Roberts Creek Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) director Donna Shugar is raising the alarm over a proposal for wind monitoring sites in her area. The proposal by SkyPower was presented at the SCRD planning meeting May 8 and calls for two wind monitoring sites with the eventual possibility of having 2,871.5 hectares devoted to windmills in the Roberts Creek/Howe Sound area and Elphinstone. Shugar said the project in its totality raises concerns for her because she thinks there are implications to putting structures on the proposed slope in an area where there are already drainage problems and a community that relies on water from that area.

About 300 people packed the county council chamber for a review of a consultant's final draft of a wind power and renewable energy planning study, May 7. ...In the public forum, concerns over the impact on people and property by wind power development outweighed most other concerns, including bird migration. Amherstburg lawyer Anthony Leardi called on county council to consider prohibiting the development of large wind turbines in favour of renewable energy systems that are less controversial and more compatible to the county. If allowed, he said turbines should be limited to 100 feet in height, because they would be visible for great distances across "flat" Essex County. Leardi said the county should also be prepared to decommission turbines should any of the wind power companies go bankrupt.

Fears that a scenic lookout point on the top of Nuttby Mountain would be ruined by the installation of a huge wind turbine have been laid to rest. Clair Peers, president of Cobequid Wind Power, a development partner in the Nuttby Mountain project, confirmed Thursday afternoon that a turbine would not be constructed on the mountain's highest point. "The thing is with this particular high spot is it's just not a stable enough location," said Peers. He did say, however, there would most likely be a windmill constructed near the peak, but was unsure exactly how close it would be.

Colchester County council has delayed a decision on a bylaw regulating wind power development until further study. Some councillors were divided on how far the regulations should go following discussion at this week's council committee meeting so the issue has been sent to the municipality's planning advisory committee for more deliberation. While some councillors fear the proposed regulations border on excess government intervention, others believe landowners require the protection such guidelines would provide.

Just about 300 people packed the Essex Civic Center to hear the latest proposal from Ray Duhamel and the Jones Consulting Group. Among their objectives are to increase the renewable energy supply and make sure it's done in appropriate areas. ...Only a few people were fully in favour of the wind turbines.

The route for Maritime Electric's high-voltage transmission line through West Prince is not a done deal, says Energy Minister George Webster. The utility has applied to the province to build a 138,000-volt transmission line to carry wind power generated at the West Cape wind farm. A group has formed to oppose the route for the line, which would connect the O'Leary substation to the Sherbrooke station outside of Summerside. In addition, voltage on a new line from the wind farm to O'Leary is due to be increased from 69,000 to 138,000 volts. Islanders for the Safe Transmission of Power says the line poses a health risk by passing too closely to homes.

By the end of next year, 20 wind turbines in the Rossway-Gulliver Cove area of Digby Neck are expected to be generating 30 megawatts of power-enough to supply electricity to 10,000 homes, according to project developers. Digby Wind Park is a joint project of the community-owned and operated company Scotian WindFields and SkyPower Corp., who announced May 14 they have signed a 20-year contract with Nova Scotia Power. ...Project developers have assured stakeholders they will work with them to ensure concerns are taken into consideration.

An Amherst area resident is continuing his fight to stop a proposed wind farm on the marsh near the town. Jim Milner, who lives on the John Black Road, is preparing a submission to the project environmental assessment claiming that its existence threatens the future of the John Lusby Marsh as a wildlife habitat. "Wildlife is the property of the Crown so it is the duty of the province to protect wildlife, not sell to the lowest proponent bidder," Milner said in his submission.

In the legislature Wednesday, Mr. Brown assured Opposition energy critic Michael Currie that the province intends to charge royalties for private companies harnessing Island wind. The minister said "we have to recognize the wind is a resource and it is a resource that is owned by Islanders." Mr. Brown said the province wants "a portion of the green credits that are sold out of the United States." "Wind is going to be a major plank of our initiative and Islanders are going to benefit from it. We are not going to sell that resource for nothing."

A second open house was held by Gengrowth pertaining to a wind farm they are proposing just north of Malden Centre but those who live in the area were ready to air their views as well. A group of area residents picketed outside the Amherstburg Community Church where the open house was held and held up signs and gave out pamphlets to any passing motorist that was interested.

A proposed transmission line from the Bruce nuclear power plants to the Milton switching station has been highly criticized in a report prepared for the Saugeen Ojibway Nations. In his report, public utility consultant Whitfield Russell says the proposed project "cannot be justified as a better project than the reasonable alternatives." ...In his report, Mr. Russell maintains that Hydro One has "misstated the need for transmission capability" by including in its analysis significant sources of generation that have not been committed or approved."

