As you read the article that follows, pay attention to what Bill Murdoch MPP has to say. First – the Ont. Conservative Party planned to install more wind turbines than the Liberals – stated in their 2007 election platform.
Murdoch says he opposed the GEA but he never bothered to vote against it. When his office was asked why Murdoch was not in the House for the vote his rep said he had a prior engagement. What could be more important than voting on the removal of Municipal rights.
Murdoch is as guilty as anyone for not standing up for the people of his riding. Why was he not holding information meetings in his riding to inform and advise his constituents about the coming folly.
Why didn’t Murdoch attend the meeting held on the 1st? It was held just down the street form his office
Gutless, or part of the Treason taking place in this province. You decide!
It’s too late to stop the surge of wind-farm development in Ontario, even by arguing the turbines cause illness, says Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound MPP Bill Murdoch.
“As far as what they can do about it, there really isn’t a heck of a lot,” he said yesterday.
Murdoch’s comments come a day after about 120 people attended a public meeting at the Grey Bruce Health Unit in Owen Sound about health effects of wind turbines.
The Progressive Conservative MPP said residents’ concerns will likely fall on deaf ears of policy makers and Liberal cabinet ministers at Queen’s Park, since the Green Energy Act is now law.
Asked what people can do, Murdoch initially said “not a thing. It’s over. It’s a law.”
Later, he said concerned residents can write to Premier Dalton McGuinty or the Ontario Ministry of Health. Letters to Murdoch’s office will be forwarded, he said.
“They’re pretty much euchred. I don’t know where they can go. Some will say (I) can do something about it. There’s not a thing I can do about it. It’s a law,” he said.
People who believe the giant wind turbines cause illness can seek medical attention from a doctor, retain a lawyer and sue, Murdoch said, but that will likely be a “waste of money.”
Emotions ran high at Thursday’s public meeting, which the health unit organized to provide wind turbine information to residents.
Keynote speaker Dr. Ray Copes, a director at the Ontario Agency of Health Protection and Promotion, was heckled by the crowd several times after his one-hour slide presentation revealed little new information.
People took exception to Copes’ characterization of health impacts caused by turbines as an “annoyance” and his claim no proof exists linking illness to wind turbines.
People opposed to wind farms say turbines cause health problems such as chronic sleep disturbance, dizziness, exhaustion, anxiety, depression, irritability, nausea and ringing in ears.
Medical officer of health Dr. Hazel Lynn said she is aware “suffering” is being attributed to turbines, but has no power to make or influence changes to the Green Energy Act. The health unit cannot perform in-depth studies on health claims either, she said.
Lynn criticized the act at the public meeting, saying “we need more choices” since it strips local municipalities of the authority to make decisions about turbine setbacks. The act requires a 550-metre setback from a turbine to residential properties.
Murdoch said he opposed the act at Queen’s Park for that reason.
Progressive Conservatives MPPs voted against it and Murdoch said perhaps a change in government would lead to some changes. The next provincial election is in 2011.
“There’s going to be a lot of wind turbines put up in the next two years, I would assume, within the context of that law,” he said.
The province has promised to eliminate coal-fired power by 2014 and add 975 wind turbines by 2012.
A second public meeting, organized by the health unit, is scheduled for Tuesday from 7 to 9 p.m. at Walkerton’s Jubilee Hall.
As you read this article pay attention to what Bill Murdoch MPP has to say. First – the Ont. Conservative Party planned to install more wind turbines than the Liberals – stated in their 2007 election platform. Murdoch says he opposed the GEA but he never bothered to vote against it. When his office was asked why Murdoch was not in the House for the vote his rep said he had a prior engagement. What could be more important than voting on the removal of Municipal rights.
Murdoch is as guilty as anyone for not standing up for the people of his riding. Why was he not holding information meeting in his riding to inform and advise his constituents about the coming folly.
Why didn’t Murdoch attend the meeting held on the 6th? It was held just down the street form his office
Gutless, or part of the Treason taking place in this province. You decide!
It’s too late to stop the surge of wind-farm development in Ontario, even by arguing the turbines cause illness, says Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound MPP Bill Murdoch.
