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Serving the Mapleton Community
Community News Volume 44 Issue 48
Drayton, Ontario
1 Year GIC - 1.90% 3 Year GIC - 2.25% 5 Year GIC - 2.70% Daily Interest 1.75%
Friday, December 2, 2011
NextEra expects MOE decision this month on 10-turbine project Township officials accuse company of starting work prematurely by David Meyer MAPLETON TWP. - A decision on the NextEra Energy wind farm is expected from the province by the end of the year, according to company spokesmen. Derek Dudek and project director Nicole Geneau told council the public consultation requirement for their proposal southwest of Arthur is complete. The company plans to build an 18 to 25.3 megawatt farm consisting of 10 wind turbines, each measuring 80 metres in height and able to collectively generate enough electricity to power more than 5,400 homes. Geneau said once the company receives its approval from the province it will actively begin negotiating with the township. She said the company hopes to start construction in May and be operating by August. She said NextEra would have to negotiate such things as road use, a development agreement and obtain permits from the Grand River Conservation Authority and the township. Dudek said the company has drafted a road use agreement for township staff to consider. He added the company has construction drawings and engineering reports ready, and will work with Mapleton staff to ensure everything is done correctly. An arborist’s report will
show what trees can be saved along the route and which will have to be replaced. The company will also need building permits. Geneau said an archeologist’s report is 80 per cent complete, and the remainder should be done by the end of the month, once crops are off the fields. Dudek said a decommissioning plan will be based on soil reports and the company will work with Ministry of Agriculture engineers “to be sure it is appropriate.” Councillors Neil Driscoll, Jim Curry and Andy Knetsch said they have some concerns about anything left in the soil, ranging from plastics to metals. Councillor Mike Downey said he is concerned there is already some digging being done before the approval arrives. He added the digging was taking place with “no notification” to the township. Geneau said NextEra has nothing to do with that, but Bell Canada is doing some work. “When we learned the municipality didn’t know, we followed up. We were not aware,” she said. Downey said it was “directly related to your project.” Geneau insisted, “We are not doing any work.” Downey asked, “Who pays Bell?” Geneau admitted, “We are.” Downey concluded, “In
fact, you have started the project.” Geneau said Bell has more than one job in the area. Downey noted, “They didn’t communicate very well for a communications company.” Bell had sent council a letter in mid-November explaining it would be starting work in the area in October. Curry also had concerns about tile drainage. Dudek said the company will fix any problems. Curry said he has heard the problems have returned within a few years. Geneau said NextEra has a long-term relationship with the landowner and it is “all covered in the contract.” Downey asked, “Are these things efficient - or are we just subsidizing them so they’re profitable?” Geneau said the company has been collecting wind data since 2006 in Mapleton and it runs evaluations to “determine we’re in the right place. We want to be certain it’s a good site. The banks do an independent evaluation.” She said the turbines are made to produce an average amount and are able to work 80 to 90% of the time, and are producing 30 to 35% of the time in Ontario. John Krul, long an opponent of the proposal, also attended the meeting as a delegation, and noted there has been “a lot of activity on our road. I would like to hear it’s not for NextEra.” He said a lot of the work is on Sideroad 17 where no one Continued on page 5
Delegation convinces council to support doctor recruitment group by David Meyer MAPLETON TWP. - It took only a few well chosen words and less than half an hour for a delegation to convince council to pay its share for doctor recruitment in the north end of the county. Council had voted at a previous meeting to withhold a $10,000 payment to the MintoMapleton health professional recruitment committee because it had some questions about how often and for how long it will have to pay such support. Committee chairman Shirley Borges, Wellington North Health Care recruiter Alison Armstrong and recruitment committee member Dr. Christine Peterkin came to council on Nov. 22 to plead
their case. Borges said the area has Dr. Chris Donald, who will retire in a few years after a 40-year career in the area and it will take at least two people to fill those shoes and cover that workload. Plus, she said, “The competition [to attract physicians] is stiff. It increases as doctors retire.” Borges said the committee is actively lobbying medical students, talking to high school students who are considering a medical career and it is not using money to pay people to come to the community because, “That’s not a long -term strategy for retention.” Mayor Bruce Whale said council was concerned because
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health care is still a provincial jurisdiction and councillors want to know long term “where this is leading us” and, “Is it forever?” Councillor Andy Knetsch asked if the committee is working to find out how foreign doctors can come to town and be qualified to practice in Ontario. Holding his fingers close together he said some people are “this close” to practicing as doctors, and he wondered if it is feasible to attract such people to Mapleton. But Armstrong said foreign doctors need to be qualified, and once educated, have to pass exams and then be matched with a mentor. But she said the big problem is, “Those people Continued on page 5
Steep drop - At the edge of the abandoned CN Rail abutments in Drayton the drop appears to be about 60 feet. Councillor Andy Knetsch wants something done in the area to help prevent flooding downstream, but council has been unsuccessful to date in having CN take any responsibility for its property. INSET: After a long hike through the bush, Mapleton councillor Jim Curry stands on the southern abutment that officials say is in danger of falling into the Conestogo River due to erosion of the riverbank. Behind Curry is the abutment on the other side of the river. photos by David Meyer
CN still silent on abandoned rail abutment on Conestogo River by David Meyer MAPLETON TWP. Councillors here are still frustrated by a lack of response from CN Rail over an abandoned abutment in Drayton. Councillor Andy Knetsch again brought the issue to council nearly two months ago, asking that something be done because the rail line abutment along the Conestogo River is in major need of repair. Knetsch said some work there and dredging the river would likely help prevent flooding in downtown Drayton. The problem is Mapleton Township has been unable to get a response from anyone at CN, except for unfilled promises to contact the township. Knetsch asked council on Nov. 22 if anything further has been heard from CN. Clerk Patty Sinnamon said she had contacted someone at the company who was higher up the chain of command, and, “He assured me someone would get back to me.” However, she added she had not received a call from anyone. Sinnamon said the next step is to send a formal,
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registered letter in an attempt to get action. To date, no one from CN’s property division has responded to any requests for a meeting. The media relations department promised some action, but the township received only one phone call, saying the company would look into the issue. There was no further communication. Sinnamon said the official she spoke with asked what council’s concerns are, and she explained the safety issue. The southern abutment is held in place along a cliff that runs beside the river. The problem is it is mainly gravel, and is badly eroding. A site visit showed gravel is continuing to fall along the cliff for over 100 feet past the abutment. Erosion from the river and even heavy rains is starting to expose the abutment itself, which could one day topple into the river. Pat Salter is Mapleton’s representative on the Grand River Conservation Authority, and she said the GRCA has been trying to get CN to talk
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about the situation for all the years she has been on the board - with no luck at all. Councillor Jim Curry told council, “I had a view of it on Saturday and it’s deteriorating.” He noted he and Knetsch had skied in the area last year, but said, “I wouldn’t want to do it again.” Knetsch said, “You cold sky dive” off the cliff. Curry suggested the township could turn the issue over to its new property standards officer because township officials feel the abutment is unsafe and unfit. Knetsch has told council he believes someone could be hurt or killed with the way the banks have eroded. He noted the local fire department has used the abutment in the past for rescue training. Mayor Bruce Whale added emergency management coordinator Linda Dickson has identified the place as an issue. Sinnamon said she is not sure property standards is the way to deal with the issue, and the township will wait for a formal response to its letter.
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