Industrial wind turbines and Queen’s Park: a PC timeline 

Since October 2009, the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party has introduced nine motions and private member’s bills on the topic of industrial wind turbines. Below is a timeline of those actions.

October 29, 2009: PC MPP Bill Murdoch (Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound) tables a motion requesting the government impose a moratorium on all new wind turbine projects in Ontario until such time as Ontario’s chief medical officer of health, the Ministry of Health … and the Ministry of the Environment have stated that wind turbines do not have any adverse health effects on people who live near them.

April 12, 2010: PC MPP Sylvia Jones (Dufferin-Caledon) introduces a Private Members’ Bill known as the Planning Amendment Act (Renewable Energy Undertakings), which would have repealed parts the of Green Energy Act which removed municipal authority over renewable energy projects.

April 28, 2010: PC MPP John Yakabuski (Renfrew-Nippissing-Pembroke) tables a motion that calls for a moratorium on all wind farm projects until an independent, comprehensive study of the health and environmental impacts of wind farms is completed and Premier McGuinty restores the planning authority governing them to municipalities and local boards.

November 28, 2011: PC MPP Todd Smith (Prince Edward – Hastings) introduces a Private Members’ Bill known as the Local Municipality Democracy Act which would return local control of decision-making in issues such as alternative energy installations to municipalities.

December 8, 2011: PC MPP Lisa Thompson (Huron-Bruce) tabled a motion to see a moratorium placed on all further industrial wind development until a third-party health, economic, environmental and social study has been completed.

September 10, 2012: PC MPP Lisa Thompson (Huron-Bruce) tables four separate motions calling for a moratorium on further wind development in Ontario.  The motions individually call upon the government to suspend all industrial wind turbine development in the province of Ontario until the federal health study is complete and the results are published, an economic viability study, an environmental impact study, and social health study has been completed.

March 7, 2012: PC MPP Tim Hudak (Niagara West-Glanbrook) introduces a Private Members’ Bill known as the Affordable Energy and Restoration of Local Decision Making Act, which would have ended the Feed-in Tariff and Micro Feed-in Tariff programs which subsidize renewable energy developers.  The act would have also restored local control of decision-making on renewable energy projects.  

February 20, 2013: PC MPP Lisa Thompson (Huron-Bruce) retables four separate motions calling for a moratorium on further wind development in Ontario.  The motions individually call upon the government to suspend all industrial wind turbine development in the province of Ontario until the federal health study is complete and the results are published, an economic viability study, an environmental impact study, and social health study has been completed.

February 20, 2013: PC MPP Jim Wilson (Simcoe-Grey) introduces a Private Members’ Bill known as the Restoring Planning Powers to Municipalities Act, which would return local control of decision-making in issues such as alternative energy installations to municipalities.