In response to reports that the Water Wells First group has requested the Ontario Ombudsman’s Office to investigate ground water issues in Chatham-Kent, the Municipality of Chatham-Kent has issued a statement.
“We support our citizens and take their concerns seriously,” stated Chatham-Kent Mayor Randy Hope.
“If there are impacts to water wells then we will be asking the province to use their powers to address those concerns.”
Municipal officials say Chatham-Kent does not have the power to either approve or prohibit the construction of the turbines; such powers lie at the province.
Suggestions have been made that Chatham-Kent should withhold building permits for the turbines, however this is also outside of the municipality’s authority. Under the Ontario Building Code Act a Renewable Energy Approval required for turbine projects is “applicable law”, as defined under that Act.
Once the conditions of that approval are met, provided all other applicable laws are adhered to, the Chief Building Official is required by law to issue the building permits, Municipal officials stated.
The impact of wind turbine development on water wells was the subject of an appeal by Kevin Jakubec to the Environmental Review Tribunal in October of last year, C-K staff said.
On August 22, 2016, Chatham-Kent Municipal Council heard from concerned citizens about potential impacts to water wells from the proposed wind turbine project.
Council instructed its Chief Legal Officer John Norton to participate in the Environmental Review Tribunal hearing and to take all steps necessary to protect Chatham-Kent citizens.
Chatham-Kent was granted party status by the Environmental Review Tribunal and planned to participate fully in the hearing.
No hearing was held because a settlement was reached shortly before the hearing.
On September 30, 2016 a mediation was held by the Environmental Review Tribunal.
At that mediation Jakubec reached a settlement with the wind farm developers and Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change.
Chatham-Kent agreed to the settlement only because the dispute was fundamentally between Jakubec and the other parties and they had all resolved their differences, Chatham-Kent official stated.
Following the settlement of this matter, Chatham-Kent felt it was important to quickly provide a public comment regarding the outcome in order to ensure citizens were fully informed of the status of the hearing and project.
As a result, a press release detailing the history of this matter and the result of the mediation was issued on October 5, 2016.
Allegations have been made in various media outlets that the municipality is conflicted in this matter due to the community benefit payments negotiated with the wind farm developer for this project.
“Chatham-Kent took great efforts to make sure that if this turbine construction was approved by the Province, our community would receive some significant benefit as a result,” Mayor Hope said in response to the allegations.
“Of course, no amount of money would justify a negative impact on our citizens’ water. Our first priority is always the health and well-being of our citizens.”
During the exchange of documents at the Environmental Review Tribunal, legal counsel for the Municipality was provided evidence from Jakubec, North Kent Wind 1, and the Ministry of the Environment.
Part of that evidence was a detailed report by Golder Associates, dated September 2016.
That report was prepared by:
– John McNeil, a Professional Geoscientist;
– Storer Boone, a Professional Engineer with a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering;
– Robert McLaren, a Hydrologist with a Master’s Degree in Earth Science;
– Daniel Corkery, a Blasting and Vibration Consultant; and
– Ernest Becker, Radiation Specialist who holds a Ph.D. in Physics.
“These are exceptionally qualified individuals in their respective fields. They presented a comprehensive analysis of the issues before the Environmental Review Tribunal.”
The Golder report concluded that, “The influence of ground vibrations generated during pile foundation construction and turbine operation on well water conditions, if any, is likely to be insignificant.”
The report further indicated that there is no plausible mechanism by which particles can be transported tens or hundreds of metres from turbine foundation pile locations to water supply wells.
Norton said experts in their respected fields contributed to the ‘Golder Report’.
“While the Golder report was paid for by North Kent Wind 1, each of the professionals involved in that matter provided an ‘Acknowledgement of Experts Duty’ under the Practice Directions of the Environmental Review Tribunal,” Norton said.
“That acknowledgement provides that the experts’ duty is to provide fair, objective and non-partisan information and provide opinions only within their area of expertise.”
Norton added: “The important thing now is for our residents to understand that the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change has required North Kent Wind 1 to provide testing on active water wells prior to construction of wind turbines. Residents should ensure that they take part in this testing program so that baseline levels are established. There will be no charge for this testing to residents. Subsequent complaints about well water arising after construction must be addressed promptly by the wind turbine developer. Details of this requirement can be read in the Renewable Energy Approval for North Kent Wind 1 issued by the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change.”
Here is our story from Thursday, featuring comments from the Water Wells First group: Water Wells First seeking Ombudsman investigation
