An economic impact analysis has been submitted to the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change as evidence that proposed wind turbines would have a negative impact on the Collingwood Regional Airport and future aviation related development.
The Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (MOECC) is currently reviewing an application by wpd to put up eight wind turbines near the airport.
The Township of Clearview commissioned the analysis, produced by Malone Given Parsons in partnership with the Town of Collingwood, in response to the latest phase in wpd’s effort to see its Fairview Wind Project built out.
Wpd has commissioned a study of its own and is looking to the courts to force a decision on its application.
The wpd analysis says that there is only a minimal economic impact while the municipalities’ study says there would be a significant impact.
“Wpd’s proposed locations for five turbines will insert significant obstacles into the airport’s operating space and would require significant changes to flight operations at the Collingwood Regional Airport (CRA). These changes will be fatal to the expansion potential of the two businesses proposing new facilities adjacent to the airport,” states the report prepared for Clearview and Collingwood.
Malone Given Parsons reports that five of the proposed turbines will intrude, in several cases significantly, into the operating air space at the Collingwood Regional Airport.
“Transport Canada corroborates the independent analysis of Collingwood and Clearview’s aviation consultant, Mr. C. Cormier, who concludes that the proposed turbine locations will have significant impacts to the airport’s operating procedures, including landing and takeoff minimums and general accessibility. These impacts are expected to significantly impair the CRA’s attractiveness to ongoing or new flight school and other aviation business operations. These impacts could be resolved by relocating the turbines to positions outside the airport’s air space, or by denying the wpd turbine project application.”
The wpd analysis by Maury Hill of Maury Hill and Associates states, “Given that the VFR flights (when the pilot is navigating by sight, without instruments) are not likely to be impacted and the number of IFR aircraft (flights using instruments on approach) that would be impacted by the installation of the wind turbines is in the order of zero to three flights per annum, it is the considered judgment of this author that the result is too minimal to quantify an economic impact.”
The Collingwood Regional Airport is owned by the Town of Collingwood but is located in Clearview Township. Clearview also has interest in advancing a proposed aviation business park on land adjacent to the airport, which is moving through the development process at the township level.
Clearview is looking to intervene to obtain party status at an upcoming court hearing, as is Collingwood, and interested parties hope that the analysis will help their case.
Submissions were made Jan. 8, a pre-hearing has been scheduled for Feb. 1 and a hearing date has been moved to Feb. 12.
Township CAO Steve Sage said Clearview won’t know if it has intervener status until Feb. 1.
“We are pretty happy with the report. We think it’s pretty impressive and how the ministry could avoid it would be beyond me. I think they have to take it into consideration. We sure hope they will,” said Sage.