Northland Power boss says windmills, residents' rights not in conflict

by Lindsay Kelly

LITTLE CURRENT-Landowners with property adjacent to wind turbines will not be prevented from building on their land, following the construction of the McLean's Mountain project.

That was one of the assurances made by John Brace, president and CEO of Northland Power, during a Northeast Town council meeting on August 4. Dozens of residents came out to hear what the company president had to say, with as many proponents of wind power in attendance as those who are opposing the 43-turbine, 77-megawatt project.

Alarmed at the outcry the project has engendered, Mr. Brace said he aimed to disprove the "accusations" that have been lobbed against the company and the project.

The McLean's development is, in part, a response to "the province of Ontario's desire and need to green our power generation in the province, and we're responding to our own obvious desires to put together other projects that are financially viable and attractive," Mr. Brace said.

The province's efforts to replace coal-fired power plants comprise wind, solar, biomass and water power, but wind must be installed in windy areas which have predominantly been found along the shores of the Great Lakes, such as on Manitoulin, Mr. Brace noted. Eight years ago, "we focussed on Manitoulin pretty quickly," and began negotiating land leases, he added.

Since then, the company has followed all government guidelines to receive permits for the development. Currently, the project is awaiting public comment on its environmental screening report (ESR), and may be greenlighted to undergo an environmental assessment.

But it hasn't been an easy process for the company, which has been in business for more than 20 years with ongoing projects in Canada, the US and Germany.

"Throughout this process and more recently, it's quite patently obvious that there have been a number of accusations made against the project and made against Northland Power," Mr. Brace said. "I would like to go through those accusations one by one and present what we believe the facts in the situation to be."

Suggestions have been made that Northland is an unethical company which is "stealing" the wind resource from Manitoulin without providing financial benefits for the community, Mr. Brace said. Yet he maintains that the municipality will enjoy a significant economic boost over a 20-year period via "hundreds" of jobs during construction, nine or 10 permanent maintenance jobs following completion, payments to landowners in the amount of $7.5 million, $15 million in local labour, goods and services, and tax benefits.

"Land taxes are administered for wind farms by the province of Ontario; it's very clear how they're calculated and done," Mr. Brace said, in response to the suggestion that Northland should pay more taxes because of how the project will impact the landscape. "We calculate about $2 million going to the community in land taxes."

The CEO also addressed concerns about noise created by the turbines, noting that the provincial government sets strict limits governing how noise affects people, and Northland has met these guidelines.

The noise limits are set for "receptors"-or dwellings-and the set limits are equal to the background noise that already exists, he argued. Mr. Brace estimated that, even without any conversation taking place, the background noise in a room would easily measure more than 40 decibels, the noise limit for wind turbines.

"I would encourage anyone in this room who has not been to a wind farm to go to a wind farm and listen to them," he urged. "They are not as noisy as people believe they are."

Northland has calculated noise at less than 40 decibels for the McLean's project, he added, noting that all the turbines are at least 550 metres away from residences, 37 of the turbines are at least 700 metres away from residences, and the average turbine is 1.2 kilometres away from a residence. "We're a long way from people," he said.

Concern has been heightened around the suggestion that these noise setbacks will prevent people from building on their property after the wind farm is constructed because those structures will be too close to the turbines. Mr. Brace summarily denied this is the case.

"The setbacks that are set by the province of Ontario to determine how far a turbine is from a residence applies to existing residences to make sure that we do not encroach on people as they exist now," he said. "After they're built, there's nothing under the noise requirements and the setback requirements set by the province that would prevent anybody from building closer to the turbines should they so desire in the future. That's been confirmed to us by the Ministry of the Environment."

As to those people who currently have permits to build on their property, Mr. Brace encouraged them to "go ahead and build their buildings. We will have to live with the fact that they exist."

"I'm not in business to prevent people from doing what they want to do with their property," he added. "If they want to go and build a house on a piece of property, I'm going to have to live with that. I'm not trying to go out there and purposefully degrade the value of properties."

Mr. Brace also claimed that studies, not conducted by Northland, have shown that the value of properties within the vicinity of turbines have risen more than comparable properties that are not near turbines.

