Lucknow Sentinel, 2009-10-28, Page 9Lucknow Sentinel, Wednesday, October 28, 2009 - Page 9
Submitted photo
The Ripley Peewee team
were finalists in the B divi-
sion where they lost to a
team from South Huron at
the Legion Zone C-1
Peewee Hockey
Tournament, which was held
Oct. 24 at the Lucknow and
District Sports Complex.
Taking the A championship
was a team from Kincardine
and the A finalists was a
team from Blyth.
Wind power to grow despite outstanding health issues
BY TROY PA1TERSON
Kincardine News Staff
Wind power generation
will continue to grow in
North America, despite the
outstanding health issues
surrounding the technolo-
gy reported in Ripley,
Kincardine and other parts
of Ontario, according to
the industry's Canadian
lobby group.
Canadian Wind Energy
Association (C A)
president Robert Hornung
said in a recent interview
with The • Kincardine
News that the "over-
whehning majority" of
wind projects have seen
"positive production rela-
tionships" with their
neighbouring communi-
ties. He acknowledged
there has been noise viola-
tions in Canadian wind
farms where operators had
been asked to comply with
the regulations, but could-
n't comment on the cir-
cumstances. _.
"We do know of people
who have expressed con-
cern and we don't question
their sincerity," said
Hornung. "Our scientific
data has shown that sound
and vibrations from tur-
bines aren't unique.
Studies have shown there
1
VIA
is no clear evidence that
there are direct physical
affects on human health."
There has been a push
dor absolute setbacks for
turbines, but their mem-
bers have shown that the
sound at the receptor dif-
fers from one project to
another.
"'There is no standanl
distance that would pro-
duce a standard sound," he
said. "Some turbines are
noisier than others. Land
forms cany sound differ-
ently."
The Ontario regulatory
requirements set outby the
province are established to
"ensure the protection of
human health," while the
Green Energy Act (GEA)
has opened the door for a
"broad diversity of partici-
pants" in wind projects
large and small. He has
seen setbacks range from
400-700 metres depending
on "unique circum-
stances." He said very few
jurisdictions have 1 km
setbacks, which have often
been requested by wind
power opponents.
But any time concerns
are raised "they must take
them seriously," and they
support peer-reviewed lit-
erature surrounding the
issues. The "mix and
diversity" of wind power
on the electrical grid has
been expressed by the
government, while CAN -
WEA continues to push
for smaller wind opportu-
nities to be utilized by
farmers and small com-
munities.
"This policy will help to
facilitate and develop
wind power," said
Hornung.
Smaller scale projects
aren't yet economically
viable, but the "second
round" of the GEA will
encourage bmader partici-
pation by First Nation
groups, municipalities and
community groups as the
technology advances:
"We have to overcome
the larger, upfront capital
costs," he said. But current
financial packages contin-
ue to promote larger -scale
wind projects, as growth
significantly increases in
the United States, through
the "evolution of the tech-
nology." Home grown
wind power companies
are .currently doing the
majority of their business
outside of the North
America, where growth is
highest.
Wind power has jumped
from just 5,000MW of
worldwide capacity in
1994 to 122,000MW in
2008. Hornung expects
that figure to jump . , to.
600,000MW by 2020
"It's becoming a main-
stream souse of power as
new developments come
online," he said. "The
wind .. energy industry
tends to underestimate its
growth and there are
ample opportunities to
export to the US. The
manufacturing sector was
hit hard and is lookuig for
opportunities to diversify.
We have the skill sets and
abilities to be part of its
supply chain."
With Bruce County
debating a moratorium on
wind power and the Grey
Bruce Health Unit calling
for health studies on the
impacts of the technology,
CANWEA continues to
focus on wind energy's
rural and industrial devel-
opment opportunities, as
well as "lessening the
environmental impact."
"All of those are key
priorities of the govern-
ment," said Hornung.
CANWEA has 450 cor-
porate members, including
manufacturers, equipment
suppliers, service
providers, project opera-
tors and developers. That
figure is up from 86 mem-
bers six years ago.
For more information
visit www.canwea.ca
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