the IPCC
“projections” of impending dangerous man-made global warming put forward
by Carter, De Freitas and Green. However, their conclusion was that the
government had decreed that it believed in dangerous man- made global
warming, so they had to accept this decree. But the decision leaves open
the possibility that, as a result of the evidence presented, they gave
less weight to Meridian’s claimed climate change benefits than they
would otherwise have done.Bryan Leyland presented evidence on the cost of wind farms worldwide and
presented a detailed economic analysis that showed that the cost to the
consumer of the power generated was about twice the cost of alternatives
like hydropower, geothermal or coal. When cross questioned on the
economics of the project he finally said: “If it cost half as much and
the wind blew strongest in the autumn instead of springtime, I would be
all for it.”
The 350 page judgement was delivered after nine months of deliberation
by the Court. The judgement acknowledged the outstanding value of the
landscape and loss of this value if the wind farm was built. The other
major component of the decision revolved around the magnitude of the
economic benefit to people and communities from building this wind farm
compared to alternatives. The court was very critical of the lack of
economic analysis undertaken by Meridian Energy, the promoters of the
project, and commented that “We find it extraordinary that in a $2
billion project more effort was not made by Meridian to value more of
the costs and benefits much more thoroughly. It is even more remarkable
that two governments endorsed the proposal without insisting that
Meridian carried out a cost benefit analysis, or requesting Treasury to
do so.”
The judgement of the Commissioners was three to one against the project.
The fourth commissioner, in a supplementary statement, said that “I come
down on the side of the Meridian’s proposal, albeit by a small margin”.
For New Zealand, this decision raises the bar for all other wind farm
proposals and implies that without a comprehensive and detailed economic
analysis on national terms, they will not be approved. As Bryan Leyland
demonstrated, such an economic analysis will show that wind farms in New
Zealand cannot compete with alternative forms of generation even if a
reasonable allowance is made for a carbon tax in one form or another.
For wind energy globally, the judgement drives home the fact that wind
farms embedded in major power systems are seriously uneconomic because
of high costs, an even lower capacity factor than is achieved in New
Zealand, the need for backup generation and for additional transmission
lines. All these wind farms are uneconomic and are commercially viable
because of only massive consumer funded subsidies. It also demonstrates
that if a wind farm is opposed on well supported environmental, economic
and climate change grounds, success is more likely.
- Enbridge wind farm Kincardine
Editor:
As you read this article pay attention to what Bill Murdoch MPP has to say. First – the Ont. Conservative Party planned to install more wind turbines than the Liberals – stated in their 2007 election platform. Murdoch says he opposed the GEA but he never bothered to vote against it. When his office was asked why Murdoch was not in the House for the vote his rep said he had a prior engagement. What could be more important than voting on the removal of Municipal rights.
Murdoch is as guilty as anyone for not standing up for the people of his riding. Why was he not holding information meeting in his riding to inform and advise his constituents about the coming folly.
Why didn’t Murdoch attend the meeting held on the 6th? It was held just down the street form his office
Gutless, or part of the Treason taking place in this province. You decide!
Posted By Denis Langlois Owen Sound Times
It’s too late to stop the surge of wind-farm development in Ontario, even by arguing the turbines cause illness, says Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound MPP Bill Murdoch.
“As far as what they can do about it, there really isn’t a heck of a lot,” he said yesterday.
Murdoch’s comments come a day after about 120 people attended a public meeting at the Grey Bruce Health Unit in Owen Sound about health effects of wind turbines.
The Progressive Conservative MPP said residents’ concerns will likely fall on deaf ears of policy makers and Liberal cabinet ministers at Queen’s Park, since the Green Energy Act is now law.
Asked what people can do, Murdoch initially said “not a thing. It’s over. It’s a law.”
Later, he said concerned residents can write to Premier Dalton McGuinty or the Ontario Ministry of Health. Letters to Murdoch’s office will be forwarded, he said.
“They’re pretty much euchred. I don’t know where they can go. Some will say (I) can do something about it. There’s not a thing I can do about it. It’s a law,” he said.
People who believe the giant wind turbines cause illness can seek medical attention from a doctor, retain a lawyer and sue, Murdoch said, but that will likely be a “waste of money.”
Emotions ran high at Thursday’s public meeting, which the health unit organized to provide wind turbine information to residents.
Keynote speaker Dr. Ray Copes, a director at the Ontario Agency of Health Protection and Promotion, was heckled by the crowd several times after his one-hour slide presentation revealed little new information.
People took exception to Copes’ characterization of health impacts caused by turbines as an “annoyance” and his claim no proof exists linking illness to wind turbines.
People opposed to wind farms say turbines cause health problems such as chronic sleep disturbance, dizziness, exhaustion, anxiety, depression, irritability, nausea and ringing in ears.
Medical officer of health Dr. Hazel Lynn said she is aware “suffering” is being attributed to turbines, but has no power to make or influence changes to the Green Energy Act. The health unit cannot perform in-depth studies on health claims either, she said.
Lynn criticized the act at the public meeting, saying “we need more choices” since it strips local municipalities of the authority to make decisions about turbine setbacks. The act requires a 550-metre setback from a turbine to residential properties.
Murdoch said he opposed the act at Queen’s Park for that reason.
Progressive Conservatives MPPs voted against it and Murdoch said perhaps a change in government would lead to some changes. The next provincial election is in 2011.
“There’s going to be a lot of wind turbines put up in the next two years, I would assume, within the context of that law,” he said.
The province has promised to eliminate coal-fired power by 2014 and add 975 wind turbines by 2012.
A second public meeting, organized by the health unit, is scheduled for Tuesday from 7 to 9 p.m. at Walkerton’s Jubilee Hall.
Editor:
Fairchild Television contacted me in June and in July their film crew came to the Ripley wind farm to shoot a feature about the negative affects of living near wind turbines.
Originally over 12 minutes I edited it so only the English parts remain. If I can get it translated I will post more of the video.
I wish to thank Sherona and her crew for making the trip from Toronto, also Fairchild Television for the original production.
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Editor: Just wait until the wind farm is built. Then the real problems begin.
There is nothing green about the wind industry unless you count the cash. If anyone else tried to destroy the land and and flyways the greens would be having a fit.
.
Wind farm chases couple from Wolfe Island
When Dawn and Dean Wallace moved to Wolfe Island 17 years ago, they fell in love with the peaceful, slow pace of life in the rural community.
It quickly became home and they planned to retire on the island.
That has all changed. The couple feels that construction of one of Canada’s largest wind-power projects has forced them out of the community and they’re in the process of moving off the island into a home they’ve bought northwest of Kingston in Camden East.
“It’s ironic that the very thing that’s supposed to be green has had such a negative impact on us,” said Dawn Wallace.
“It’s a green project without a green process.”
The couple lived at the corner of Baseline Road and 5th Line – at the heart of the construction zone – where dozens of trucks moved past their house daily on their way to and from a quarry that supplied stone to build the access roads and cement foundations for the wind turbines.
As a result, the Wallaces spent this past summer wearing earplugs and avoided spending time at home.
The noise and dust from dozens of trucks and heavy pieces of equipment moving past their property, at times starting as early as 4 a. m., made life almost unbearable.
They didn’t even cut their lawn until Thanksgiving weekend because of the dust.
“I have one word for it: hell,” said Wallace, a high school teacher.
The couple has documented the dust and noise by posting video footage on YouTube, which is available by searching the online site using the keywords Wolfe Island wind.
To get some relief from the noise and dust, they called the Township of Frontenac Islands, the Ministry of the Environment and the company building the wind plant, Canadian Hydro Developers Inc.
But the Wallaces say they got no relief. The trucks kept coming.
“It was very difficult to get help,” she said. “At the end of the day, it was unbearable and we got no support.”
That wasn’t completely a surprise for the Wallaces, who watched as tension grew in the community between those who supported the project and those who had concerns about the location of the wind turbines. Angry disagreements occurred at public meetings.
“[Opponents] had to endure such terrible, painful social pressures from certain members of the community for speaking out about certain aspects of the process,”Wallace said.
“What was once a community of solidarity that we contributed [to] and benefited from has become a community divided, which is very painful.”
It all became too much for the Wallaces, whose departure comes just as the project’s first turbines are being erected.
Mammoth and pre-eminent on the rural landscape, the 125-metre-high turbines are visible for miles along the western portion of the island. The giant machines tower high above what were once dormant farmers’ fields.
In the coming months, workers will be using giant cranes to erect a total of 86 turbines along the western side of the island. The project is anticipated to be up and running by April 1, 2009.
By Jennifer Pritchett
Whig-Standard Environmental Reporter
The Kingston Whig-Standard for full story
.
