MPP Smith calls out MNRF minister on ‘kill, harass and harm’ permit
Administrator | Sep 16, 2015 | Comments 3
Todd Smith took revelations from this month’s Environmental Review Tribunal to Queen’s Park today.
Two weeks ago, Joe Crowley, a species-at-risk expert with the Ministry of Natural Resources, told the tribunal he initially recommended against issuing a Kill, Harm and Harass Permit for Ostrander Point – the site for industrial wind turbines.
“Joe Crowley is your species-at-risk expert who testified less than two weeks ago at an Environmental Review Tribunal in Prince Edward County and he recommended against issuing a permit for wind turbines to kill, harm and harass endangered species on the South Shore of Prince Edward County.” Smith said at Queen’s Park. “What did the ministry do? They granted the permit anyway.”
Smith went on to remind that in September 2011, the Big Thunder wind project that was planned for Minister Bill Mauro’s riding of Thunder Bay-Atikokan “and your predecessor refused to grant a permit to kill, harm and harass peregrine falcons on the site of that project.
“In fact, the Minister’s own words at the time were “I don’t know how the proponent could satisfy the conditions to allow my Ministry to issue a permit to allow the project to proceed. I am not prepared to issue a permit at this time, nor do I understand how a permit could be issued for this site.”
Smith said he is asking for the same standard to apply to Prince Edward County.
“The County doesn’t want this project. Conservation and environmental groups don’t want it and the Ministry’s own expert recommended against it ever being approved.” Smith concluded. “Apparently, no one outside the Liberal cabinet office thinks this project is a good idea.”
In a letter to the minister, Smith requested the permit be revoked.
“Second, that you make public all documentation and correspondence pertaining to Mr. Crowley’s recommendation to the Minister and the subsequent documentation and correspondence that led to the Ministry making a decision that ran contrary to the advice of its in-house experts.
“You and your ministerial colleagues have consistently, in the House, deferred to Ministry staff and recommendations when discussing the approval of individual projects. However, it is clear that in this instance, the recommendation was ignored. The people of Prince Edward County have been denied equal protection by the government when such protection has been granted to other communities in identical circumstances. It is time this was rectified.”
Filed Under: Local News
Well done Todd Smith! Thank you on behalf of PEC residents.
You don’t just need Joe Crowley’s testimony to realize that something very corrupt and very wrong is taking place here.
This terrible industry rigs nearly everything. For decades they have been hiring fake experts, and throwing money at organizations, media outlets and politicians. But the most insidious aspect of this turbine invasion is that this industry is knowingly selling a non-solution for society’s energy needs and marketing their nonsense with smoke up everybody’s a** about how these green monsters can magically fix climate.
Since 1985 this industry has not conducted a single scientifically sound turbine mortality study. About a year and a half ago in a response to one of my article comments I asked John M. Anderson, Senior Director of Siting Policy for the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) to produce just one honest wind turbine mortality study. He never answered me because he could not produce any.
The tribunal should ask the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Ministry of Fraud and Propaganda (Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change) to produce just one,two or even three honest wind turbine mortality studies that has been conducted over the last 30 years. If they do not want to answer then ask them about the honesty of any used in supportive citations. What ever they produce I will show everyone how these studies were rigged with methodology designed to hide carcasses.
It should also be brought to the attention of the tribunal that it is impossible to fairly mitigate any turbine impacts when this industry has a 30 year history of rigging their studies.
On a similar note, people across America are currently outraged that nuclear inspectors must wait 24 days before visiting any place in Iran that is suspected of being an Iranian nuclear site because this time frame allows Iran to rig everything before inspectors arrive. Well folks, why do you think search intervals with the wind industry’s mortality studies extend out to as many as 90 days and employees are allowed to pick up bodies during studies?
Not one person or any government agency should believe a single word coming from the mouths of this industry.
The minister has excellant dance steps