Three Alberta families near Three Hills have taken their fight against a proposal to build wind turbines near their homes to a local appeal board. FPLE Canadian Wind plans to construct 54 wind turbines in Knee Hill County northeast of Calgary for a project called the Ghost Pine wind farm.

Noise was one of the possible side-effects that most concerned Wolfe Islanders prior to construction of the $475-million project. Health surveys conducted on people living near wind farms in Europe and the U. S. have registered a number of medical disorders they blame on the machines -- sleeplessness, depression, anxiety and even tinitis, a ringing in the ears possibly related to turbine noise. By the end of next month, all 86 turbines will be turning.

Lorrie Gillis is no Don Quixote and she doesn't think her enemies are imaginary, nor does she believe her battle is a lost cause, so she continues to "tilt" at the wind power companies that want to turn the rolling farmland in her rural neighbourhood into a wind farm, and the provincial government, that through its proposed new Green Act, will take away her right to oppose the plan she says will destroy the peaceful enjoyment of her property.

The noise and vibration from heavy equipment has been known to frighten emus to death, Debi VanTassel said in a recent interview. She wonders what living near a wind turbine will be like. Ms. VanTassel has another worry, though. Her husband is an epileptic who may have grand mal seizures. They can't have wallpaper in their home because the patterns could seem to come alive and bother Mr. VanTassel.

About 50 protesters greeted officials, with signs and placards reading "Windfarms Make People Sick," "Welcome to Hell," "Save Our Skyline" and "Health before Politics." "I consider myself a green person, but there's controversy on how green (wind turbines) actually are," said Norma Schmidt of the former Bruce Township, adding that she and her husband Ron have had problems sleeping since the project was commissioned.

It's green and mean. At least some say so. The Ontario government is introducing green legislation next week expected to strip the right of local councils to oppose wind farms and other green industry projects. Wind farms are a prime example of the type of green industry the province is trying to encourage to generate clean electricity and foster growth in new industries.

On Tuesday afternoon, McGuinty told the London Chamber of Commerce new legislation will stop special-interest groups or municipal governments from blocking wind turbines, solar panels or biofuel plants on any grounds other than safety or environmental concerns. On Wednesday morning, Tiny Township Deputy Mayor George Lawrence appealed to the county's Corporate Services Committee for aid in stopping a six-turbine farm on Conc. 19 of Tiny, including possibly two turbines within the Cedar Point Tract of county forests, north of Lafontaine, not far from the peninsular coastline.

Opponents of wind turbines off the Scarborough Bluffs have worked themselves into an "artificial lather" as the government prepares to force "green" energy projects on neighbourhoods, says Energy Minister George Smitherman. ...Depending on the nature of the projects and their proximity to homes and neighbourhoods, the effort to boost Ontario's supply of clean electricity could end up eroding the value of the biggest asset many Ontarians own - their homes, said Progressive Conservative MPP and justice critic Christine Elliott

The not-in-my backyard syndrome will not be allowed to halt green energy projects in Ontario and the jobs they bring, Premier Dalton McGuinty told a London audience today. He said if all safety and environmental standards are met, communities will not be allowed to reject wind turbines, solar panels or biofuel plants simply because they don't like them. He said the new Green Energy Act his government will enact is intended to prevent such barriers to green energy projects and the 50,000 jobs they bring.

Farmers in southern Alberta have filed an appeal with the province against a proposed transmission line that would cut a swath through prime irrigation land, arguing the Montana-Alberta Tie Line does not meet the public interest. A group of 16 landowners, lead by the Lavesta Area Group, want to see the 346-kilometre line between Lethbridge and Great Falls, Mont., rerouted five kilometres east of the provincially and federally approved route.

Golden Sheep Power is conducting a study to see how people react to the equipment in a urban setting, from a visual and auditory perspective. The results may later be considered by the city for a bylaw to allow residents to install small, renewable-energy generators at their homes. "It will be up so that the public can make comment," said Adrian Smedstad, head of the company's research and development team.

Alexandra Mactavish, one of the spokespersons for the Citizens Against Lake Erie Wind Turbines called the bay south of Leamington and Kingsville a treasure with "magnificent sunsets," migratory birds, fishing and underwater shipwrecks. "We have to fight very hard," she told Leamington council Monday. "We have to preserve what we have."

Opponents are seeking greater setbacks than the required 400 metres between the 360-ft. towers and neighbouring homes. Prowind has proposed a 500-metre setback. Prowind managing director Bart Geleynse Jr. said that, while wind power installations may be held up by opposition, it's provincial government policy to implement alternative energy producers and that's what's going to happen.

The residents of North Gower who crowded into a small community hall to hear about the wind farm proposed for their backyard know the time for green power has come, but that didn't stop worries about the impact of giant turbines on their health and property values. ...Many of the 300 who filed through the three-hour information session supported the idea of moving to more renewable fuels, but questioned how the sight and sound of the turbines would affect them and drive down the value of their properties.

No doubt about it, green is good. So why is it that across the country, more and more people are seeing red over wind energy? Some say that in the rush to develop wind power, current government regulations aren't doing enough to protect human health, or the environment. ..."I think the government really needs to step up to the plate and make sure they do their due diligence and make sure they do their history checks on where they are putting these wind turbines because it's about location, location, location," said one member. "The government has made rural Ontario residents expendable in the name of green energy."

A lot of the literature surrounding the pros and cons of wind farms, "seems to be confusing in terms of differing opinions," he said. "Our council would like to ensure they are safe and safely regulated." It also wants to know whether setbacks established elsewhere in Ontario have proved to be adequate, Schnare said. "There are emerging issues coming from other areas of the province."

Both animal and human health is suffering from stray voltage that can cause catastrophic problems in the barn. But nailing down the precise causes and where the responsibility lies has proved a long and difficult struggle Driven out of business as a result of a raft of health and behaviour problems suffered by their herd, beef producers Ross and Darlene Brindley are suing Hydro One Networks Inc. and Edmonton Power Corporation (EPCOR) for a hefty $5 million. They claim that stray voltage from EPCOR's wind turbines not only destroyed their herd, but has also had a severe impact on their own health as well. And they are not alone.

Big Island residents want no part of a proposed wind farm development north of Picton, Prince Edward County council was told this week. Henri Garand and Ian Hanna presented council with a 112-signature petition asking the Big Island portion of the 66-turbine proposal be separated from the rest of the project. ..."All of us believe that Big Island is not an appropriate location."

Scotian Windfields and Skypower have already revamped the map that was released at the municipality's council meeting on Nov. 10-showing the proposed locations of 20 wind turbines on Digby Neck. The new improved version shows the turbines originally planned for Red Head re-situated north of Highway 217 on properties owned by Fred and Sharon Ross and Jerry Schofield. The remaining 18 turbines are also north of the highway, as they were on the original version of the map.

Scotian Windfields and Skypower have released the proposed locations for the 20 wind turbines to be built in the Rossway area-and their map shows 12 of the towers will be built on properties owned by Americans. The Digby Neck Wind Farm, scheduled for construction in 2009, was the subject of a presentation made by Barry Zwicker, CEO of Scotian Windfields, Nov. 10 at the Municipality of Digby's meeting.