A windfarm in a Torontonian’s backyard? Stop it!
Wind farm opponents tell companies jockeying for green energy contracts to enjoy moment — it’ll likely be the last
John Miner, Postmedia Network | September 19, 2016 3:13 PM ET
Wind farm opponents are telling companies jockeying for new Ontario green energy contracts to enjoy the moment — it’ll likely be their last chance.
After a decade-long losing streak before environmental review tribunals and courts, activists trying to halt industrial wind farms say they sense the political ground is finally shifting in their favour now that power rates have become a hot urban issue and the Liberal government is taking notice.
“It looks like this will be the last. I don’t know how the government could possibly justify more (such contracts),” said Jane Wilson, president of Wind Concerns Ontario, a coalition of groups opposed to industrial wind farm development in the province.
Last week, in a move many critics linked to a stunning byelection loss in the Toronto area, Premier Kathleen Wynne’s government said it will scrap the Ontario portion of the HST on electricity bills, giving customers an eight-per-cent rebate and rural areas an even larger break.
