The deadline for Manitoulin citizens, together with seasonal residents and other friends of this special region, to register a comment on the proposed McLean’s Mountain wind turbine farm has been extended to Friday, January 27.
The project has been a controversial one. There is no doubt about that and the two new wind turbines constructed last fall at M’Chigeeng by the First Nation-owned Mother Earth Renewable Energy (MERE) are an example of the style of wind turbines planned for the McLean’s Mountain project so citizens can have an idea of what to expect.
The letters to the editor that have been sent to and published in this newspaper over the past 18 months have expressed a wide variety of viewpoints that have both supported and decried the McLean’s Mountain wind farm proposal on a wide variety of grounds.
Between now and January 27 is a key opportunity for both supporters and opponents of the project to register their comments on the topic with the Ontario Ministry of Energy through the Environmental Bill of Rights (EBR) process.
The website that welcomes comments on this particular project is: www.ebr.gov.on.ca. You must quote EBR Registry Number 011-5195 when making your comments.
It is clear that Ontario, through the passage of the Green Energy Act during the last provincial parliament, is keen on supporting precisely the kind of green-source energy that the McLean’s Mountain and M’Chigeeng wind turbine projects represent.
Some people support this enabling legislation while others feel betrayed that this act has streamlined the processes involved in bringing alternative energy sources to fruition, bypassing local municipal authority as a consequence.
These are the points-of-view that have been well and aptly represented by the spate of letter writers that have addressed the topic from every imaginable viewpoint.
But just now, until January 27, the matter is coming to a head as the opportunity to comment through the Environmental Bill of Rights deadline approaches.