As to residents' apprehension about using Morphet's Side Road for transmission lines, the CEO said Northland is well within its right, under the Ontario Electricity Act, to use municipal rights-of-way to transmit and distribute power. However, the company is looking for alternative methods of transmitting power in direct response to objections from residents.

But contrary to speculation that the road would be home to towering metal monstrosities to carry the transmission lines, Northland plans to use single, wooden poles, with an estimated height of 60 feet, similar to power lines already in place throughout the municipality, Mr. Brace said.

"They will not be huge ugly transmission towers like the things you see crossing the channel with the power line going off-Island," he said. "They'll be regular power lines."

Northland has come under fire for allegedly springing the project's size on the public at the last minute. While he conceded that the project has changed size over the years, primarily due to the changes in the government's wind power procurement programs, he denied that the company has been less than forthright with the community.

He outlined the project's evolution, noting that in 2004, the project was slated for 30 turbines, or 54 megawatts of power, while in 2005 that was upped to 60 turbines, or 100 megawatts of power. Two years later, the size changed again to 24 turbines, or 36 megawatts of power, and today the project has been designed for 43 turbines, or 77 megawatts of power.

"So you can see it's changed a bit in its characteristic, as the province has changed what's it's doing and we've learned more about the physical reality of the wind on Manitoulin Island, and the issues related to residences and setbacks," Mr. Brace said. "It has never, ever been a three- to seven-turbine wind farm that some people have accused us of being in the past."

The company CEO bristled at the contention that Northland has not kept the community up to speed throughout the process, noting that information sessions were held in 2004, 2005 and 2009, all of which were open to the public, while the company made at least a half-dozen presentations updating council on the project.

However, in light of the public outcry, he admitted that more could have been done to allay the fears of residents.

"I will be the first to admit that our community involvement program probably could have been better than it was, and we have just heard that there are some off-Island owners of properties in our wind farm area that we have missed in our mailings in our attempt to get a hold of landowners," he said. "We could have done the job better, but I think it's completely inappropriate to say that we have not involved the community in the past and are springing the project at the last minute on you."

Other sources of frustration for landowners have been lighting of the towers, the use of herbicides to reduce growth around the towers, the project's decommissioning, and the possibility that the company could go bankrupt.

Lighting is mandated by Transport Canada and Navigation Canada and requires that Northland illuminate the highest tower and turbines around the perimeter for a total of 15 turbines, Mr. Brace noted, arguing that only a few turbines would be visible at any time, and that Manitoulin's prized dark skies would remain intact.

In addition, there is no plan to use herbicides to control fauna that grows up around the towers, and Mr. Brace said the company has committed to that in its environmental screening report.

Residents also want assurances that once the turbines reach the end of their life, they will be disposed of properly. "The concern is that at the end of the project's life we're going to run away and leave the countryside littered with rusting power liens and turbines," Mr. Brace said. "That is not the case."

Lease agreements with landowners detail the decommissioning process, stipulating that the company is responsible for removing the power lines and turbines, with the foundations taken down to three feet below grade level.

As for the suggestion that the company may go bankrupt and leave the farm in its wake, Mr. Brace said investors who provide money to fund the project do detailed investigations into the company's business plan and predictions to ensure the project is viable over the long term.

But if the predictions are wrong and the company does go bankrupt-what he termed a "long, long shot"-another wind generation firm would take over the project, the CEO said, assuring that bankruptcy action would require the new company to take over the contracts and land lease agreements.

Referring back to the environmental screening process, Mr. Brace said the ESR is designed to ensure Northland meets all the stipulations set out by government to ensure human health, the environment and the aesthetics of an area are not compromised by the project.

"The screening report and its contents are set by the Ministry of the Environment," he noted. "It covers air quality, noise, surface and groundwater, land uses, human and ecological health, vegetation, wildlife and birds, soils, social and economic conditions, natural and cultural conditions, and visual issues."

He noted that, if anyone objects to the report or believes something has been missed they are "absolutely welcome" to speak to the MOE or Northland about their concerns.

"That's what the process is about: to assess what we have done, to determine whether the conclusions are correct and encompassing, and if not to take action based on it," he added. "We welcome input."

Members of council had an opportunity to ask questions of Mr. Brace, the first of which was Councillor Paul Skippen, who asked for clarification on the issue of health hazards, which some wind turbine detractors claim are caused by the turbines.

