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Plan for Vt. windmills causes international furor - WTOP.com
Quebec requires wind turbines to be at least 1,640 feet from homes, and the Canadian homeowners are demanding those rules be followed. But in Vermont, the allowable distance is determined by the sound of the spinning blades, and the project's developer says the turbines would meet those requirements.
The plan has yet to win approval from Vermont regulators. But the dispute has gotten so rancorous that the mayor of Stanstead threatened to cut off water to some homes on the American side. The issue has even come up on the floor of Canada's Parliament.
"You know, there really is no precedent to follow here," said Chad Farrell of Encore Redevelopment, the Burlington, Vt., company working with two dairy farmers to build the 425-foot windmills, each of which would be capable of producing enough electricity for about 900 homes.
Stanstead's Lynda Hartley lives on a horse farm about 3,700 feet from the turbine site, well beyond the Quebec setback distance, but is leading the opposition in the community. She said her 8-year-old autistic son is hypersensitive to noise.
"This is going to be stopped," she said. "I am not going to allow this to happen. This is crazy."
The Vermont farmers are counting on the money they would be paid for hosting the towers as a steady source of income in an era of up-and-down milk prices.
Quebec requires wind turbines to be at least 1,640 feet from homes, and the Canadian homeowners are demanding those rules be followed. But in Vermont, the allowable distance is determined by the sound of the spinning blades, and the project's developer says the turbines would meet those requirements.
The plan has yet to win approval from Vermont regulators. But the dispute has gotten so rancorous that the mayor of Stanstead threatened to cut off water to some homes on the American side. The issue has even come up on the floor of Canada's Parliament.
"You know, there really is no precedent to follow here," said Chad Farrell of Encore Redevelopment, the Burlington, Vt., company working with two dairy farmers to build the 425-foot windmills, each of which would be capable of producing enough electricity for about 900 homes.
Stanstead's Lynda Hartley lives on a horse farm about 3,700 feet from the turbine site, well beyond the Quebec setback distance, but is leading the opposition in the community. She said her 8-year-old autistic son is hypersensitive to noise.
"This is going to be stopped," she said. "I am not going to allow this to happen. This is crazy."
The Vermont farmers are counting on the money they would be paid for hosting the towers as a steady source of income in an era of up-and-down milk prices.