It is often said there are always two sides to any story. And generally I believe this to be true. But after five years in this chair I continue to strain to hear or comprehend the argument for wind energy-I have failed to hear a persuasive argument that explains why we had to ruin Wolfe Island and why we must do the same to Prince Edward County. I am still waiting.

Apart from the fact that wind energy is impractical and unreliable, the cost of creating these wind farms is also outrageous (ie. service roads, police escorts, labour, new substations and transmission lines). High demand is also placing too much strain on the mills. As a result, they often malfunction. None of this compares though to the story of Barbara Ashbee-Lormand and her husband Dennis Lormand of Shelburne, Ontario.

The Sept. 1 letter of Claire Jones hits a key point. Ms. Jones apparently is a regular visitor to the Thousand Island area from far away. I too am a regular visitor, and like so many, we cannot believe how some local town officials are seriously prepared to transform the area in a most profound way. Having seen the Maple Ridge Wind Farm many times on my way to the Thousand Islands, I am shocked that efforts are under way to bring such visually dominating infrastructure to the Thousand Islands.

It's really quite easy to dismiss opponents of wind farms as suffering more from the "not-in-my-backyard" (NIMBY) syndrome than any particular health problem. Wind farms are the cleanest form of energy we have, consuming no fuel and emitting no pollution. They are one part of the solution to wean the world off fossil fuels. And they are being built as quickly as the turbines can roll off the assembly lines ...But for the Ontario government to dismiss what appears to be growing concern about potential health problems generated by wind farms is folly.

‘Wind Power Monthly' (The Editor, September 1998), the magazine for the wind industry and its supporters, actually recognized almost 11 years ago that the reason for the growing unpopularity of wind power is that a de facto heavy industry has tricked its way into unspoiled countryside in "green" disguise. The editor stated that: "Too often the public has felt duped into envisioning fairy tale wind parks in the countryside. The reality has been an abrupt awakening. Wind power stations are no parks."

The placement of wind turbines near homes is an international problem that can in no way be likened to living near a train or an airport. It is not just what you hear but what you don't hear (low frequency vibration) that causes well-documented health problems. It's insidious that way. Also insidious is the quiet creation of the Ontario Green Energy Act -- a piece of legislation that removes all rights of local municipalities to take part in critical planning decisions for their own communities.

In the area of environmental action, there's recycling newspapers to save forests, and then there's Erecting The Biggest Wind Turbine In B.C. to reduce your carbon footprint. The latter example of look-at-me symbolism is becoming a reality this summer at the summit of Grouse Mountain, where engineers are installing a giant, propeller-like machine.

This year, things have changed utterly. The future has arrived on Wolfe Island with a wind-turbine vengeance. And many ferry passengers will surely lament this summer that one of Ontario's more tranquil refuges has been turned into a wind-turbine theme park. ...Whatever the technical merits of the project, there's no question about the aesthetic impact on the island. The turbines have tilted its ambience from the pastoral to the industrial.

So people on Manitoulin can't handle change or that we think that turbines are monsters. I would suggest to Martin and Northland Power that people on Manitoulin are not children to be condescended to. We know turbines are not monsters and we would accept change as well as anyone, provided that it is to the benefit of all of residents, adjacent landowners, farm owners who are leasing their land. We want the concerns clearly addressed, not just reassurances that turbines are not monsters and that everything will be fine. Islanders deserve better then that.

Before we go any further, let me address something that comes up every time someone asks questions about a green project in this province. It's a favourite tactic of our Liberal government to dismiss concerns of their constituents as being NIMBYism (Not in My Backyard), or those people don't want to help the planet. A word of warning to the province: that kind of dismissal here on the Island just makes Islanders dig in harder. As far as I can tell, the concerns of this citizens group are legitimate and I believe they need to be addressed.

Back in the good old days there was a saying - "necessity is the mother of invention" but times are changing and in order to meet these changing times we need a new philosophy; case in point - the St. Joseph Wind Project. In a strange twist of logic, it has been deemed - "invention is the mother of necessity" and the St. Joseph wind project is a perfect example of this new way of thinking.

It's a dilemma that forward-thinking, environmentally conscious people do not want to face: Will moving toward carbon-free energy sources mean disrupting bird migration routes and having a negative impact on wildlife populations? This weekend sees the July 12 deadline for public comments on the massive NaiKun wind farm proposed for Hecate Strait. ...The problem arises, however, that this exact location, the shallow water around McIntyre Beach and Rose Spit, is a designated important bird area under the BirdLife International program that lists critical sites for bird populations in over 200 countries worldwide.

It's a sad day when Ontario's Environment Minister trivializes the preservation of landscapes by declaring that renewable energy development won't slow down "just to preserve scenic views"

With the Green Energy and Green Economy Act, it actually seems as though Ontarians are being asked to "buy in" to having no say as to what happens in their "backyard." The wind turbine development on Wolfe Island is not only unsightly on what was once a beautiful, peaceful and pastoral island but it will provide insignificant power to the grid at only intermittent intervals.

In returning Shear Wind's initial Environment Assessment registration document for more information, the prior minister of environment, Mark Parent, afforded Shear Wind, Inc. a full year to get it right. Instead, they responded in less than two months with a document that is still incomplete and now abuses the related technical literature. Large blocks of text (100 words and more) in the health section are essentially identical to text in a report authored by the Ohio Department of Health. There are neither quotation marks nor any attributions to the original work.

We understand how easy it is to think superficially about this wind project when one does not live in the wind designated area. Those of us who live in the designated wind zone must look deeper and therefore have requested that this industry be regulated so our children and grandchildren will have the option of living here without living under the blades of wind turbines and high voltage wires.

An appeal for support of the project circulated by District 1 councillor Kelly McVicar on behalf of Shear Wind Inc. early this month made a plea for alternative energy as ‘educational' and for this project as a needed precedent. I am not quite sure what is educational about a power plant, unless the intended meaning was that we be educated about its dangers and failings, but I am very sure that precedents already exist. ...The most damning piece of educational material on hand goes to the root of the justification for erecting turbines and subsidizing the companies doing so: they contribute virtually nothing to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

Look out, here they come. When I first heard about the wind turbines coming to the Valley, I did not have many thoughts on the subject. It all sounded interesting - good, clean renewable energy. It showed that the Valley was concerned about global warming and showing the world that we wanted to help. ...Then I started reading the signs - "Get informed, know the facts - know the risks."

Congratulations! Your community has been chosen to be the recipient of a vast number of wind turbines! What can you expect to happen?

We live in an era where the use of alternate forms of energy are becoming increasingly important - perhaps even critical as fossil fuel supplies dwindle over the next 50 years. At the same time, the application of alternate solutions must be based upon common sense and hard facts based upon scientific research. In the case of wind power, for which the jury is still out, this requires even more scrutiny.