“As far as what they can do about it, there really isn’t a heck of a lot,” he said yesterday.
Murdoch’s comments come a day after about 120 people attended a public meeting at the Grey Bruce Health Unit in Owen Sound about health effects of wind turbines.
The Progressive Conservative MPP said residents’ concerns will likely fall on deaf ears of policy makers and Liberal cabinet ministers at Queen’s Park, since the Green Energy Act is now law.
Asked what people can do, Murdoch initially said “not a thing. It’s over. It’s a law.”
Later, he said concerned residents can write to Premier Dalton McGuinty or the Ontario Ministry of Health. Letters to Murdoch’s office will be forwarded, he said.
“They’re pretty much euchred. I don’t know where they can go. Some will say (I) can do something about it. There’s not a thing I can do about it. It’s a law,” he said.
People who believe the giant wind turbines cause illness can seek medical attention from a doctor, retain a lawyer and sue, Murdoch said, but that will likely be a “waste of money.”
Emotions ran high at Thursday’s public meeting, which the health unit organized to provide wind turbine information to residents.
Keynote speaker Dr. Ray Copes, a director at the Ontario Agency of Health Protection and Promotion, was heckled by the crowd several times after his one-hour slide presentation revealed little new information.
People took exception to Copes’ characterization of health impacts caused by turbines as an “annoyance” and his claim no proof exists linking illness to wind turbines.
People opposed to wind farms say turbines cause health problems such as chronic sleep disturbance, dizziness, exhaustion, anxiety, depression, irritability, nausea and ringing in ears.
Medical officer of health Dr. Hazel Lynn said she is aware “suffering” is being attributed to turbines, but has no power to make or influence changes to the Green Energy Act. The health unit cannot perform in-depth studies on health claims either, she said.
Lynn criticized the act at the public meeting, saying “we need more choices” since it strips local municipalities of the authority to make decisions about turbine setbacks. The act requires a 550-metre setback from a turbine to residential properties.
Murdoch said he opposed the act at Queen’s Park for that reason.
Progressive Conservatives MPPs voted against it and Murdoch said perhaps a change in government would lead to some changes. The next provincial election is in 2011.
“There’s going to be a lot of wind turbines put up in the next two years, I would assume, within the context of that law,” he said.
The province has promised to eliminate coal-fired power by 2014 and add 975 wind turbines by 2012.
A second public meeting, organized by the health unit, is scheduled for Tuesday from 7 to 9 p.m. at Walkerton’s Jubilee Hall.
TVO’s Agenda this Tuesday will feature a panel discussion on Wind Developments. John Adams of WCO ( Wind Concerns Ontario)is slated to speak on behalf of our new coalition. Tune in if you can.
TVO – Tuesday, Nov. 4th., 8.00 pm
You don’t do this to your neighbors !
Suncor wind farm Ripley
click for full size
click for full size
Enbridge Wind Farm Kincardine
click for full size
You don’t do this to your neighbors !
Go through this information and then tune into TVO on Tuesday, Nov. 4th., 8.00 pm
I’m going to go through this article by Tyler Hamilton and critique it. I’ll include some of my experiences and thoughts as well. My critique will be added in italics. Having spent over two years studying wind farms, having read and studied thousands of pages of documents from around the world, attending many council meetings and an OMB hearing, I believe I’m qualified to discuss the subject in an objective manner.
Province wary of small but effective groups as it aims to beef up renewable energy plan.
Oct 30, 2008 04:30 AM
Tyler Hamilton Energy ReporterToronto Star( Shill for the wind industry – I say that because of his absolute lack of objectivity)
Opponents to wind farms in Ontario, at the best of times a local thorn in the side of wind-energy developers, have suddenly realized the benefit of getting organized.( see what I mean )Earlier this week a new anti-wind group called Wind Concerns Ontario, a coalition of 22 small rural groups each fighting their own community battles, announced its creation as a “strong, unified voice of opposition” to provincial plans that would see thousands of industrial wind turbines “tearing apart the very fabric of rural Ontario.”