While professing not to be an expert in the subject, the CEO noted that there isn't scientific evidence that supports the claims about wind farms.

"There have been no peer-reviewed, high-quality studies that substantiate any of those issues," he said. "From a personal point of view, where people complain about wind farms and wind turbines and health effects, whether it's cause and effect, I frankly don't know.

Councillor Bill Koehler was critical of Northland's perceived lack of foresight in predicting that the project could grow in size, suggesting that it would be "a very important thing that a council should be aware of, that it could expand to 40."

However, Mr. Brace noted that the programs have drastically changed over the last two years, and "back in 2007 we couldn't have forecasted what the opportunity would be at this particular juncture."

Councillor Skippen was also concerned about the setback distances from residents' property lines, eager to know whether Northland would build directing adjacent to property lines.

Mr. Brace noted that the distance will ultimately be set by the province, but currently the company is using a distance of the rotor diameter plus 10 metres, for a minimum total of 50 metres.

"That's just a physical boundary, how close the base of a turbine can be to a property boundary," Mr. Brace said. "You then go into a set of calculations to determine how far the noise can spread around the turbine and that is actually a much greater distance."

The minimum distance from a receptor or dwelling, within the 40-decibel limit, would actually be 400 metres, but again, Mr. Brace said this is a minimum, and reiterated that Northland's turbines would be set closer to 550 metres.

Mr. Brace also noted that turbines cannot be relocated "willy nilly" within the designed farm, although he conceded that a turbine in the McLean's project recently had to be moved because the company was unaware of a residence and its original location would have made it too noisy for the resident. Its new location "is still well within the noise requirements," he argued.

Council was presented with a motion that night that proposed to rescind a 2007 motion that approved setback distances and would examine the issue of setbacks further. Councillor Al MacNevin questioned what would happen if council were to approve the motion.

"We would take that as a large sign of rejection by the community of Northeastern Manitoulin and the Islands of our project," Mr. Brace responded. "That's something that was put in place a number of years ago to help us develop this project, we have spent a considerable amount of time and an enormous amount of money trying to put this project together, and to have that changed at this juncture-it's not a pleasant thought for us."

The CEO emphasized that Northland tries to be a good corporate citizen and not come across as the "pushy company that tries to come in and makes waves no matter what." Instead they try to "accommodate and mitigate" when they can, he added.

Despite a lengthy in-camera debate, council did not pass the motion, instead saying they would like to receive more legal advice before making a decision.

That decision is likely to come tomorrow (August 13) when a special meeting of council is scheduled with a discussion of wind turbines on the agenda.

There will also be a public meeting on Tuesday, August 18 at the rec centre, hosted by a group of residents who oppose the wind farm. Presentations will be made and there will be an opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the group's position.

M'Chigeeng chief feels wind power investment could shackle other plans

by Michael Erskine

M'CHIGEENG-Renewable energy projects seemed to offer a panacea for First Nation economic development, but after viewing the results of many messianic economic proposals over the years, many First Nation leaders are expressing skepticism over promises of wind energy development.

"It is a lot of money," said M'Chigeeng Chief Isadora Bebamash. "We are just not seeing the return that would justify tying up that much capital investment in one basket."

Chief Bebamash noted that revenue projections on a $10-million project would be in the range of $100,000 a year.

While the immediate return on employment in construction would be significant, that benefit would be very short term.

"When you look at the ongoing maintenance, the companies hire outside contractors to do a lot of that, so where is the local benefit?" questioned Terry Debassige.

Much of the concern lies around investing the capital, and the borrowing capacity, into a project that will return money over the long term, but not at the kind of levels that would justify forgoing other economic initiatives.

"It's different for large corporations," noted Whitefish River First Nation Chief Franklin (Shining Turtle) Paibomsai. "They can defray their investment with a lot of other investments in other sectors-they don't have everything tied up in one project."

An engineer by training (and trade before becoming chief), Chief Shining Turtle noted that as a student, his class was assigned the task of developing an energy plan for a large community.

"Coal was cheaper, and you could supply the energy needs," he said. "But then you were killing so many people a year through smog. We had to decide what an acceptable level of killing people was by the end of the school year."