Proposed Wolfe Island Cement Factory 20m from Lake Ontario
link to construction phase
Wolfe Island Wind Turbines: Life on the Front Lines
Wind turbine noise – Suncor wind farm Ripley
Editor:
“Wind turbines are popping up in rural communities around the world, including Canada, in the hope that they will reduce reliance on coal and other sources for power.”
Hope is not what you build an electrical system on. The politicians can “hope” till the cows come home, but the facts speak for themselves.
Nowhere on the planet has the use of industrial wind turbines caused a reduction in the use of coal or any other source of energy.
I would like to thank CTV and those responsible for bringing this story forward and into the mainstream media.
To all those fighting poorly sited wind farms – keep up the great work.
Without your hard work and insistence for the truth, this story would not likely have seen the light of day.
Ontario Wind Farms – Dalton McGuinty
(using wind to power press release – short video)
Premier, Dalton McGuinty Talks About Renewable Energy For Ontario
Wind energy unreliable, says E.On
Green, not dumb – The Reality of Wind Energy
By Jan Carr – former CEO of Ontario Power Authority
Homeowners living near windfarms see property values plummet
Wind turbines cause health problems, residents say
A wind turbine looms over Helen and Bill Fraser’s house in Melancthon, Ont.
|
|
Ernie Marshall and his wife look at the windmills near their former home near Goderich, Ont. The Marshalls moved from several kilometres away after they began developing health problems.Wind turbines cause health problems, residents say
Updated Sun. Oct. 5 2008 10:23 PM ET
CTV.ca News Staff
Windmills may be an environmentally friendly alternative energy source but they also cause debilitating health problems, say people who live near them.
Wind turbines are popping up in rural communities around the world, including Canada, in the hope that they will reduce reliance on coal and other sources for power. Currently, there are about 1,500 turbines across Canada and there are plans to build another 1,000 to 1,500 in the next year.
But some residents who live near wind farms complain the turbines cause a number of adverse health effects, such as crippling headaches, nose bleeds and a constant ringing in the ears.
Helen and Bill Fraser initially supported the nearby wind farm in Melancthon, Ont. One turbine sat close to the Fraser’s kitchen window.
“We thought, more green energy, this is great,” Helen told CTV News.
However, Helen says she developed headaches, body aches and she had trouble sleeping. The dog began wetting the floor at night.
“There were nights I was lying in bed and my heart would beat to the pulse of the turbine. It was an uneasy feeling,” Helen said.
Ernie Marshall at first supported the wind farm that was placed near his home near Goderich, Ont. However, he also says that once the turbines got rolling, his health began to suffer.
“I had problems with my heart, with my eyes, my digestive system,” Marshall told CTV News. “It traumatizes your whole body.”
Dr. Nina Pierpont, a pediatrician in upstate New York, has interviewed dozens of people who live near windmills in Canada, the United States and Europe.
Her soon-to-be released book, Wind Turbine Syndrome, documents the litany of health problems experienced by some people who have wind farms near their homes.
Pierpont believes that with the growth of wind farms near residential areas, Wind Turbine Syndrome “likely will become an industrial plague,” she states on her website.
Scientists have only begun studying the phenomenon in the last few years.
Some early findings suggest that wind turbines create a high intensity, low frequency sound that may have an effect on the body. Not only can the sound potentially cause debilitating illness. Some researchers believe that the vibrations the sound causes in the inner ear may lead to vibro-acoustic disease, which can cause dizziness, nausea and sleep disturbances.
From CTV NEWS
As you read through this article from the Toronto Star, you might want to as yourself. Where are the people and engineers that actually understand our energy system. Then I want you to read the Green Agenda in order to understand what is taking place. This is not about energy, it about control. You might also ask yourself how these people gained such influence over our elected officials.
I try not to cuss, but under the circumstances it seems appropriate.
Global Warming is a complete and total fraud. The sooner you understand it the better off you will be.
Smitherman calls for review of energy plan to speed conservation, and green technologies (Smitherman used to be the Ont. health minister. He’s the guy who wanted our elders to sit in their own dirty diapers until they were 75% full. Go fuck yourself Smitherman.)added
Energy Reporter ( Hamilton says he’s an energy reporter yet he has no idea what he’s talking about. If he did, he would refuse to write this drivel. A shill for CanWEA and the wind industry in general. Tyler go fuck yourself.) added
NIAGARA FALLS–Energy and Infrastructure Minister George Smitherman has directed Ontario’s power authority to review and “fine tune” the province’s 20-year energy plan with the goal of accelerating conservation efforts and adding more renewable energy to the electricity mix.
