No one asked for this. Nobody looked to have their life and homes
exposed in the news, trying to explain how the most promising form of renewable
energy was causing such destruction of their family.
Sleep deprivation,
headaches, migraines, heart palpitations, tinnitus, pressure in the ears, sores
that won’t heal, dangerously high blood pressure and the list goes on. This was
not the plan that any of these quiet and unassuming rural families had in mind,
but this is what they got. And countless months later it
continues.
Nobody wanted to get sick; nobody wanted to be forced to leave
their home, the place they raised their children, the place they intended to
live out their retirement. Not one of them asked for this. In almost all cases,
these symptoms were non-existent before the start up of the wind
farm.
And when it was discovered these wonderful, planet saving
industrial machines were actually hurting them and their family, not one of them
would anticipate there would be no help for them.
As they read in the
papers how our government was running to help other citizens who found
themselves in all manner of troubling circumstances through no fault of their
own, there they sat, waiting, ignored and ridiculed for admitting they needed
help against the giant industry that the government had hyper-promoted in their
ambitious scheme to ‘save the planet’.
Who are these people, the green
supporters cry out? NIMBY’S! They’re trying to stop our efforts to help the
world! NIMBY’S! They don’t like change! They don’t want them in their backyard!
Sorry, but nothing could be further from the truth. As a matter of fact, the
vast majority welcomed wind farms as much as anyone. Some even boasted how proud
they would be to participate at such close hand, to be able to help make a
difference, to assist in providing clean, renewable energy.
But when the
troubles started, the government looked the other way. When the troubles
started, the government ran the other way, fingers in ears, la la la. There was
no time for anyone or anything to stop this magnificent much needed
multi-million, make that billion, dollar program and so they chose to ignore and
abandon those who asked for help. They simply did not respond. As a matter of
fact, some of the residents were subjected to blatant derision from their MPP.
The people asked their local town council for help. They asked the Ministry of
the Environment for help. They asked the Public Health Unit for help. They asked
the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure for help. They even asked the Premier
of Ontario directly for help. Nothing happened. No one responded. No sir, what
they got from the Premier of Ontario was a loud and strong message that he was
not going to let any NIMBY’s slow down his cause.
Thrown into the already
brewing mess was the Green Energy Act. Sounding like a wonderful piece of
legislation that would help this province and in turn, the country achieve the
desired energy saving goals, it turned out to be a complete removal of rights
for Ontarians; the complete dismantling of democracy in one piece of
legislation. What most people didn’t know or pay attention to, was what the
Premier and his two Ministers were trying to push through at lightning speed
would affect everyone, not just the rural residents. And oh, how it
does!
And so the letters flowed and the meetings started; ministry
workshop meetings, presentations at the legislature’s standing committee
hearings, public input at the local government held meetings, written
submissions to the Green Energy Act Registry. Thousands of letters, documents
and studies by a bevy of very astute and credible professional engineers,
doctors, health professionals, lawyers, electrical engineers, professors, all
manner of Ontarians with and without degrees, from all walks of life and, of
course, the residents who were already being affected, already sick and getting
sicker by the terribly close proximity of the wind turbines and electrical
groundwork. All of these people at a grassroots level, taking no money for their
time or for their obvious expense of preparing and printing papers and running
around the province to government meetings and rural town hall meetings. All of
these people doing the research that the government should have done before they
started down this road, showing what a miserable failure simple lack of planning
creates. All of these people trying to inform the government of the very serious
issues with the wind farms.
Yet in the space of maybe 45 days or so,
since the last submission date to the Green Energy Act Registry, designed for
public input and reaping some 1300 submissions alone, this government said they
had seen enough. They’d had enough time to look through all of the information
submitted; the very complex engineering reports, noise studies, the reams of
information on health effects, turbine failure, viability of wind as an energy
source and the safe requirements for setbacks that would keep all citizens out
of harms way. They repeatedly refused all requests by health professionals
requesting the government slow down and conduct a proper independent health
study to determine the health effects. They had also heard the victim
statements, pleading with the government for help, to please listen to them,
warning them to not put anymore people in the position that they found
themselves in, through no fault of their own. It all fell on deaf
ears.