As First Nation leaders, local chiefs are charged with the responsibility of looking after the interests of seven generations as well as taking care of the every day-to-day concerns of the people.

"It isn't simple," said Chief Bebamash. "But I am not convinced that the return on our investment will prove to be enough to make it worthwhile."

The concern lies around the limited borrowing power of First Nations, and indeed any small community. Leaders are concerned that if the borrowing capacity of the community is tapped out on one project-especially a project that provides limited economic and employment opportunities for band members over its lifecycle, such as wind energy production-the opportunity to engage in an economic project that will deliver day-to-day employment opportunities would be curtailed.

"We have to think about the future," agreed Chief Paibomsai. "Resources have to be used to the best capacity in the interests of all of the community."

Open Records Act gives adoption options

Birth parent, adoption details easier to access

by Heather Pennie

ONTARIO-Some people spend years searching for clues as to the identity of their birth parents or their biological children. On June 1, 2009, the Access to Adoption Records Act (Open Records) went into effect, which means that these people will be one step closer to meeting lost family members.

In Ontario, it will now be possible for those who wish to find their blood relatives to access records which may lead them to finding their family. Prior to this, adoption records were sealed and information such as birth certificates and adoption orders, which would reveal identities, were not available for

disclosure.

One Manitoulin resident, who requested his name be withheld due to the personal nature of adoption information, feels that the Access to Adoption Records Act is a positive forward step. "I think the law respects most situations," he said. "I like the fact that parents can't contact their kids until they are 19. By that age, kids will be able to make the decision of whether or not they wish to meet them."

This individual was born on an Ontario reserve, and adopted into a non-Native family. He searched out his birth mother as a young adult, but it was only due to the circumstance of being born into a small community that he was able to find her. "I just went to the reserve where I knew I came from, and it was a small place," he disclosed. "I went to the band office and the guy working there knew right away who I was and who my mother was, but he called her first to find out if it was okay to tell me."

In his case, finding his birth mother was not a necessity. "I was curious more than anything," he said. This isn't the case for all adoptees, however. "For some people, like my sisters (who were adopted from a different reserve), they felt the need to know where they came from," he explained. "In some ways, it has helped them."

One matter of great importance to him, however, was his birth family history of mental and physical illness. "One of the earliest questions I asked my birth mother was about medical history," he noted.

Esther Tardif, the chairperson of the Sudbury Adoption Support Group, has over the years met many people pursuing their history, for both personal and medical history reasons, and helped them with their searches. Ms. Tardif is elated with the new Open Records act.

"It's a good thing that adopted people can find their families and mothers can find their children," said Ms. Tardif. "Adopted people have the right to know-even if there isn't any contact, they have the right to know...especially about their medical history."

A mother who has been happily reunited with her adopted son, Ms. Tardif has already completed forms to obtain her son's birth registration. Unfortunately, the new act is already lagging in its distribution of documentation.

"I sent in my form to get my son's original birth registration and I was told it would take four to six weeks, but unfortunately no-one has received any word," explained Ms. Tardif. "From what I've heard on the Canadian Council of Natural Mothers site, no-one has yet received any documents, and according to the Office of the Registrar General, it's going to be late August before any documents are sent out."

Despite initial delays, the new Adoption Records Act is still an improvement. Before Open Records, the only starting point that people had to find their roots was the meager, non-identifying information given out by the adoption agency.

"In some cases there was more information than others...it seemed to depend on who was working at CAS (Children's Aid Society)," Ms. Tardif noted. "Hair colour, country of origin, job description, and maybe country of origin" would sometimes be the only information noted of adoptive parents. A birth mother's non-identifying information was often even less detailed.

People would then have to take these morsels and, through hard work and sometimes a bit of luck, try and track down their family. Sometimes this might take two weeks, and sometimes years. Ms. Tardif explained that in her role as chairperson of the Sudbury Adoption Support Group, she has spent hours of her time trying to help people search for family members. Her searches would require going to the library and looking up records on microfilm, searching out maiden names and baptism records. Websites such as www.ancestry.ca and newspaper ads are other tools that are commonly used by those searching.