The prospect of wind energy development in Essex County received mixed reviews Wednesday during a public meeting to hear comments on the county's proposed policy for commercial wind farms. Visual and noise impact, whether or not wind energy is a viable solution to global warming and other issues dominated the session attended by about 300 people, as well as county councillors. Amherstburg lawyer Anthony Leardi warned that wind turbine developments are not public utilities, and if they go bankrupt the cost of decommissioning them could be borne by the municipality.

The smallest of the 15 wind-farm bids accepted by Hydro-Québec on Monday could end up generating more political current than all of the other projects combined. A French-backed energy consortium is proposing to build 37 wind towers on a mountain near Lac-au-Sable, a popular fishing, hunting and hiking spot for locals and tourists next to one of Quebec's most popular provincial parks in the picturesque Charlevoix region east of Quebec City. "No one here is in favour of it," said Charles Roberge, who is president of the UNESCO-recognized Charlevoix Biosphere Reserve and head of a regional coalition against the Lac-au-Sable project.

Six of 10 turbines at P.E.I.'s East Point Wind Plant have been shut down to avoid further damage after problems with their gearboxes were discovered during routine inspections. The three-megawatt, 90-metre turbines are the largest wind turbines in commercial operation in North America, said Vestas Americas, suppliers of the turbines, in a news release Tuesday. "The technology is still new, and it is a key focus area of ours to continuously develop and improve the reliability of our products," said president Jens Soby.

The East Point Wind Plant at Elmira has taken six of its 10 V90-3.0 MW wind turbines off-line to avoid further damage to the gearboxes after discovery of problems with them during routine inspections. Vestas-Canadian Wind Technology, Inc., supplier of the turbines, is in the process of delivering replacement gearboxes for the affected turbines to the wind plant. ...He says the V90-3.0 MW wind turbine is the largest and most powerful turbine in commercial operation on the North American market. "The technology is still new and it is a key focus area of ours to continuously develop and improve the reliability of our products.

A motion to implement municipal wind turbine setbacks was deferred for more information on Monday. East Kent Coun. Jim Brown had requested various mandatory distance requirements, depending on whether the property was residential or commercial in nature. While there are already guidelines from Ontario's Ministry of the Environment, Brown said much more needs to be done before any more wind farm applications come forward. "I don't believe we have formal enough zoning in place - we have to have something firm," he said. "We should have these setbacks in place before we go any further."

Hydro-Quebec has accepted 15 bids from companies offering to provide the provincial utility with a total of 2,004 megawatts of wind-generated electricity that would come on stream between 2011 and 2015 if final approvals are reached. The average price is 10.5 cents per kilowatt-hour and the projects involve estimated capital outlays totalling $5.5 billion, including $1.1 billion for transmission infrastructure, Hydro-Quebec said Monday. The contracts arise from a call for tenders issued in October 2005 seeking Quebec-generated wind power. The projects will be located in eight different regions of the province.

It's no longer about the 3 Bs -- birds, bats and butterflies. It's about people, politics and money. With a dozen companies poised to build as many as a 1,000, 120-meter-high wind turbines, rural life in this area could change forever, says Bill Anderson of the Essex County Wind Action Group. When the wind turbines first started being proposed a few years ago, they were opposed by people worried about migratory bird routes and the impact on a variety of flying wildlife. But people will also be negatively affected, Anderson warned. "There won't be any place in Essex County you will be able to stand without seeing wind turbines," he said. "These things are 400 feet high." ...Typically, land-based wind turbines are able to generate electricity less than 30 per cent of their operating time, Lee said. Over-water locations fare a bit better, he said. Lee said wind energy companies are going to be paid about three times as much for their electricity as the average cost of production by Ontario Power Generation from coal, hydroelectric and nuclear power plants.

People in western P.E.I. say the government did not give them a voice before it allowed a German company, NewEn, to lease land for a proposed wind farm in the Anglo Tignish area. "First of all, I don't want to see 30 to 50 windmills around my house," Gina MacLeod told Debbie Horne of the West Prince Graphic in Alberton. "The transmission lines are right there, less than 100 feet from our house. The biggest thing for me is if there is any risk at all, then I don't want to have it near my family." ..."We as citizens should not have to worry about these issues. We elect our government officials who are there to serve us before they give permission for foreign companies to come into our area and make drastic changes. We as residents should have been notified and informed."

Municipal administration will ask council for a deferral on a wind energy policy on Monday. During the April 14 planning meeting, councillors voted for staff to create a report on the potential proliferation of wind turbines and ways to mitigate the impact. The report would come before the Ontario Power Authority proceeds with its next round of request for proposals (RFPs). ...An administrative report states "the potential number of turbines that can actually locate in Chatham-Kent are far less than the number coming forward for approval."