The Ontario Court of Appeals has reversed an earlier ruling by the Environmental Review Tribunal (ERT) regarding the permitting of Gilead Power's 22.5 MW Ostrander Point wind project, planned for Prince Edward County, Ontario.
Gilead Power received the renewable energy approval (REA) for Ostrander Point on Dec. 20, 2012. The REA grants the needed permits to construct and operate the wind farm.
However, the ERT ruled that ‘serious and irreversible harm’ would befall the Blanding's turtle as a result of the project and, therefore, revoked the REA.
Specifically, the appeals court ruled that the wind farm would have an adverse effect on Blanding's turtle, a semi-aquatic, freshwater turtle that lives in northeastern and midwestern North America.
Gilead Power appealed the case to the Ontario Court of Appeals, which found the ERT's claim was unreasonable. The court remitted back to the ERT.
Mike Lord, president of Gilead Power, contends that the developer has sufficient mitigation measures in place to protect the Blanding's turtle. If successful, Lord says construction on the nine-turbine wind farm could begin in the fall, with commercial operation beginning in July 2016.