Due to the June 1 legislation, the searching should now become easier. "Up to this point it has been very hard due to a lack of information," Ms. Tardif explained. "With Open Records, mothers will be able to get original birth registration and names given to their child...in the case of children adopted out, they will be able to find their mother's name. There will still be a fair amount of research required though, to find people, and a lot of phone calls."

According to Ms. Tardif, the Open Records act was first introduced in 2005 as Bill 183. "Because there was no option to veto," explained Ms. Tardif, "the bill was deemed as unconstitutional." When Open Records was passed, "the bill went in with vetoes."

The veto option is available for those who wish to protect their privacy, both parents who have given up children for adoption, as well as children who were adopted out. Ms. Tardif pointed out that "they had a year to get in vetoes, whoever didn't want contact, and there is a huge fine for the veto being ignored."

Ms. Tardif did note that though she is a reunited mother who has found her child, and with it great joy, "there may be mothers may not want contact because of shame-families and husbands who don't know." She also knows of people who were adopted as infants and feel that "it's their mother's loss." For these people, the veto to disallow the release of their information may be very important.

Not everyone is in favour of the veto option, however. Debie Donnelly of St. Charles, Ontario, with ties to Manitoulin through her sister Melinda Bean, is one who is opposed.

"I totally agree with the new act," stated Ms. Donnelly, "but what disappoints me is the veto, and I don't agree."

Ms. Donnelly and her two sisters, Corinn Donnelly and Melinda Bean (formerly a Bank of Montreal employee in Manitowaning), have been searching for their eldest sister, who was adopted out as an infant.

"I have been looking for her for 30 years," explained Ms. Donnelly. "We would put in an ad in the newspaper every year on her birthday...and searched everywhere."

Ms. Donnelly had gone ahead and filled in forms for adoption record disclosure and was anticipating the June 1 deadline. "We were just waiting for the law to pass," she said.

By a stroke of luck, the sisters didn't need to wait for the release of their sister's adoption records. "Esther (Tardif) saw my ad in the newspaper and contacted me about helping with my search. The week before Father's Day (2009) she found my sister!" exclaimed Ms. Donnelly.

Anne Marie Knight-Pollard, the long-lost sister, has been reunited with her family, to whom she bears a very striking resemblance. "She looks just like my father; she has his eyes," related an ecstatic Ms. Donnelly.

Ms. Tardif feels that the new law is going to bring about an even greater need for adoption support, for those searching for and those who have found their families.

"With Open Records, people will feel the need for support," expressed Ms. Tardif. "It's nice to be in a room with others who have walked the walk."

Currently there is no counselling service in the Sudbury area for adoption issues, and Sudbury has one of the few support groups operating in Northern Ontario.

To contact Esther Tardif and the Sudbury Adoption Support Group, for assistance with completing adoption information forms, for help with a search, "or even just to talk," visit http://mysudbury.ca and search for "adoption." For those who are looking for further information on the new Access to Adoption Records Act, including forms for veto and information searches, visit www.ontario.ca.

More sharp eyes spot alleged cougar at M'Chigeeng

by Jim Moodie

M'CHIGEENG-The M'Chigeeng cougar has reared its tawny head once more.

Last Wednesday (August 5), water-plant worker Darryl Ense was making his usual rounds of the community in his truck when he saw a big cat sitting on a grassy knoll about 100 metres off Hill Street, near the M'Chigeeng water tower. It was 10:30 am.

"I was driving south, by that swamp there, and when I looked right (to the west) it was standing there on that hill," he said. "I backed up, and my tires squawked a little. That cougar turned and looked at me, then walked back into the bush."

Mr. Ense said "it was clear as day" when he spied the wildcat. Unfortunately, he didn't have a camera with him, but he has no doubt about what he saw. "You couldn't mistake it for anything else."

This is just the latest of several reports of a cougar haunting the M'Chigeeng area, beginning with a wee-hours glimpse of a long-tailed visitor outside the Hill Street home of Rachel Panamick and Lee Taibossigai on May 20. The couple saw the feline intruder rooting through their garbage and later found a distinct print in the driveway that matched up with the type left by cougars, which can retract their claws so don't leave nail marks.

Since then, there have been a variety of other observations to suggest that the cougar is still lurking around the First Nation community. Mr. Ense said it's been spotted along Highway 542, as well as off Highway 551 near the M'Chigeeng health centre.

