City council did what it should have done in October.
On Monday council approved a compromise deal with Horizon Wind Inc., agreeing to the locations of eight of 11 proposed turbines the southern Ontario company wants to build on the Nor’Wester mountain range.
The agreement ends a five-month threat of a $126-million lawsuit that has hung over the city since just before last October’s municipal election.
The city never should have gotten into this position in the first place.
Knowing full well a lawsuit would be launched when they told Horizon at the time they’d nixed four proposed turbine locations, council went ahead and did it anyway.
That’s reckless behaviour. They were warned and ignored the warning in search of votes.
It’s clear this is a matter best left in the hands of the province.
Ultimately it will be Queen’s Park that makes the final decision on the wind farm, and it has been all along.
It’s all laid out in the Green Energy Act.
There are no guarantees the province will let the project go ahead, and under its legislation, it’s less likely the company would have grounds to take it to the courts.
Let the eager-to-sue Horizon Wind ownership take Ontario to court if approval isn’t granted.
On Monday council approved a compromise deal with Horizon Wind Inc., agreeing to the locations of eight of 11 proposed turbines the southern Ontario company wants to build on the Nor’Wester mountain range.
The agreement ends a five-month threat of a $126-million lawsuit that has hung over the city since just before last October’s municipal election.
The city never should have gotten into this position in the first place.
Knowing full well a lawsuit would be launched when they told Horizon at the time they’d nixed four proposed turbine locations, council went ahead and did it anyway.
That’s reckless behaviour. They were warned and ignored the warning in search of votes.
It’s clear this is a matter best left in the hands of the province.
Ultimately it will be Queen’s Park that makes the final decision on the wind farm, and it has been all along.
It’s all laid out in the Green Energy Act.
There are no guarantees the province will let the project go ahead, and under its legislation, it’s less likely the company would have grounds to take it to the courts.
Let the eager-to-sue Horizon Wind ownership take Ontario to court if approval isn’t granted.
