Tundra swan migration may face wind turbine blades

Tundra swans stopping to rest and feed near Grand Bend, Ontario may face a phalanx of industrial wind turbines on their traditional migration habitat next March if the proposed Goshen Wind Energy Centre receives approval from the Ontario Ministry of the Environment. This proposal falls under a regulation of the Environmental Protection Act.

In the 2011 video above, tundra swans feed on a corn stubble field located north of Greenway Road, east of Parkhill Creek, part of the area proposed for an industrial wind turbine factory.

That this proposal is being given any Ministry consideration begs the question: where is the environmental protection for one of Ontario’s most unique spectacles in nature when every March up to 15,000 tundra swans stop in the Grand Bend area to rest, feed and stage in preparation for continuing their epic journey to the western Arctic?

If the Goshen project receives approval, how will the swans manage to evade being sliced in two by the hundreds of gigantic wind turbines that would surround the bog where they rest, and that would dot the agricultural fields over which the birds must fly, land on and take off from in search of food? Would the proposed wind factory completely disrupt and destroy their traditional migration habitat? Would that be an acceptable price to pay for this so-called “green” renewable energy? Since we already know that wind energy is not green, not sustainable, and not useful, the Goshen proposal would appear to be doubly deplorable.

The public is invited to review and comment on the proposal. The Ministry’s website states:

This proposal has been posted for a 45 day public review and comment period starting June 26, 2013. If you have any questions, or would like to submit your comments, please do so by August 10, 2013 to the individual listed under “Contact”. Additionally, you may submit your comments on-line. All comments received prior to August 10, 2013 will be considered as part of the decision-making process by the Ministry of the Environment if they are submitted in writing or electronically using the form provided in this notice and reference EBR Registry number 011-9473.

For the option to submit a comment to the Ministry online, click here. The individual listed under “Contact” mentioned above is: Kristina Rudzki, Senior Project Evaluator, Ministry of the Environment, Operations Division, Environmental Approvals Branch, 2 St. Clair Avenue West, Floor 12A, Toronto Ontario M4V 1L5 , Phone: (416) 314-6802 , Toll Free Phone: (800) 461-6290.