The Citizen, 2011-11-24, Page 20PAGE 20. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2011.
It has been quiet a week for
weather this past week, with good
weather some days and the farmers
kept working on. There is less and
less corn left in the fields and
plowing, cultivating, spreading
manure, discing, cleaning up fence
lines are just a few of the jobs
getting done while the weather is
still so good.
The surprise snow squall on
Thursday afternoon caught some
people by surprise. It was really
quite heavy at times and it did make
the road slippery in places. Therewere a few traffic mishaps. One suchmishap was a car sliding on theslight grade in front of McGavin’s
Farm Equipment and hitting the
hydro pole just before supper. The
driver did not suffer serious injuries,
but the pole had quite a lean to it and
suffered a fatal injury. The Hydro
crews were called in and a new pole
had to be put up. The hydro outage
we experienced later Thursday
evening was probably when they
switched the lines over to the new
pole.
Remember folks to slow down
when the snow comes. It only takes
a small skiff to make the roads
slippery.
Last Sunday was a very special
day for Bill and Gertie Kellington.
They celebrated their 65th wedding
anniversary with a come-and-go tea
at the Brussels United Church. Many
family and friends attended from
Orangeville, St. Marys, Stratford,
Hensall, Seaforth and thesurrounding area. The Kellingtonshad their six children to helpcelebrate their milestone, Larry,
Joyce, Bob, Murray, Brian and
Kevin and their families. They have
15 grandchildren and 15 great-
grandchildren. The group gathered
for a potluck dinner following the
tea with 42 members of the family
enjoying the meal.
It has been a week of sadness in
our area this past week. The tragic
news of the death of two Blyth
young men has saddened many. Our
deepest sympathies are expressed to
the Bokhout and the Hesselwood
families on their loss.
Our condolences to the
Beuermann family on the passing of
Darren Beuermann. Our sympathies
to his mother Hazel and siblings
Lois, Gwen, Warren and Connie.
Our condolences to the family of
George Cardiff. Our sympathies to
his family Ken, Charles, Audrey,
Murray, Georgina and Agnes andtheir families. Our condolences to the family ofRoss Nicholson. Our sympathies to
wife Lillian and children Paul and
Louise and their families.
Granddaughter Shelly is a former
Walton resident.
Our sympathies to the family of
Charlie “Buck” Stevenson. Our
condolences to Edith and children
Dianne, Shirley, Jim and Bev. I have
known Charlie for many years and
had heard many of this trapping
stories. He was a customer of mine
for many years and the only
customer my dog hated. Max, the
dog, seem to know as soon as
Charlie’s truck turned in the laneway
and we would have to put him
behind closed doors. Our sympathy
to the family.
Members of the Walton Women’s
Institute met at Huronlea for their
November meeting. They had
invited guests from the Brussels
Women’s Institute. The group
gathered heard from Rick and
Margaret McInroy about their trip to
China.
Another barn met its demise last
week. A barn down Moncrieff Road
was taken down. It had suffered
some roof damage during one of the
storms and now it is completely
gone. The Mennonites came andremoved the good boards andknocked the rest down.Celebrating birthdays this past
week include Derek Hoegy, Shirley
Ann Boven, Sarah Williamson, Carl
McCallum, Valerie Shortreed, Ian
Wilbee, Donna McClure, Linda
Gingerich, Linda McDonald and
Mitchell McKee. Happy birthday to
all.
Anti-turbine group saddles
Huron East with liability
Walton WI hosts Brussels members at Huronlea
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By Jo-Ann
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887-6570
PEOPLE AROUNDWALTON
NEWS
FROM WALTON
Well over 50 people filled Huron
East Council chambers on Nov. 15
as members of Huron East Against
Turbines (HEAT) returned to ask
some questions and make some
demands.
In addition to presenting some
new concerns about area wind
projects, members of HEAT
informed councillors that they would
be held legally responsible if health
effects as a result of wind turbines
became a factor in Huron East.
After what HEAT member Gerry
Ryan called a landmark legal case
surrounding a wind turbine
development in Chatham-Kent, he
said that adverse health effects from
wind turbines are real and that there
would now be actionable legal
grounds surrounding such health
effects.
“There are now peer-reviewed
studies on the health effects of wind
turbines,” Ryan said. “That’s a fact.”
Ryan said that now, in his opinion,
if wind turbine companies don’t
disclose information regarding
health effects to landowners when
attempting to sign a lease agreement
they would be liable if health effects
become a concern down the road.