Hill Street residents Koady Shogga and Angel Armstrong haven't personally seen the cougar, but they're pretty sure their canine pal Shadow has made its acquaintance. About two weeks ago there was a commotion in the woods near the corner of Church Hill Road and Taibossigai Street, and soon after Shadow, a husky-type mutt, trotted home with a swollen head and a nasty wound on his neck.

Found curled up on his masters' porch last Thursday, the dog seemed relatively peaceful and unblemished, until Mr. Shogga lifted Shadow's head to reveal the spot on his neck where a chunk of fur and skin had been removed. The area was still raw and bloody.

The couple doesn't believe the wound was inflicted by another canine, as people next door to them heard the skirmish and "they said it didn't sound like a dog," noted Ms. Armstrong. She added that another pooch in the neighbourhood "got attacked too."

Mr. Ense wasn't worried about his own safety when he saw the cougar coolly eyeing him from its perch on the edge of the swamp last week. He figures it was staking out that particular area because "there's a creek running through here and we often see deer in that place," he said.

He was a bit concerned, however, on behalf of a nearby resident, who "babysits a lot of kids," and reported his sighting to UCCM police as well as the band office, which sent out another round of flyers warning residents to be on alert for a cougar in the community.

This latest glimpse of the mysterious feline occurred just 1.5 kilometres down the road from the Taibossigai/Panamick residence where it was seen in late May. It's almost certainly the same cat, as cougars are solo travellers who mark out a vast range.

Residents are perplexed as to why the creature seems to be hovering around the edge of the community and many are talking about the animal's repeat appearances. For some, particularly pet owners and parents of young children, it's a cause for practical concern, while others of a more spiritual bent feel it could be an important sign or portent-a wakeup call to reconnect with the natural world and revisit the wisdom of traditional teachings.

Cougars were supposed to be extinct in Ontario, yet there have been over 1,000 reported sightings in the province since 2002, including several made on Manitoulin. A few of these cougar occurrences have been confirmed in recent years-in the Niagara Falls area, near Ottawa, and in Orillia-but overall little is known about the animal and proof of their presence is decidedly scarce. The last time a wild cougar was found, shot and killed in Ontario was 125 years ago.

Rick Rosatte, a senior research scientist with the Ministry of Natural Resources who personally spotted a cougar near Peterborough three years ago, is now trying to back up all these observations with conclusive data, such as photographs, droppings, prints and DNA.

"There have been all these sightings, but almost no evidence," he told the Expositor earlier this year. "So I decided to start a research program to collect field evidence and determine whether these are native cougars, escaped cougars, or ones that have dispersed from the West."

The Expositor is also eager to document the local presence of this wildcat and is still offering $500 for a verifiable photograph of the creature.

Mr. Ense has no proof of his own cougar encounter but is confident that what he saw was indeed one of these elusive beasts. And he's glad he did have the opportunity to glimpse one in the flesh.

"I felt privileged to see a creature like that," he said. "It's a magnificent animal."

Editorial

Vigilance required to combat summer vandalism

Vandalism is an urban phenomenon that most Manitoulin communities are largely unfamiliar with so it is somewhat startling when we do encounter it here.

This summer, Little Current in particular has seen unusual acts of vandalism and a glance at this week's Law and Order police report will fill in the recent facts.

While none of the several actions of vandals, individually, would be worth noting, it is the unusually high number of similar activities that draws notice.

And while it would not be useful to suggest that this might be the beginning of a trend, it is still disturbing to see visible evidence of these mindless acts.

Are the perpetrators local? Are they weekend visitors?

It doesn't really matter to homeowners and businesses whose property has been broken, spraypainted or in any way defaced or damaged.

Besides the obvious suggestion of neighbours keeping an eye open for any odd behaviour in their neighbourhood and quickly calling 911 to report it, we will also recommend that, at least on weekends for the duration of this summer, the Ontario Provincial Police show an increased presence in Little Current, patrolling the downtown area in particular by bike, cruiser or on foot to let miscreants know they are under surveillance.

Letters to the Editor

New technology like wind turbines engenders skepticism

People will champion jobs, green energy in a decade

To the Expositor:

As with human nature, we are always skeptical of change and tend to shy away from change in favour of the way it's always been. If we though like that, how could we advance as a civilization?

There has been a lot of positive and negative feedback concerning the new proposed wind farm project. In reply to this skepticism, I would just like to mention this.

When the first horseless carriages were invented, people looked upon them as strange and said they would never catch on. Horses had served the population just fine so why should they switch? Horseless carriages (automobiles) are now one of our primary sources of transportation.

When proposed government-supplied health care was imposed, the medical community was put up in arms and feared receiving cheques from the government and not from individual citizens. Doctors went on strike and hospitals closed down in defiance of this new policy. Doctors later realized that the government paid their bills on time and that free health care was not such a bad idea after all. Today we look upon our free health-care system as a much-needed necessity.

We as a people believe in the concept of "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" and sometimes require a boot in the rear to start looking at something from a different angle. The proposed wind farm will bring green energy and employment to Manitoulin. From what I understand, green energy and jobs are a good thing. Let us stop squabbling about this proposal and look upon it for the gift that it is.

In 10 years, everyone will be raving about what a great idea it was to implement the wind farm policy. I know I will.

Tavis Case

Tehkummah

Wind turbines an ugly, inefficient technology

Renegotiation with Northland required before it's too late

To the Expositor:

I am writing to express my opposition to the proposed wind farm to be constructed on McLean's Mountain. Although this my 50th year of visiting and/or owning property on Manitoulin Island, let me state at the outset that my property is about 50 miles from the proposed site of this wind farm so the direct effect on me will be negligible.

My primary opposition to the wind farms is that I do not believe that they are a long-range, let alone permanent, component of a sustainable solution to our energy problem. North Americans have manned and made several trips to space stations and it's been decades since man first landed on the moon. Does anyone really believe that these large, cumbersome, and downright ugly windmills are the best we can do? If I thought for a moment that they were a viable long-term solution I would not oppose them. However, rest assured that I would still strongly oppose them being located in a pristine area like Manitoulin Island.

They are, at best, an eyesore and possibly even a danger to wildlife and human health. Since thorough study data are lacking on these latter two concerns no-one can say for sure either way. There are many non-pristine, largely uninhabited areas where these ugly blots on the landscape could be located. I was appalled to hear one of the representatives of Northland Power state that McLean's Mountain could become a tourist attraction! What an insult to the intelligence of anyone with even half a brain. This statement alone should make it obvious that they are trying to sell you a bill of goods. There have also been statements made that property values in the vicinity of the wind farms will not decline. Give me a break-of course they will. Northland Power even has the nerve in its announcement in the Expositor to state that, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder." In my view, the only type of person who would be happy to see a wind farm would be a blind man!

My assessment is that we can and will find better alternatives to wind farms within the next 20-30 years. If we invest even a small fraction of the effort and money that went into the space program then such stopgap technologies will become extinct. So I ask the question, "Who will be stuck with the expense of dismantling and recycling these behemoths?" This is a very serious question that proponents of these windmills should get answers for-and please get them in writing!

The owners of these properties where the wind farm is to be located are willing to accept the short-term gratification of a few dollars and the generation of a few jobs to develop the roads needed to maintain the windmills for the long-term (possibly permanent) uglification of a pristine area. Why would anyone want to mess up a pristine area like this island so that 90 percent of the power generated could be sent off-Island to less pristine areas? This seems backwards to me. I urge everyone involved directly in these negotiations to stop and re-think what you are doing before it's too late.

James Blanchard

Gore Bay

Province does not need stand-alone agency in FedNor

Past practice points to irresponsibility and counter-productivity

To the Expositor:

I agree with Minister Clement's position on the matter of creating a stand-alone FedNor agency (Bill C-309).

If we take a close look at the other federal agencies created over the past several years, it is clear that "stand alone" means lack of accountability, irresponsible fiscal management, questionable leadership, and an amazing amount of counter-productive bureaucratic overhead.

During the current period of massive taxpayer funding of "economic stimulus" projects, we need to ensure that our elected representatives ensure fiscal prudence and efficient service to the public, rather than allowing themselves to be manipulated by self-serving bureaucrats.

Taxpayers need to be very cautious about this issue.

Allan F. Gibbs

Waubaushene