Friday, September 6, 2013

Peterborough Examiner Article - Group Calls For Wind Farm Uproar



Group calls for wind farm uproar

By Rob McCormick, Peterborough Examiner

Thursday, August 29, 2013 12:02:29 EDT AM

  Opponents of a proposed wind farm that straddles Cavan-Monaghan Township and the City of Kawartha Lakes are urging area residents to attend a township council meeting Tuesday to register their opposition to the project.

“Unless you are happy with the continued invasion of our area by industrial wind turbines, please save this information and take action,” states an email sent to residents by ManversWind Concern (MWC), a group opposed to wind farms in the area.

Public meetings on other area wind-turbine projects have been raucous protests, with hundreds of angry residents shouting down representatives of the companies behind the wind farms.

“Some more of your neighbours have decided to steal your property value and carpet-bomb your countryside for a few pieces of silver from a wind company,” the MWC email states.

“Everyone who can, please show up…signs in the parking lot by noon, please…If we do not react, it will be taken as a sign of acceptance.”

The email reminds residents that “rules of decorum at council meetings apply.”

The council meeting takes place at 1 p.m. at the council chambers on County Rd. 10.

The project, the Stoneboat Community Wind Farm, consists of five industrial wind turbines between Stewart Line and Sharpe's Line on the east and west sides of Dranoel Road north of Hwy. 7A, according to the email.

“This essentially would overlook the Devil's Elbow area, the new subdivision on the east side of Ski Hill Rd. just north of Bethany, and the new Buddhist temple,” the email states.

“No one will want to purchase property in a town surrounded by a ring of turbines,” the email states. “If you are in the area of this new project, or if you have had enough, please get in touch.”

MWC is fighting three other wind-farm projects in the area.

“We need skill sets and we need contributions to the legal fund,” the email states. “We are well on our way to where we want to be to launch actions against Sumac Ridge (Bethany), Snowy Ridge (Bethany) and Settlers Landing (Pontypool ), but we are nowhere with Stoneboat. So let’s get started.”

At Tuesday’s meeting, council will hear a deputation from Martin Ince of M.K. Ince Inc. the developer of Stoneboat project, the email states.

“It is so important that there is a large turnout at the council meeting… to support Cavan Monaghan council, who on Sept. 7, 2010 passed a resolution requesting a moratorium on industrial wind turbines until independent health studies have been completed and on May 6, 2013 declared the township an ‘unwilling host’ for these industrial projects,” the email states. “Little or no display of public interest will mean that there are no concerns about this power plant.”

rob.mccormick@sunmedia.ca