Ontario Wind Turbines
Ontario has the most expensive electricity in North America
leading to unaffordable hydro bills, manufacturing leaving the province, high unemployment and a stagnant economy.
This is a serious problem and is the result of Wind Turbines; an industry that Ontario doesn’t need and never did.
“Ontario is probably the worst electricity market in the world,”
Pierre-Olivier Pineau, Associate Professor and Electricity Market Expert, University of Montreal HEC Business School.
Ontario’s Energy Policy will affect every person in Ontario.
Eleven years ago, Ontario had a vibrant energy sector that offered inexpensive electricity. It has changed dramatically since then.
The following is a summary of the new energy policy that is being implemented by the Ontario Government.
Supporting information is under Sources. Pictures are of wind projects in Ontario.
Over the next 20 years, your household will pay an additional $40,000 for electricity.
The money is to pay for the cost of wind energy that will add $110,000,000,000.00 to our electrical bills.
Ontario is building 6736 Wind Turbines.
About 1800 turbines are built with about 4900 more to go. There are plans to accept more wind contracts in 2015.
Ontario, however, already has clean and excess electricity from water, nuclear and gas and doesn’t need energy from wind.
Ontario has the highest electricity rates in North America.
It was the Liberal’s decision for Ontario to pay more for wind energy than any other province/state in N. America.
Ontario is giving multi-billion-dollar subsidies to the multi-billion-dollar wind energy business.
Less than 3% of our electricity comes from wind, yet 50% of our bill pays for the Liberal wind energy costs.
Ontario hydro consumers pay for a hydro debt that was paid off in 2010.
The 10% clean energy rebate on your hydro bill is charged to Ontario tax payers.
Ontario is the only province/state that charges HST, delivery, and regulatory fees on electricity.
Your hydro rates will continue to increase every May and October to pay for wind energy.
In 2004, you paid 4.7 cents per kilowatt hour.
Today you pay 15-23 cents per kilowatt hour. Check your hydro bill; divide the total (including HST) by your usage.
Compare our rates to: 4.8 cents in Montreal, 5.45 cents in Chicago and 8.12 cents in Detroit.
Monthly Usage Cost Comparison
1699 kw hours will cost in Ontario, $210; Montreal, $82; Chicago, $93; Detroit, $138.
288 kw hours will cost in Ontario, $ 79; Montreal, $14; Chicago, $16; Detroit, $24.
(The less hydro you use, the higher the percentage of delivery & regulatory charges; resulting in a higher rate per kw hour.)
Manufacturing is leaving Ontario and new manufacturing is not coming.
Key reasons include expensive electricity and limited opportunities.
To name a few: Caterpiller (2 plants), United Steel. Heinz, Bicks, International Trucking,
General Motors, Navistar, Kellogg’s, John Deer, Lance Bakeries, Kraft Foods, GE Electromotive Plant.
Large manufacturers are seeing their hydro costs increasing by $3-10 million a year.
NOVA Chemicals says the cost of power is critical in its decision to locate a multi-billion-dollar polyethylene expansion in Sarnia Ontario.
Their alternative is the U.S. Gulf Coast where hydro rates are a fraction our rates.
Ontario’s economy is shrinking and electricity use has decreased by 6% since 2006.
Almost 1 million Ontarian’s are out of work.
For 8 years, Ontario has had one of the highest unemployment rates in Canada.
Ontario is now the have-not province of Canada with a debt of $227 billion.
Gone are the days of beautiful Ontario….
Wind projects can be built anywhere in Ontario.
Wind projects are approved by the Ontario Government without consent from the affected municipalities or people.
Many Ontario laws or regulations do not apply to Wind Companies: municipal bylaws, building permits, road weight restrictions, drainage, protection of wetlands; migratory paths; death or harm to endangered species.
Wind companies simply obtain exemptions from any law that impedes their projects.
Wind turbines towering as high as 60 storeys, are intrusive and will affect over 4800 sq. miles in Ontario.
Every Great Lakes coastline will have 1,000-2,000 wind turbines.
Tourism is diminishing, rural property values are decreasing; livestock, endangered species, wildlife and fowl are being negatively affected.
Ontario Wind Turbines are built closer to humans than any place in the world; people are suffering from wind turbine syndrome which can be life threatening.
People don’t want to live near these turbines and are abandoning their homes without recourse.
Areas in rural Ontario are becoming ghost towns.
In the Niagara area, turbines that were built too close to residents, are violating the law and need to be dismantled.
As of March, 2014, the Liberals have been attempting to give the wind company a pass over the residents and the law.
http://www.niagarathisweek.com/news-story/4390620-enforce-the-law-hudak-to-energy-minister
The Liberal & NDP support our wind energy policy even though it is convoluted and wastes our money.
- Nuclear, hydro, & gas is cheap, reliable, clean energy but, wind has priority.
