Despite council’s call for a moratorium on wind energy projects, two companies appear to be going ahead as planned with large projects here.
Residents are now well aware of the NextEra Energy Canada plan to build an 18 to 25.3 megawatt farm in northeast Mapleton consisting of 12 wind turbines, each measuring 80 metres in height.
And last week Invenergy Canada officials confirmed they still hope to construct a wind farm almost four times that size in southeast Mapleton.
“We remain committed to doing a project here,” Invenergy development manager James Murphy told council on Feb. 18.
Murphy said Invenergy has applied under the Green?Energy Act’s feed-in-tariff (FIT) program for a 69MW contract which, if 1.5MW turbines are chosen, means 46 turbines. He told council he expects to hear back in late March, although at least one councillor said that is wishful thinking.
Murphy acknowledged Invenergy, which first announced plans for a 14-turbine first phase in 2005, has struggled with “ever-changing provincial permitting and procurement processes.”
But even though its officials seem to “go away for long stretches,” he said Invenergy is working hard to get the project off the ground.
“We have designed a lease that will share landowner revenue with all owners of the 13,000 acres currently under land agreement to Invenergy, not simply the smaller percentage who will host wind farm infrastructure,” Murphy said in his report to council.
Invenergy is aware of Mapleton’s concerns about turbines, Murphy said, alluding to a memorandum council passed in?December, but the company has taken steps to safeguard residents and local farming operations.
“We’re very confident our project will have absolutely no impact,” Murphy said.
Plus, he noted, the Ontario government recently conducted a “comprehensive review” of medical literature regarding wind turbine-related health issues and found there was not enough evidence to “warrant public health interventions at this point in time.”
Murphy invited council, in addition to residents, to come on a tour of the company’s Raleigh wind energy project near Chatham “to view our construction activities and meet our participating landowners who are farming the area to share their experience.”
Mayor John Green cautioned Murphy about comparing the two projects, noting Mapleton is likely one of the top five areas in the province for farm animal population, while the Raleigh project area could be in the bottom 2%. Murphy said he recognizes that.
Councillor Bruce Whale asked how Invenergy will address possible problems with stray voltage and particularly what will happen if a landowner has to be relocated as a result – as has happened with other wind farms.
Murphy replied he could not comment on the practices of its competitors, but stressed Invenergy would work closely with landowners on a case-by-case basis. “No one wants to dislocate anyone from their home,” he said, adding it is hard to speculate what will happen in the future.
Councillor Mike Downey asked what assurances the township and its residents have that Invenergy will not sell off the wind farm once it is built – as other companies have done – possibly leaving landowner deals null and void.
Murphy said in the United States, Invenergy has built over 2,000MW worth of wind energy projects, almost 100% of which remains owned by the company. That said, he noted any agreements signed with the company should be transferable in case of a future sale.
“Our goal is to be there long term,” Murphy said of the Mapleton project.
Green suggested interested landowners should insist on transferable agreements.
Murphy explained Invenergy does have a draft layout for turbines and it looks a lot different than what it did in the beginning.
That is due to more stringent noise and setback requirements, as well as a desire to locate turbines closer to existing side roads.
Green noted councillors are very respectful of farmland and stressed council will try to ensure existing side roads are used as much as possible in accessing turbines. Murphy said Invenergy would try to be mindful of that.
But later in the meeting. Whale noted a committee of local landowners is concerned Invenergy officials are not respecting farmland, as several proposed access roads divide fields in half.
Whale added committee members are noticing a difference in attitude over the last several years among affected landowners, most of whom were once proponents of wind energy. At recent committee meetings, he noted, only a very small percentage of landowners – if any – were in favour of the Invenergy proposal.
“It sounds to me like [Invenergy has] got most of them discouraged,” Whale told council.
Green said he has received at least one phone call from a resident wondering what protection from stray voltage exists for “innocent victims” or those who have not signed agreements with Invenergy.
“His concerns are legitimate,”?Green said.
The mayor asked staff to inform Invenergy officials that councillors would not be able to attend the Feb. 25 bus trip to the Raleigh wind farm – they were at the Ontario Good Roads Association conference – and to ask if it could be rescheduled.
Whale added he was told not one of the landowner committee members was attending the trip either.
