Hefty fees for wind turbines
Credit: Kevin Barnard | March 21, 2013 | www.bayshorebroadcasting.ca ~~
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West Grey Council has moved to impose security deposits on wind turbine developers, and NextEra is not happy.
The developer’s lawyer fired off a letter to the municipality last week – arguing that the new fees violate the province’s Municipal Act, the Green Energy Act, the Environmental Protection Act and the Ontario Electricity Act.
Both a NextEra representative and a lawyer for the company, attended the West Grey Council meeting on Monday to try to stop the imposition of the new fees.
However, West Grey Mayor Kevin Eccles says council is confident they are justified imposing the deposits and other fees.
Eccles says legal advice to the municipality is there is no problem bringing in the charges.
Under the new law, wind developers must post a 100 thousand dollar performance bond on each turbine.
There are also security deposits of 65 hundred dollars for each turbine built on municipal rights of way, plus 20 thousand dollars per kilometre of roadway used.
For a municipal road with a box culvert the security deposit jumps to 125 thousand dollars and up to 200 thousand for roadways with a bridge.
Eccles says the deposits are being imposed to cover the costs of road repairs that may be necessary once the project is complete.
He says the taxpayer shouldn’t be on the hook for any repair costs.
The Mayor says if the company wants to appeal the bylaw it has that right, but he is confident the municipality would win.
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