There was no way that these Ministers were going to slow down. No
matter how many people tried to warn them, they were not going to let anyone
stop them in their plan to spread their wind turbines far and wide across every
rural inch of the province and ringing the Great Lakes shorelines. No sir, they
were going full speed ahead.
They took away the rights of all citizens of
Ontario. All citizens, not just some. They overruled the professional planners
who understand and know the ramifications of setbacks and public space planning
so that they have no say in the municipality anymore. They overruled the town
councils and Mayors who have no say in their own backyards anymore, the place
they know much more intimately than any Minister, or developer. They overruled
everyone and everything. No one has ever seen the likes or speed of a piece of
legislation like this before.
They ignore all of the facts brought before
them, ignore and abandon the over 100 known victims, some of whom spend their
days in restaurants trying to escape the conditions, who sleep in their cars
with winter coming, who are billeted in a single room in a motel with children
and more on the way, paid for by the wind developer. People with children, the
children not knowing or caring about politics or landscape sightlines, but who
bang on their ears with their fists asking Mommy to stop the noise, and young
children who now complain of headaches. People with a new need for prescription
sleeping pills and people who have lost everything. They’ve lost their
livestock, their horses, their income, their way of life and the right to live
in their own house. Children have had to move away. They live with relatives;
they live by the goodness and grace of understanding strangers who offer them a
place to stay. But in even larger numbers than these, are the ones trying
desperately to stay in their own home, where everything they have is in and
around them. Over 100 and growing. And so, at the end of the day what does the
government do? They announce the same inadequate setbacks that they had
previously spouted way back at the beginning of the year. Nothing had changed.
It appears their minds were made up a long time ago. What a waste of taxpayers
money.
The whole industry is contaminated with non-disclosure contracts
right from the start. When the landowners agree to host, after being assured of
all the good things they are doing, they sign contracts. These are variously
worded contracts that do not allow them to speak out about anything negative to
do with the wind turbines and will entitle the developer to make any amount of
noise, vibration or do what they need to on their land and the landowner may not
complain. Some are embarrassed at being taken in by the salesmen. They had no
idea it would be such an intrusion, but the money sounded sweet. I wonder how
many other businesses there are that match the need for non-disclosure clauses
being made with ordinary, everday citizens while receiving full government
support. Why such secrecy if this is such a noble exercise?
Many
landowners with multiple turbines don’t live on their property. These are some
of the ones who will say there are no problems and argue strongly to push ahead.
Some have rented out their farmhouses cheap. The renters sleep with oscillating
fans going all night long by their heads to try to cut out the thumping sound of
the wind turbines clearly heard in their bedrooms. Many wear earplugs but they
don’t always work.
People ask, why aren’t more people speaking up, why
don’t we hear more? Would you speak up knowing that if and when you needed to
get out you wouldn’t be able to sell your house? Who would buy it? It’s not an
easy position for any of them to be put in, nor do they want to jeopardize the
hopes that the developer will help them, or the possible lashback by fervent
green supporters in their community who are so careless with their words and
judgment. Many are under contract and cannot speak. Some don’t have the courage
or the life skills to know who to even contact. This is all new to them; it’s
all new to everyone, even our leaders.
So what about Europe people ask?
Aren’t they all happy with their wind farms over there? No, they’re not. In fact
there are over 360 grass roots coalitions in 19 European countries in exactly
the same position as our residents, pleading to be listened to. They are trying
to work with their governments on greater setbacks to protect the residents. As
industrial wind turbines get bigger and bigger (40 storeys), some countries
leaders have listened and have changed their setbacks to 1.5 kms and further.
They acknowledge the problems, and they obviously care about the consequences.
The symptoms and problems are mirrored all over the world. Next door in the U.S,
Australia, Japan…..
No one can believe our government would completely
ignore residents like this, especially the residents themselves. Surely there
must be something wrong with these people if the government isn’t listening or
taking action. Nope, in fact there is nothing wrong with these residents. These
are all good people; honest people, the backbone of this country. Something
wrong you ask? Perhaps you should be looking to the provincial government and
their brazen, no questions asked backing and protection of the wind industry.