- At 3-4 times the price, wind energy is too expensive, unreliable, available only about 20-30% of the time (sometimes as low as 10%).
- Wind needs backup energy. For every kilowatt of wind power, we need one kilowatt of backup energy fuel, that could otherwise be our initial source.
- Ontario has so much electricity that we pay the USA & Quebec to take it off our hands or, when permitting, charge them 2.5 cents per kw hour. In 2013 alone, the loss was $1 billion which will cost your household an additional $250.
- Quebec turns around and sells our hydro at cheap rates (5 cents per kw hour) to the New England states and makes a substantial profit.
- Ontario is spending $11 billion building transmission lines to feed energy from wind turbines. That’s an additional $2750 cost to your household.
- Beginning in 2007, Ontario installed smart meters at cost of $700 per household. As of February, 2104, there are discussions to replace these meters at another $700 per household.
- When there is too much electricity, Ontario pays $1 million dollars a day to take a nuclear plant off-line ($66 million in 2013); diverts the water at Niagara Falls and pays wind companies to shut down their turbines.
- Ontario pays gas plants to run continually in backup mode for wind energy.
- According to the Ontario Society of Professional Engineers,
Carbon Dioxide Emissions will increase by 48% in 2030, because gas plants starting up and shutting down on a continuous basis expels significantly more emissions into the atmosphere than if they ran continually. - The first weekend in August, Ontario lost $10 million because of the highly windy days resulting in unexpected energy to the grid. The same situation occurred on November 9 & 10, where Ontario lost another $20 million. These losses are charged back to Ontario hydro consumers.
- Effective September 11, 2013, Ontario agreed to pay Wind Energy companies $200,000 per MW NOT to supply their wind energy to the grid, because it’s “cheaper” than paying the USA & Quebec to use it. Since then, the Liberals continue to approve new wind farm projects on a weekly basis.
- The plan to build two new nuclear reactors at Darlington was abruptly cancelled by the Liberals in October 2013 at a cost of $180 million. This will be charged back to the Ontario hydro consumer.
- The $1.1 billion cancellation of 2 gas plants by the Liberals will cost your household an additional $250.
- Because wind is so unreliable and unpredictable, the staff at the IESO, must continually manipulate the grid on an hourly basis, by shutting down, or starting up, the nuclear, gas or hydro plants or sending the excess off to the states.
- These constant changes to the grid are prone to error and Ontario’s grid wasn’t built to handle such.
- Experts say that we better be prepared for frequent and long blackouts or worse, as in complete failure of our energy grid resulting in a devastating blackout.
Truth is stranger than fiction
Ontario pays Quebec to take our excess electricity.
Quebec sells it to bordering States at dirt cheap rates.
These states attract manufacturing because of cheap electricity.
Therefore:
Manufacturers can move to the border States to get cheap electricity that is sourced from Ontario.
New York State clearly sees opportunity.
In March 2014 promotional information was sent to Ontario’s Manufacturing sector citing Ontario’s high energy costs as a main reason to relocate to New York State.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/soaring-energy-prices-making-ontario-look-dim-for-manuf...
Does this make sense to you??
The Liberals & NDP’s give way to the resident wind energy lobbyists at Queens Park regardless of the impact on Ontario.
This has been going on for years. In 2004, the Liberals awarded Mike Crawley, the (then) Ontario President for the Liberals, a wind energy contract that guarantees his company $66,000 a day for a total of $1/2 Billion dollars.
The Wind Industry held a fundraising event for Kathleen Wynne in April 2013.
Another lobbyist fundraiser was held in March 2014 that raised $5 million.
Those who promote Wind Energy, such as the Liberals, NDP, David Suzuki, Greenpeace, Pembina Institute, Environmental Defence, Friends of the Wind and CANWEA are supported by Wind Energy companies and benefit financially from these companies.
Ten minutes of research on the Internet will tell you that wind turbines are nothing more than big money for billion dollar companies, big money for environmentalists and big money for politicians with many disadvantages to the Ontario people.
Question: Can these Wind Projects be Stopped?
The answer is: Yes
The Liberals have the discretionary power to cancel or modify these contracts but their actions make it clear they don’t want to.
An Ontario court ruling in the decision of Trillium vs. Ontario, 2013, clearly states that:
“Governments are free to alter policies in the public interest.”
“Companies in the renewable power business participate in government subsidy programs ‘at their own risk’.”
The Liberals refuse to acknowledge this ruling.
The NDP’s are supporting the Liberals.
The PC’s want them stopped.
As of March 2014, Ontario has 55 incomplete wind power projects (consisting of approximately 4900 turbines) that could be stopped legally.
If the Liberals allow them to be completed (which they intend to do) the cost to Ontario will be:
An additional $22 billion ($5500 cost to your household);
More intrusion on our countryside and our people.
Wolfe Island (Kingston) BEFORE
Wolfe Island (Kingston) AFTER
Featured Posts