But Smitherman, also deputy premier, said yesterday in a speech to energy-industry officials that the government is sticking with its target of phasing out coal by 2014 and maintaining the capacity of Ontario’s nuclear power fleet.
Inspired by recent learning expeditions to Spain, Denmark and Germany, considered global leaders in renewable energy adoption, and to California, the energy-conservation capital of North America, Smitherman said he’s convinced that more can be done in Ontario to unlock the potential of conservation and clean energy.
The Wind Energy Scam- Compare the Numbers
(Denmark is a tiny country with about the same population as Metro Toronto, they are 83% dependent on fossil fuel for their energy. Germany is now fast tracking coal plants because they need energy. Germany is over 60% dependent on fossil fuel for their energy and it will rise as they add coal plants. Go fuck yourself Smitherman.)added
The review will also look at ways to improve transmission capacity that has limited the development of renewable-energy projects, as well as explore opportunities for pump storage – a way of storing water power in natural geological reservoirs for use during peak times.
“With innovation and strong leadership I know we can raise the bar on the energy system,” said Smitherman, making his first major speech since he took over the “super ministry” in June. “Just because we’re doing well doesn’t mean we can’t do it better.”
(Smitherman, you couldn’t even figure out how to keep our elders in clean diapers and we are to trust you with our electrical system. Go Fuck yourself)added
In an interview, Smitherman said he would work “very closely” with the Ontario Power Authority over the next six months to refine the plan.
Environmental groups appreciated the strengthened commitment to green power and conservation but said Smitherman, by leaving the nuclear file untouched, didn’t go far enough.
“We agree that prioritizing renewable energy and conservation is essential as such economic strategy holds huge potential for job creation and the establishment of new industries to replace job losses in Ontario,” said José Etcheverry from the David Suzuki Foundation.
“However, we also believe that rethinking the commitment to new nuclear and refurbishments should be now top on the agenda to develop a truly innovative, reliable, and competitive green-energy sector in Ontario.”
(David Suzuki and his followers want no coal and no nukes. Think about it! Suzuki go fuck yourself)added
Both the Canadian Wind Energy Association and the Ontario Waterpower Association said they were encouraged by the announcement. “I am particularly pleased with the recognition that enabling transmission is critical to the achievement of our renewable energy targets,” said Paul Norris, president of the water association.
The Ontario Power Authority’s proposal – called the Integrated Power System Plan – is currently in the hands of the Ontario Energy Board. The regulator launched a hearing early last month that will determine if the plan is “economically prudent” and “cost effective.”
Under the current plan, Ontario’s nuclear power capacity is limited to 14,000 megawatts, which will be maintained by building new reactors or refurbishing old ones. Renewable energy has been doubled to 15,700 megawatts, while conservation and demand management efforts are targeting a 6,300-megawatt reduction in peak-time energy consumption by 2025.
Some industry associations, including the Power Workers’ Union, consider the renewable and conservation targets already too aggressive and say coal plants should be cleaned up and kept in the mix.
Smitherman said Ontario hasn’t begun to scratch the surface and the government isn’t going to rest on its laurels. “I’m pretty stoked, really, about the early progress that we’ve made, and the message that sends about the next steps.”
Keith Stewart, an energy expert with WWF-Canada, said it’s unclear what will happen at the current energy board hearings. “It is difficult to see how the hearings would proceed while the review is under way.”
(Stewart is not an energy expert anymore than anyone reading this is.(Keith Stewart has a PhD in political science from York University, where he studied environmental politics Gerald Butt’s the ex-principal secretary for McGuinty, is now the head of WWF Canada and a Bilderberger. For working so hard to undermine Ont. and it’s economy, go fuck yourselves.)added
This article is from the Toronto Star one of Ontario’s many propaganda machines
Read the GREEN AGENDA.
get educated
and
WAKE UP!
Wind energy unreliable, says E.On
Editor:
As happy as I am to see this article show up in a “Mainstream Canadian Newspaper”, I still have to ask-why has it taken so long to expose the scam that is the wind industry?
Hell, Enron started this scam years ago. Google- Enron, Al Gore, Maurice Strong and Bill Clinton. Like the media never noticed what was going on.
I’ve noticed the Globe and Mail reading my blog lately ‘site tracker’ and that’s good. But, why does it take so long to get a story out. People have been sending the mainstream papers this same information for years. Why have they remained silent for so long?
Billions of taxpayer dollars have been wasted, landscapes ruined and peoples lives destroyed, while the media sat on the information.
I called the head office of CanWea two years ago this coming Nov. I told them the wind scam would be shut down within two years. I still believe it is possible.
It’s time for journalists to shake the cobwebs from their brains, remember the journalist oath and get back to doing what they are supposed to do- inform the public of the truth.
Leave the lies and bullshit to the politicians and industry.
As J. Lennon said “Just give me the truth”
Anyway, I thank Mr. Reynolds for this story. Good work-even if it’s years late.
NEIL REYNOLDS
OTTAWA — Republican presidential candidate
Senator John McCain travelled to Oregon in mid-May to deliver the
definitive climate change speech of his campaign. He spoke in Portland,
at the U.S. headquarters of Vestas Wind Systems AS, a Danish company
that markets wind turbines around the world. He started on a
self-deprecating note. “Today is a kind of test run for this company,”
he said. “They’ve got wind technicians here, wind studies and all these
wind turbines. But there’s no wind. So now I know why they asked me to
come and give a speech.”
It was perhaps his most perceptive statement of the day. Five
sentences later, Mr. McCain made perhaps his least perceptive. “Wind,”
he said, “is a predictable source of energy.”
Really? Define predictable. Wind turbines operate occasionally with
remarkable efficiency at 100 per cent capacity. More often, they
operate with 20 per cent capacity. Once in a while, they operate with
subzero capacity – taking electricity from the grid to keep themselves
running until they get hit again by a restless wind.
British energy consultant Hugh Sharman, based in Denmark, documented
wind power’s capacity for subzero performance in a report published by
Civil Engineering magazine in 2005. With more wind power per capita
than any other country, Denmark (population 5.4 million) is the world’s
showroom nation for this highly fashionable form of renewable energy.
Why, then, does Denmark export almost all of its wind power – at a
revenue loss? Why, then, does Denmark still operate all of its
conventional coal-fired power plants? In a phrase, Mr. Sharman says,
the reason is Denmark’s “wildly fluctuating wind power.”
It turns out that Denmark’s vast array of turbines often produce
minimal electricity when demand is high, maximum electricity when
demand is low. Basing his analysis on data from a single year (2002),
Mr. Sharman reported that wind power produced less than 1 per cent of
the country’s electricity supply on 54 different days. On one of these
54 days, the wind turbines took more power from the grid than they
produced. (Wind turbines consume considerable electricity whether winds
are blowing or not blowing.)
British author and energy analyst Tony Lodge makes the same point in
a report by the Centre for Policy Studies, a London think tank. “Not a
single conventional power plant has been closed in the period that
Danish wind farms have been developed,” he says. “Because of the
intermittency and variability of the wind, conventional power plants
have had to be kept running at full capacity to meet the actual demand
for electricity and to provide backup.”
Mr. Lodge says it is not practical to turn coal-fired plants off and
on as winds rise and fall – because ramping them up consumes more fuel
(and emits more carbon dioxide) than running them at a constant rate.
Thus Denmark relies almost exclusively on coal-fired plants for its own
consumption and exports its wind power at whatever off-peak price it
can get.
Only 3.3 per cent of Denmark’s wind power gets “accepted” on the
grid for domestic consumption. In 2003, Denmark exported 84 per cent of
its wind-generated electricity at money-losing rates. And CO{-2}? In
2006, Denmark produced 36 per cent more carbon emissions than the year
before.
Messrs. McCain, Dion and Pickens notwithstanding, winds do not blow
predictably. Without an energy storage battery the size of Mount
Everest, most wind-powered electricity will be wasted and will almost
certainly increase a country’s carbon emissions – albeit inadvertently.
When your power plant operates at only 20 per cent capacity (or less),
you have to build four or five times as many plants as you need. For
reliable backup, you still need either coal, gas or nuclear power – all
of which are cheaper than wind.
The conclusion seems self-evident. Apparently it isn’t. Fortunately,
you can test wind power for yourself. Go outside on a hot and humid
day. Feel the breeze. Or don’t
Update:
Gov, of Ont. visit
|
|
gov.on.ca |
Toronto, Ontario
|
1:40:18 pm | 3 | 3:31 | |
| http://kincardine.wordpress.com/…laims-plague-minister-gerretsen/ | ||||||
Editor:
Lunatics or criminals? You make the call.
The Liberal party is proof positive how low politicians can go. Cover up a massive sewage spill into the Ottawa river,OttawaSun, and trash the lives of people with wind turbines. Glad we have the Mnistry of Environment. What would we do without them? A-holes.
“As a result of [the integrity commissioner’s] advice and ruling, Premier Dalton McGuinty has appointed Tourism Minister Peter Fonseca, to exercise my decision-making authority with respect to the Wolfe Island Wind Project,” Gerretsen wrote in his letter to constituents.
So, Gerretsen is still calling the shots – but they are coming out of the mouth Peter Fonseca. Kind of like a puppet sitting on Gerretsens’ lap. A dummy so to speak.
I have an idea for tourism on Wolfe Island Mr. Fonseca. Take the entire Liberal Party and put them in stocks in the center of Wolfe Island and sell fruit and vegetables to the tourists to throw at them – and it’s carbon neutral
I feel this would be a good use of politicians and I’m sure this plan would generate far more income than the wind turbines.
I call it “A better tourism plan for Ontario”
The McGuinty govt has their heads so far up the ass of business interests only their toes are sticking out.
.
Conflict claims plague minister; Gerretsen withdraws from key decision on wind project
Three days before Environment Minister John Gerretsen was to make a key decision about the fate of the wind-power project on Wolfe Island, the Kingston and the Islands MPP has withdrawn from the heart of the contentious issue.
Gerretsen yesterday announced he was recusing his decision-making authority with respect to the Wolfe Island Wind Project because of allegations from island residents that he was in a conflict of interest.
In a letter sent to media outlets and about 15 citizens on Wolfe Island, Gerretsen described how opponents to the project have questioned his ability to deal with the project in a “fair and unbiased fashion.”
“I take any potential conflict of interest allegations very seriously,” Gerretsen told the Whig-Standard.
He declined to comment on whether he personally believes he was in a conflict situation.
“I’d rather not give you my own personal opinion on it at this point in time,” he said in an interview. “I’m not prepared to answer that. “I did what I thought was the right action and the integrity commissioner has dealt with that.”
The allegations stem from Gerretsen’s attendance last summer, before he was appointed environment minister, at a corn roast on Wolfe Island organized by Canadian Hydro Developers Inc., the proponent for the wind project. The event, held at a private residence, was also attended by local media and municipal politicians from the Township of Frontenac Islands.
As well, the proponents, Canadian Hydro, bought tickets totalling $1,500 to attend at least one fundraising dinner for Gerretsen.
Gerretsen made the decision to divest himself of the decision-making responsibility on the wind project after consulting with Ontario’s integrity commissioner, whose office ensures that provincial politicians aren’t making decisions on issues that could benefit them.
“As a result of [the integrity commissioner’s] advice and ruling, Premier Dalton McGuinty has appointed Tourism Minister Peter Fonseca, to exercise my decision-making authority with respect to the Wolfe Island Wind Project,” Gerretsen wrote in his letter to constituents.
While the integrity commissioner determined there was no conflict of interest, she recommended Gerretsen to withdraw from the decision-making process because of a perceived conflict.
In her written decision to Gerretsen, she addressed his attendance at a Canadian Hydro Developers Inc. event last year.
“It is my opinion attending and speaking at the event was not contrary to the Members’ Integrity Act. However, both of these events appear to have created a perception that you favour one group of ministry stakeholders over another,” said Lynn Morrison, acting integrity commissioner.
In a letter to Gerretsen, Fonseca and deputy environment minister Gail Beggs, McGuinty directed ministry officials to “refrain from having any discussions with Minister Gerretsen or his staff on this file, and to seek direction from Minister Fonseca on the matter as appropriate.”
It’s unknown whether the decision that was expected early next week will still be made on schedule.
Gerretsen had been reviewing a decision of the director of the environmental assessment and approvals branch not to grant a request from citizens to require Canadian Hydro to complete an environmental assessment that will investigate the impacts of the project.
“I would imagine that it will still be within the timelines, but it may be somewhat later,” said Gerretsen. “These decisions aren’t always necessarily made within the necessary timelines.”
He said Fonseca will be briefed by Environment Ministry officials.
By Jennifer Pritchett
30 May 2008