They emphasize the “industrial” nature of wind turbines and their danger to birds and bats. They say the machines are noisy, make some people sick, kill local tourism and cause the real estate values of surrounding properties to fall. (All true statements, backed by facts)
When those complaints don’t stick, they attack the technology as being a fraud. “It does not in reality produce `green’ energy, does not reduce CO2 emissions significantly and is inefficient,” said Beth Harrington, spokesperson for the new coalition and head of the Alliance to Protect Prince Edward County, where several onshore and offshore wind projects are being planned.
(True – Wind energy has been promoted as being able to significantly reduce emissions, even though there is no evidence to support the claim.)
The increasingly vocal opposition, however small compared to those who more quietly support wind power in Ontario, isn’t lost on the Liberal government, which is counting on new renewable-energy projects as part of a plan to wean the province from coal-fired power generation by 2014.
(The so-called “quiet support” comes from people who got sucked in by the propaganda machine or never did any research on the subject)
In September, Energy and Infrastructure Minister George Smitherman directed the power authority to beef up an already ambitious renewable-energy plan, much of it dependent on massive new wind farms being erected across the province and on the Great Lakes.
(George Smitherman just recently took over the Ministry of Energy. So the question that needs to be asked is – What does Smitherman actually know about the energy needs of Ont. From his actions so far I feel safe in saying – not much. As Health Minister he thought it was prudent to have our seniors sit in dirty diaper until they were 70% full)
Smitherman, who will be in Shelburne today opening Canada’s largest wind farm, told the Star he’s committed to engaging the public in meaningful discussions as the plan moves forward. “But we also recognize that work needs to be done to ensure that momentum on the goal of a cleaner and green energy future isn’t diminished.”
(Meaningful discussions should be read as – drink the Kool-Aid or we’ll call you names ie: Nimby’s. That does not constitute meaningful discussions. He also forgot to mention the people already forced to move as a result of the first phase of the project)
This will require a streamlining of rules and regulations so they better balance community concerns with the need to move projects forward, industry observers say. A practical start, some suggest, is to establish environmental pre-screening of projects to weed out the good from the bad.
(This should read – The govt. and wind industry will decide where wind farms go and local councils will be bypassed.)
Behind the scenes the government is working on such improvements, sources say, including the creation of a Green Energy Act that would give priority to renewable energy and conservation as the province updates and expands its electricity system.
(Read – end of local democratic rights)
Some have grown impatient. EPCOR Utilities Inc. earlier this month canceled a $300-million wind farm in Goderich. After years of delay, the company said it couldn’t wait any longer for provincial and municipal approvals, which in some cases had been slowed by a handful of protesters.
( I attended many council meetings concerning the Epcor-Kingsbridge ll wind farm near Goderich and I never saw a protester. I did meet people who were lied to in order to construct Kingsbridge l . People who suffered from health, noise and stray voltage problems. I saw Epcor walk out of council meetings twice and say they were done. Why? Because people wanted answers to questions that the wind company couldn’t or refused to answer.
They should have left, but the govt. kept saying they would fix things. I saw junk engineering reports – anything to try and ram the project through. I believe there has been a formal complaint lodged because of those engineering reports.
We, a small group of dedicated citizens, farmers and landowners, including one dedicated councilor held up Kingsbridge ll for over a year. In that time I witnessed what can only be described as total and complete disrespect for people, their rights, their health, their property and the truth.
In the end a 450 meter setback was adopted – the same setback that was put forward over a year earlier, even though the people suffering ill effects from Kingsbridge l were all outside the 450 meter setback. The councilor who stood up for his constituents said “I was told by lawyers that any setback over 450 meters would prompt an OMB hearing at a cost to the township of $100.000 and that we would lose.”
Epcor recently released a statement stating they were withdrawing from the Kinsbridge ll wind farm because they would be unable to have the project up and operational by Oct.31st. of this year. They had to know that at least a year ago – so what gives?
This is speculation on my part, but I believe the Epcor withdrawal will be used as the excuse the govt. has been looking for to bypass local councils.
So much for democracy!)
Closer to home, Toronto Hydro got a taste of things to come this week as it considers construction of an offshore wind farm off the Scarborough Bluffs. It was forced on Monday evening to cancel its first community information meeting because more than 400 people showed up – twice as many as the church hall could hold.
