The Ontario Township of Clearview, along with the town of Collingwood, are fighting to curb plans to build a wind turbine farm. The plans involve building eight 137 metre high wind turbines not far from the Collingwood airport. Last Thursday, the County of Simcoe voted in favor of the municipalities to appeal the Fairview wind project. The governments have asked that the project be appealed to the Environmental Review Tribune.
Previously this month, the Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change approved the wind turbine project. Soon after, the mayor of Collingwood asked her county and neighborhood to come together and fight the project in order to get it stopped.
According to the mayor, they need to sink their teeth into the problem, and the community’s support will help. She also said that the county’s appeal will help a lot in their efforts by giving them a great deal of clout. The deputy-mayor of Clearview Township feels that their municipalities have a strong case to stop the turbines, and that case will be made stronger with the county behind them as the third appellant. He said that it provides them with a little more strength. He also said that the county’s support will bring more attention to safety issues associated with the towers being situated close to the airport.
Large scale construction projects in different parts of Canada require a lot approvals before they can get underway. Still, even when they are approved, those approvals might be appealed. For this reason, it is best to build a sound legal strategy for gaining the approval of any construction project well before it is time to initiate it.
Source: Patrick Bales, “County of Simcoe appealing wind farm plan OK’d for Clearview,” Patrick Bales, Feb. 25, 2016
