Despite the efforts of Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott to get an answer, it remains unclear exactly what powers, if any, local municipalities have when it comes to wind energy projects within their boundaries.
Last week in the legislature, Arnott pressured Perth-Wellington MPP John Wilkinson, now the Minister of the Environment, on the issue.
Arnott demanded an explanation from Wilkinson, who, Arnott said, has offered two very different accounts of the role of municipalities in the approval process.
“We need to know what powers communities actually have,” said Arnott.
He claimed Wilkinson has refused to repeat earlier assurances – made in front of Mapleton council on May 11 and published in the Community News and Wellington Advertiser – that if municipalities did not agree to wind applications, those applications would not be approved.
“Clearly, the minister was saying something different five months ago than he’s saying today in this house,” Arnott told the legislature on Oct. 4.
“The minister led his constituents to believe that municipal councils can stop the wind farms from being built.”
Wilkinson replied wind farm proponents must submit a complete application.
“One of the requirements is that a proponent must submit a complete application, and that includes a review and a consultation with the municipality, a schedule that is attached to that application,” he said.
Arnott, who was not satisfied with the answer, demanded a “late show,” which gives MPPs an opportunity to revisit their earlier question in a brief debate.
During that session, held on Oct. 5, Arnott referred specifically to the Advertiser and Community News stories, and Wilkinson’s response to a Mapleton resident who asked point blank if there is anything the township could do to stop wind farms if the proponents have otherwise met all the government’s criteria.
Wilkinson replied companies must obtain the signature of the township for the application to be complete.
“If the application is not complete, the project will not proceed,” Wilkinson said in May.
Arnott charged last week that Wilkinson seems to have changed his tune over the last five months.
“The minister now appears to be suggesting that as long as that municipality is consulted, the application would still be complete,” Arnott said. “So which is it: what the minister said in May, or what the minister is saying today?”
MPP Helena Jaczek, who is Wilkinson’s parliamentary assistant, attended the “late show” meeting on his behalf. She explained wind farm applicants are provided a form, that must be submitted to the ministry, that “outlines what needs to be addressed with municipal officials.”
She said the form “requests municipal feedback on matters related to municipal services and infrastructure, such as the proposed road access; the rehabilitation of areas disturbed and/or municipal infrastructure damaged during construction; and emergency management procedures and safety protocols related to the ongoing management of the facility.”
She continued, “If the applicant is not able to provide all of the required information, the complete submission must explain why. In addition, the applicant must describe and document efforts to address any issues raised during municipal consultation.”
After the debate, Arnott said consulting municipalities is obviously important, but it doesn’t necessarily give them the power to stop a wind farm that they may not want.
“That’s why we need John Wilkinson to be clear – will his government respect the will of the people, or will they be overlooked?” Arnott asked in a press release.