Nearly 200 people lined up outside were greeted by someone from a group called SOS Windfarms Toronto (the SOS stands for Stop Offshore) who was handing out business cards that promote a website.
Along with some valid concerns, the site also contains misleading or wrong information, such as claims that the wind farm is being promoted as the only green solution for Toronto and that 80 years of aviation data show the site is inappropriate for wind generation.
(If you want misleading or wrong information go to the CanWEA site or the Govt. of Ont. site,or read the writing of Tyler Hamilton. They are masters of the art.)
“I think a lot of people are making judgments based on information that I would say is incorrect,” said Keith Stewart, an energy expert with WWF-Canada. “Rational argument can win over the majority, but it can’t win over everyone.”
(There goes Tyler Hamilton again – describing Keith Stewart of the WWF as an energy expert. Keith Stewart has a PhD in political science from York University, where he studied environmental politics. I see nothing that would suggest he is an energy expert.
I thought the focus of the WWF was trying to save the ‘not endangered polar bear’. Maybe Mr. Stewart would be of more use in the high arctic.
I want to hear from the engineers – the people who understand and build electrical systems, not politicians and lobby groups)
Stewart said some ecologically sensitive locations are clearly not appropriate for wind farms, and that’s part of the reason why government has to create guidelines.
(It was CanWEA that requested the govt. not impose setbacks and the govt. agreed to the request.)
First, the relatively small size of private land parcels in Ontario will present a challenge for developers due to the number of stakeholders that may perceive impacts. Windpark development may become uneconomical if municipal setbacks created to address these “perceived” concerns reduce the usable land area, thus eliminating the economics of scale necessary to develop a project.*
*14c) The Industry does not recommend that a set of standard bylaws be adopted with respect to setbacks or other municipal zoning issues.*
(*”The above can be understood to mean, that if “safe setbacks” are mandated, it will make it uneconomical to site wind farms in Southern Ontario”)
(If Tyler Hamilton, the Govt. or CanWEA think they can subdue the rising state of awareness concerning the reality of wind farms, they are mistaken in their misguided belief, just as they are being dishonest when telling the public that wind farms will significantly cut CO2 emissions or are capable replacing a fossil fuel plant.
During a conversation I had with the senior policy adviser for the Ministry of Energy, I mentioned that my research suggested the best plan for Ontario’ s electrical needs was to put the scrubbers on the coal plants and build a nuke.He agreed with my assessment. Cost -10 billion for a system that is both environmentally sound and cost effective. McGuinty has continually refused to put the scrubbers on the coal plants, putting the health of thousands at risk)
McGuinty’s plan – 60+ billion for an unstable, overly expensive and is no healthier than the one proposed by myself and accepted as sound by the policy adviser.
When I asked why this was happening, he answered “politics” – try heating your home with politics.)
Although renewable energy generation has now reached the numerically equivalent of about 26.5% of annual demand (Bülow, 2005a) and wind turbines account for about 20% of total power production (Eltra, 2005), most of the region’s wind power has to be exported in order to secure stability in the domestic grid. During 2003, for example, as much as 84% of the annual supply of wind electricity was surplus to demand at its moment of generation (Sharman, 2004), and only about 4% of domestic power consumption was satisfied by wind turbines – Source – Wind power in west Denmark
Bluffs ‘only option’ for wind farm; Toronto Hydro says no other offshore sites in GTA are financially feasible locales for turbine project
The proposed site of a wind farm off the Scarborough Bluffs in Lake Ontario is the only place in the GTA where wind power might be feasible, Toronto Hydro said yesterday.
“Within the City of Toronto borders, it is pretty much the only option,” said Joan McLean, spokesperson for the project.
Noting they had already investigated the west end, McLean added: “The reality is that the construction of offshore wind turbines is not financially feasible (in) over 20 meters of water depth,” which excludes much of the GTA’s shoreline.
Toronto Hydro Energy Services has proposed placing up to 60 massive turbines on a swath of shallow reef from Ajax to the Leslie Spit. The project has prompted intense interest from locals concerned about its impact on the view, the shore, and residents. Some 400 people showed up to an information session Monday – twice as many as could fit in the hall. It was postponed and will be rescheduled.
“The noise concerns me,” said resident Jeanne Gagné. “This would be one of the first to be so close to a residential area. Everybody is pointing at us as being not-in-my-backyard. … But it’s more: Is this the best backyard?” she added.
Wind turbines belong in no ones backyard and yes the noise should concern everyone. The high cost for intermittent power should also be of major concern (added)
Family was forced to leave their home after wind turbines arrived
When are the politicians going to stop listening to the Green Freaks?
The buses have turned out to be a colossal waste of taxpayers money, just like the wind farms will prove to be.
Did the politicians ask a mechanic before they ordered the buses?
Did they let the engineers evaluate the wind energy idea before they went ahead?
collapsed Vestas wind turbine
Or did they listen to the rhetoric of people like Al Gore and David Suzuki.
I’d put my money on the latter.
Billions of taxpayer dollars are being wasted chasing the C02 boogie man.
It’s time to demand that your tax dollars go where they belong. Politicians continue to chase the boogie man while our health care,education,farm and manufacturing sectors all continue to suffer from underfunding.
This must stop now!
Ottawa forces a bad idea on Toronto in the name of environmental purity
A perfectly good diesel bus costs $500,000. Instead, the city bought hybrid electric/diesel buses at $700,000 each.
Why? Because the only way Ottawa would give it the $300 million to buy the buses was if it bought “alternative fuel” vehicles. Naturally it complied. The only problem: the buses suck. They don’t save much fuel, and the batteries keep going kaput, requiring expensive towing operations by emission-spewing conventional vehicles.
So, in the name of environmental purity the federal government induced the city of Toronto to buy lousy buses at great expense, that don’t work well and don’t really save much in the way of fuel consumption.
TC wants to reopen Daimler contract for hybrid buses
Diesel vehicles seen as more reliable
JEFF GRAY
October 24, 2008
The manufacturer of Toronto’s hundreds of faulty hybrid-engine buses can expect a call this morning, the TTC’s chief general manager says, after his political overseers voted to give him the authority to play hardball in new talks.“The president will get a phone call,” Gary Webster, chief general manager of the TTC, said in an interview. “There’ll be meetings in the next few weeks to see if we can address this issue.”
Many of the Toronto Transit Commission’s nearly 500 diesel-electric hybrid buses have seen their rooftop lead-acid batteries fail after just 1½ years on the roads.
A handful of buses have even conked out mid-route, leaving passengers at the curb, TTC officials acknowledged.
About a 2 1/2-hour drive east of central Tokyo, on the edge of
the Kanto plain, stands one of the closest wind farms to the capital,
whirring away as it generates up to 25,500 kw of clean electricity.
Here in the fishing port of Choshi, Chiba Prefecture, warm and cold
currents meet offshore in the Pacific Ocean, creating strong winds that
feed about 30 of the 1,400 windmills erected nationwide.
Wind power is drawing increased attention as . . .
Japan’s wind power industry installed only 185 megawatts (MW) of
capacity in the year ended in March, 2008, less than half of what it
installed in 2006/07, as tighter regulations delayed the contruction of
wind farms.
The stricter guidelines, which stipulate that wind turbines must clear
the same safety regulations that apply to tall buildings, were
introduced last summer following a scandal in 2005 over falsified
engineering data for apartment blocks. Critics say the new rules . . .
In the country that hosted the Kyoto Protocol and wrote the book
on solar policy, the wind-power industry has ground almost to a halt.
Among the culprits: policy, cost and technology challenges.
The strong winds that buffeted the Tokai and Kanto regions
Tuesday apparently snapped the massive blades of two wind turbines in
Higashi-Izucho, Shizuoka Prefecture, officials of the company that
operates the turbines said.
The site hosts 10 windmills belonging to CEF Izuatagawa Wind Farm Co.,
a subsidiary of Nemuro, Hokkaido-based wind power generation company
Clean Energy Factory Co. Each windmill is 103.5 meters tall, and can
generate 1,500 kilowatts. Turbines No. 4 and No. 5 each . . .
Wind-power companies are complaining that tougher
quake-resistance requirements for buildings have made it difficult or
even impossible to construct facilities for the clean energy.
They also say that if wind turbines remain covered under the revised
Building Standards Law, it would hurt the government’s target for
wind-power generation capacity.
The law now requires windmills that are more than 60 meters tall to
clear the same quake-resistance screening as those for high-rise
buildings.
Of the 59 planned wind-power . . .
An estimated 1,200 bats, most of them probably just passing through Montana, were killed after striking wind turbines at the Judith Gap Wind Farm between July 2006 and May 2007, according to a post-construction bird and bat survey.
Editor
Over the last year and a half I have had the opportunity to attend many council meetings dealing with wind farms. I have been called a Nimby several times, even though I am not directly affected, nor will I be, by any wind turbine installation. So, why was I called a Nimby? Could it be that I asked questions the govt. and the wind industry don’t want to answer, or can’t answer, without exposing the fraud.
The word Nimby was chosen to effectively remove the voice of, and belittle, a segment of society.
The word Nimby is being used in the same context and for the same purpose as the word “Nigger’ was used in the past. To marginalize people.
Years ago, Blacks were run off their land without compensation. The same thing is happening today. People who can no longer deal with the negative health affects of living near wind turbines are being forced to move, without compensation.
In most cases the people who are, or will be affected by a wind farm have no one to turn to for help. Not their council, upper levels of govt. or the media. They are alone in their misery, just as the Blacks were years ago. I know how these people feel because I have met many of them and they deserve better.
Sure, I have talked to people in the govt., the media and people on the street who agree with me and the other “Nimby’s” but are afraid to, or not allowed to speak out. Kind of reminds me of Black history.
When I was twelve, I’m 53 now, I got to experience “Nigger” first hand. A black family moved into my town, I believe they were the first. They had a son the same age as me and we became friends.
I remember walking down the street with him when some older guys started calling him “Nigger” and to go back where he came from. You could see the hurt in my friends eyes. What did he do wrong? Nothing. Did he do something to those calling him names? No. So, why did they call him names, because that is what Sheeple do.
Sheeple is a term of disparagement, a portmanteau created by combining the words “sheep” and “people“; a reference to herd mentality. It is often used to denote persons who acquiesce to authority, and thus undermine their own human individuality. The implication of sheeple is that as a collective, people believe whatever they are told, especially if told so by authority figures, without processing it to be sure that it is an accurate representation of the real world around them.
Ignorant people, with lazy minds is what allows govt. and media to continue to use propaganda instead of truth. Both govt. and marketing firms know this and use Sheeple to their advantage.
Sheeple let others think for them. So when the media and govt. tags someone or some group with a derogatory label, like Nimby, the Sheeple not only accept the tag, they use it.
The same thing has happened with “Global Warming”. Anyone, and that includes some of the best scientists in the world, are called Skeptics and Deniers.
These names are used to discredit and marginalize anyone who would dare question or attempt to engage in debate.
The way I see it, you are either a Sheeple or a Nigger.
Call me a Nigger.
They fought for their rights.
Instead of joining the Sheeple on Earth Day and turning out your lights. I suggest we turn on the lights, the music and celebrate the fact that
Nimby’s, Skeptics and Deniers still roam the earth.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) – Cite This Source – Share Thisnig·ger <img nigger is now probably the most offensive word in English. Its degree of offensiveness has increased markedly in recent years, although it has been used in a derogatory manner since at least the Revolutionary War. Definitions 1a, 1b, and 2 represent meanings that are deeply disparaging and are used when the speaker deliberately wishes to cause great offense. Definition 1a, however, is sometimes used among African-Americans in a neutral or familiar way.
Slang: Extremely Disparaging and Offensive. a person of any race or origin regarded as contemptible, inferior, ignorant, etc.
a victim of prejudice similar to that suffered by blacks; a person who is economically, politically, or socially disenfranchised.
Please spend some time educating yourself about renewable energy, the Green Movement and the New World Order. They are all connected.
Give your mind a well deserved workout, spend some time with a Nimby, Skeptic or a Denier. They won’t bite
<img nigger
Death of Canada 