Hearings in the judicial review of the wind project in Mapleton Township, County of Wellington,begin April 2nd in Toronto at Osgoode Hall. This legal action is key in holding the Ministry of the Environment accountable for its approval process.
Observers are welcome, but seating is limited. For more information and to donate, visit the Stop Mapleton Wind Farms website.
This action is supported by those who fought the Zephyr wind turbines; Harvey Wrightman, of the Middlesex-Lambton Wind Action Group, made a strong appeal for all to support the Mapleton action when the difficult decision to drop the appeal of the Zephyr project was made.
The following is from the Preserve Mapleton web site
The Green Energy Act was passed in 2009 to speed up the approval process for the wind turbine industry. The Liberal government promised that soon Ontario would be covered with turbines. To date, only three projects have been approved under the Green Energy Act. This success is due to the growing opposition to wind industrialization all over Ontario. Unfortunately, one of the three projects approved is the Next Era project in Wellington County.
The goal during 2011 was to delay all approvals until after the election, hoping that a different government would restore decision making powers from the Green Energy Act back to local municipalities.
Rural residents in Southern Ontario spoke clearly and loudly when a few MPP’s who supported and were given the task of “selling” the Green Energy Act to their constituents, lost their seats on October 6th. The Chatham Kent Environmental Tribunal appeal last summer did conclude “the debate should not be simplified to one about whether wind turbines can cause harm to humans. The evidence presented to the Tribunal demonstrates that they can cause harm to humans if placed too close to residents. The debate has evolved to one of degree”.
Since the Next Era wind farm approval on December 8, 2011, the Mapleton group has retained Eric Gillespie, a well known and experienced environmental lawyer, to launch an appeal of the decision. This appeal will show that the process followed by the Ministry of the Environment is flawed throughout, and in many cases demonstrates how the MOE (and the Liberal government) have been pandering to the well- funded wind turbine industry.
To put a stop to this project, legal action is the only recourse left available. The goal is to make the Liberal government accountable for their actions in regards to the industrialization of rural Ontario.
Everything possible is being done to stop the wind farm approvals, but it has come to a point where your assistance is needed. The Mapleton appeal, as with others, is an expensive endeavor, but this is an opportunity to keep turbines from invading our county, our countryside and our Province. Please support the Mapleton appeal by donating to this cause. All information supplied will be kept completely confidential.
More background on the appeal is also available from a January article in the Wellington Advisor
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