In promoting its wind turbine project to the residents of Baileys Brook and the surrounding community, Shear Wind made public statements to the effect that its project would not interfere with the neighbourhood, that there would be little visual impact, and that noise would not be a problem. On Aug. 20, 2008, Shear Wind submitted its environmental assessment (EA) registration documents, which appear to contradict this description.
In a Shear Wind public meeting in March 2007, Mike Magnus presented a site map showing the turbines beginning near the Antigonish and Pictou County border and then proceeding due south. Since the highland’s scarp face runs in a southwesterly direction, it creates increasing distances between the turbines and the scarp face, placing them deep into the highlands and at reasonable distances from residences. Mike also stated: "Noise will not be an issue" and "[the project] will not interfere with the neighbourhood."
Also, in a June 2, 2007, Chronicle Herald article, Harley Kellock, speaking on behalf of Shear Wind, stated, "There was one concern about the noise, but this (project) is so far back and remote and in the woods that it shouldn’t be an issue."
However, page 91 of the EA registration states "the site optimization and selection process has changed the project area and turbine location to the highland area along the scarp face." Many turbines were moved hundreds of metres to prominent positions on the scarp face, overlooking homes and dominating the skyline.
Also, page 157 of the EA registration now states, "Sound levels generated by the WTGs may have a negative impact on residents close to the site." Shear Wind did not hold a public meeting or contact residents regarding these substantial changes.
On Aug. 31, 2007, in a meeting at Lismore Community Centre organized by residents, Mike Magnus of Shear Wind stated that no turbine would be closer than two kilometres to any residence. In stark contrast, page 22 of its EA registration states, "The nearest house will be approximately 640m from the closest proposed turbine location." This is more than three times closer than its public statement. The hardships imposed on residents living in such proximity to industrial-scale wind turbines are well documented.
On April 2, 2008, at Nova Scotia Power’s announcement of Shear Wind’s contract award, in answer to a question, Mr. Magnus stated, "From what we can gather, 95 per cent of the turbines are located three to four kilometres away from the closest residence. … We wanted to take a responsible lead. We are very sensitive to that." This would mean that no more than two turbines would be closer than three kilometres. Its EA registration site map contradicts this, showing 17 turbines within three kilometres of the closest residence or over eight times as many as stated by Magnus.
During the April 2, 2008, announcement, Mr. Magnus also stated that Shear Wind would be holding a public meeting in three to five weeks. Instead, 23 weeks later, Shear Wind announced four open houses. The last open house, to be held today at the Lismore and District Community Centre, is just one day before the deadline for public input on the environmental assessment document.
My father used to instruct me that actions speak louder than words. Whether you are for or against the construction of wind power plants in our rural communities, I believe that at a minimum, the residents, whose lives will be forever altered, deserve to be dealt with openly and honestly. I leave it to the reader to decide whether or not Shear Wind has done so.
Kristen Overmyer lives in Baileys Brook.
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