An excellent opinion piece appeared in this weekend’s National Post, written by a resident of beautiful Amherst Island. Just a ferry ride from Kingston, the island is a globally significant area for migratory birds and is especially recognized for its owl population. For more information, go to the Association to Protect Amherst Island website, here: http://protectamherst.yolasite.com/

The letter writer makes many points about how ludicrous a wind power development of this magnitude in this location is, but we like her point about just how many people are behind the decision to ruin the community and despoil the island, for profit. Seventeen.

In the case of the project proposed for the Ottawa area (in the North Gower-Richmond section) it is THREE. Three people have decided to make money, while exposing hundreds of homes to the environmental noise and infrasound produced by ten industrial-scale turbines.

She writes:

It’s a storybook setting.

Or at least it was, until wind turbines reared their ugly 507-foot-high heads, threatening to alter the lives of not just the 17 landowners that signed up to host them, but the 96% of islanders that didn’t. Now we’ve got a schism. And it happened before anyone knew it.

Rumours are ricocheting: that it was stealthily planned (“psst, wanna turbine?”); that contracts included non-disclose clauses (“psst, don’t tell anyone till it’s a done deal!”); that there’ll be a turbine right by the primary school (“don’t worry, the kids’ll be OK”); that the private power company salivating over the possible contract has offered the township a “donation” (taxpayer-funded) of $7.5-million that comes with a gag order.

The large and active No-Turbines side claims to have the support of the mayor, county council, Conservative MPP and MP, and 90 municipalities. And the Auditor General, Ontario Federation of Agriculture and Fraser Institute seem negatively disposed as well.

Apparently that’s not enough. This train with just 17 passengers aboard — and a crew that includes wealthy investors, a clutch of Liberal provincial government ministers, and a gaggle of lobbyists with Liberal party ties — is heading, full steam ahead, right for our heritage village.

Here is the Amherst Island letter in full. http://opinion.financialpost.com/2013/03/30/turbine-foes-left-to-twist-in-the-wind/

Ottawa Wind Concerns is a community group opposed to the inappropriate siting of wind power generation projects close to people’s homes, schools, farms, and the natural environment. We are NOT a “willing host.” To view the proposed project go to http://www.prowind.ca and click on Projects, Marlborough.  The study map depicted there is not accurate, however; neither are the photos depicting what the turbines will look like.

E-mail ottawawindconcerns@gmail.com

Donations welcome for legal expenses and communications efforts. PO Box 3, North Gower ON  K0A 2T0