And now, as the information was
presented to council, Ryan said,
council now has a responsibility.
“You will be held accountable too,
because we know now too,” Ryan
told council.
Ryan also stated that issues being
experienced in Ripley and other
wind turbine developments around
Ontario are just a sign of things to
come in Huron East.
“Is there any reason you
councillors think that what’s
happening in Ripley, in Ontario, all
over the world won’t happen in
Huron East?” Ryan asked.
He stated that when people
become ill as a result of wind
turbines, council will wish that it had
stood on HEAT’s side during the
consultation process.
“There are sick people. We can’t
deny any of these things,” Ryan said
to council. “Now that you have this
information, you’re responsible and
we will hold you accountable.”
Ryan then presented a list of
requests from the group, asking
council to take action on behalf of
the group and on behalf of the entire
municipality in terms of wind
turbines.
“We’re getting walked on by
corporate interests that have nothing
to do with green energy,” Ryan said.
At the conclusion of Ryan’s
presentation, he asked council if it
would consider revisiting a bylaw
that would “protect residents’ health
and safety and property values” as a
result of potential fallout from wind
turbines.
Councillors voted unanimously to
support the investigation of a bylaw.
There was some discussion,
however, that Huron East’s regular
solicitor Greg Stewart wasn’t
necessarily the man for the job, as
questions had arisen around the
October election about his affiliation
with the Liberal Party of Ontario.
No specific provisions were made
to hire someone other than Stewart
after the motion was passed, but
Huron East Mayor Bernie
MacLellan said the municipality had
worked with other law firms before
and had no problem doing so again.
This decision comes after a similar
bylaw had been introduced earlier
this year, but was defeated by a tie 5-
5 vote, meaning that the vote is lost
in the event of a tie.
Ryan insisted that despite what
councillors might think, the Green
Energy Act does not prevent a
municipal council from passing such
a bylaw. Ryan said the Municipal
Act states that a council has every
right to protect the health and safety
of its residents, so in matters
pertaining to health and safety,
council is able to pass a bylaw
looking out for its people.
In addition to the request to revisit
the bylaw pertaining to the health
and safety, as well as the property
values of Huron East residents, Ryan
also had four other requests of
council.
He asked that the municipality
hire a new staff member to sift
through the “mountains of
paperwork” associated with wind
turbines, prepare a list of questions
for the developer of the St.
Columban wind project, refuse any
money from a ‘vibrancy fund’ set up
by a wind development company
and request that the developers of
the St. Columban wind project re-
hold the project’s first open house,
as the project has changed so much
since the first meeting it warrants
another meeting, Ryan said.
MacLellan quickly expressed
support for the points pertaining
directly to the St. Columban project,
saying that Clerk-Administrator
Brad Knight was close to completing
a list of questions for the company
and that Huron East supports the re-
holding of the project’s first open
house.
As far as hiring a new staff
member goes, MacLellan said,
further discussion would have to
happen. Knight said it was his
impression that Huron East staff was
handling the wind turbine workload
quite well with the material being
spread out among three people,
himself, Public Works Manager
Barry Mills and Chief Building
Official Paul Josling.
MacLellan did not address
whether or not Huron East would be
taking part in a vibrancy fund
offered by a wind turbine developer.
Jean Melady, another HEAT
member, also expressed concerns
about project speculation throughout
Huron East. Melady, along with
other members of HEAT, asked
council what kind of research was
being done in the municipality and if
there were any plans for further wind
projects or if expansions on existing
projects were in the works.
According to HEAT members,
five building permits were issued for
anemometers, devices that measure
wind. These permits concerned the
members who felt the investigation
of wind quality throughout the
municipality might lead to new
developments throughout Huron
East.
HEAT members used the Drennan
family home in Ashfield-Colborne-
Wawanosh, a well- publicized
family with pending lawsuits
pertaining to wind turbines, as an
example, showing council what the
property around the house looked
like three years ago and what it looks
like today.
“What does this mean for us?”
Melady said. “Three years from
now, what will this area look like?”
Melady stated that as the project
nears and becomes more real, there
is no room for council to stand by
and stay neutral.
“If a wind project comes to St.
Columban, there will be health
effects. There will be,” she said.
“If you are neutral in situations of
injustice, you have chosen the side
of the oppressor,” Melady said,
quoting South African activist
Desmond Tutu. “And we don’t
appreciate your neutrality.”
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen