August 16, 2012
Letters, Ontario

Hey GTA, get your own power

Brampton Guardian | www.bramptonguardian.com 16 August 2012

It appears the vast majority of GTA residents support Premier Dalton McGuinty’s Green Energy Act, which has stripped away the rights of local government and rural citizens to decide whether they want wind turbines blanketing the countryside.
The shorelines of Lake Huron, Lake Superior and Lake Erie have already taken on their fair share of turbines. Why are there not an equal number dotting the shoreline of Lake Ontario?
The power would be produced closest to where the greatest use and need for energy lies, in the GTA. Thousands of turbines producing power all along the Toronto harbourfront could really offset the GTA’s dependency on fossil fuels and help to reduce its carbon emissions, as well as improve the poor air quality in Mississauga and surrounding areas. You wouldn’t have the transmission problems and costs because you could tap directly into the grid right where it’s needed most.
I’m not talking about a dozen or so turbines. I mean, build one every 500 feet from Hamilton to Oshawa – just like they’re doing all over rural Southern Ontario.
All a thousand feet tall. Imagine the power you could generate with those.
Why are we putting these wind turbines so far from the place where consumption is the greatest?
It only makes sense to put them right at the spot that they are most needed.
All those environmentalists in the GTA could lead by example and show how they’re willing to make the same commitment to green energy that they expect of rural residents.
Finally, it would preserve the much-needed fertile farmland for food production and eliminate the need to encroach on fragile ecosystems and nature areas. Rural residents can once again turn their attention to the farming of crops and livestock.
Why should the responsibility for providing the GTA with power rest in the lap of rural Ontario?

Lori Griffin, Port Elgin


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2012/08/16/hey-gta-get-your-own-power/