Questions and Answers
What is being done with excess energy produced today?
Ontario sells excess energy at a loss.The excess electricity sold to the US is produced mostly by intermittent wind turbines. Proponents of BESS say that this excess can be stored during peak and put back on our grid as needed, thus avoiding the need to sell at a loss to the US.
How many BESS installations does Evolugen have in Canada?
According to the Evolugen website, they have NO BESS installations in all of Canada. There are two proposed:
`1. Fitzroy – installation was rejected by residents and is now being planned for Marchurst
2. Trail Road – Not constructed
Does West Carleton Have other Green Energy Solutions in the region?
Yes!
Here is a list to name a few:
Are there any local examples of local groundwater that has been contaminated?
Yes!
There are two local examples where groundwater in the region have been contaminated by various sources.
The Beckwith Plume and National Research Council’s National Fire Lab between Carleton Place and Almonte.
The Beckwith Plume is a 45 square kilometre area of contaminated groundwater running from Carleton Place to Black’s Corners.
Trichloroethylene (TCE), a volatile compound used in metal degreasing, was detected in private wells in Black’s Corners in March, 2000 after extensive testing was conducted for a development proposal. TCE is designated as a “toxic substance” under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act and is considered carcinogenic. Vinyl chloride, another toxin linked to kidney and liver damage, and TCE degraded compounds were also detected in the water.
Class action lawsuit certified against NRC for polluting well water
Over 250 households and businesses, as well as a public school fell within the contaminated area, which became known as the Beckwith Plume. The chemicals are believed to have leached into groundwater from a former landfill site and a privately owned scrap yard on Tenth Line Road. This private dump had accepted waste from the Town of Carleton Place and Beckwith Township between 1966 and 1973. (In 1998, a private well had tested positive for TCE but that was wrongly assumed to be an isolated incident.)
The homeowners contend the NRC, though its negligence, released firefighting chemicals into the environment from the lab, contaminated their land and damaged the value of their properties.
What type of farming activities are being done on the proposed site?
The farming activities being done on the properties are forgage production (hay), maple syrup production and pasturing for cattle.
Both properties are generational properties with long histories of providing for the families for decades.