OWEN SOUND – Local MPP Bill Walker today repeated his call for an immediate moratorium on new wind power development in Ontario after Health Canada announced it was conducting its own study on the potential health impacts of wind turbine noise.
The new two-year-year study headed by Health Canada and Statistics Canada will be supported by independent experts in areas of noise, clinical medicine and epidemiology as they investigate the symptoms displayed by people living near
wind turbines in Canada. “That the federal government concluded it could not rely on nor trust the
provincial findings on wind turbine noise is reason enough to stop any more
wind turbines being built anywhere in Ontario right now,” said Walker.
The provincial government has so far denied any health risks associated with the
noise and vibrations emitted by wind turbines.
Walker said the impact of turbine noise on health should be of concern to the
government given its plans to double wind turbine production in Ontario. On the
Bruce Peninsula alone, about 275 turbines are currently being considered for
development.
“I continue to hear every day from people in Bruce and Grey and all across
Ontario who live close to wind turbines about the health effects they suffer. It’s
completely irresponsible of this Liberal government to continue to use rural
Ontario as a dumping ground for industrial wind turbines without having
completed a proper epidemiological investigation of the full impact on human
health,” said Walker.
Since the passing of the wind turbines enabling legislation, the so-called Green
Energy Act in 2009, the Ontario PC’s have put six pieces of legislation before the
House, calling for a moratorium on wind turbines, all of which were rejected by
Liberal and NDP members.
Walker said wind power policies have brewed more bad than good for Ontario.
“It has divided communities, it has increased the cost of power to both homes
and business significantly, and has only added a small number of short-term jobs
during construction as opposed to the thousands of jobs that were purported to
be created,” Walker said.
“Wind legislation is Ontario’s most undemocratic and unsuccessful
undertaking. Local municipalities have no ability to veto local wind projects
and taxpayers are forced to subsidize it at twice the cost of electricity,” Walker
said. “Dalton McGuinty needs to stop wind power development right now.”
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Contact:
Bill Walker, MPP
Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound
416-325-6242