A wind farm atop Nuttby Mountain has cleared another hurdle.

On Monday, Environment Minister Mark Parent approved the environmental assessment with conditions for the wind farm project.

"The project is a go-ahead. This is one of the final steps," said Clair Peers, president of Cobequid Wind Power. "Everything else is on track."

Atlantic Wind Power is the project manager and Cobequid Wind Power is involved in the development that is owned by EarthFirst Canada Inc.

"We're quite pleased with the outcome of the environmental assessment," said Peers. "Everything was in compliance with government regulations."

The project will see 18 wind turbine generators installed near the top of Nuttby Mountain generating 45 megawatts of energy annually or enough to power about 15,000 homes.

The next thing people might see in the area is road construction, which may occur in the fall. The completion date is set for the fall of 2009.

The conditions include developing and implementing a program to monitor birds and bats, develop a turbine lighting plan, monitoring noise levels, develop a complaint resolution program to address public concerns and submit an environmental protection plan.