I would like to comment on…

I would like to comment on the proposal to close the White Pines Wind Project.

I strongly oppose the closure of the wind project. If life on this planet is to continue, we must wean ourselves off fossil fuels. Closing renewable energy projects does not help us to wean ourselves off fossil fuels. I know the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy will be very challenging, but our survival, and in fact, the survival of life on this planet depends on this.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change continues to report on the severity of the situation. With each new report, it gets worse. They confirm that the burning of fossil fuels is greatly contributing to global warming and climate change. Climate change has always occurred in the history of the planet, but it has never happened at the accelerated rate that it is happening now. Many plants and animals simply cannot adapt quickly enough to survive. We are currently in the 6th mass extinction.

The World Wildlife Federation latest report says that 60% of wildlife has disappeared since 1970. See:https://www.cnn.com/2018/10/29/health/wwf-wildlife-population-report-in…
and https://wwf.panda.org/knowledge_hub/all_publications/living_planet_repo…

We have a choice. We can embrace renewable energy such as the White Pines Wind Project. There are many other renewable energy sources available as well. Or we can continue with business as usual. Business as usual will continue to take of down the path of self destruction. Sadly though, other life on this beautiful blue planet cannot add their voices. I am speaking for them also.

I live on Vancouver Island and I love orcas. Their population is declining rapidly. They are an apex species and when they are in decline, it means the whole ecosystem is in decline. A century ago, the Fraser River sockeye fishery was one of the largest in the world, with 100 million fish heading upstream each year. In 2016, the annual run was 856,000. So not only are the orcas suffering from loss of food, but they are being put at risk of oil spills from the proposed expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline. Tanker traffic in the Salish Sea where the Southern Resident Orcas live, would increase 7 fold. It is not if there is an oil spill, but when. Oil spills also threaten other species, as well as the livelihoods of many people.

What do orcas on the West coast of Canada have to do with a wind project in Ontario? Well, our atmosphere is around the whole planet, and what we do to it in one place affects not just that place, but the whole planet. When we burn fossil fuels, greenhouse gases go into the atmosphere and the whole planet is affected. So when there is a wind project, there are fewer greenhouse gases being emitted into the atmosphere, thereby slowing climate change, AND projects like the expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline, transporting fossil fuels, become unnecessary. Win-win for us, orcas, and all life on this planet.

228 individuals have been arrested in B.C., peacefully protesting the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion in Alberta and B.C.. These people recognize the importance of embracing renewable energy such as wind projects. They come from all walks of life, many are very well educated and have esteemed vocations, including doctors, lawyers, faith leaders, professors, nurses, teachers, politicians and more. Most of them have never been on the wrong side of the law. I know, because I am one of them. I have met many of my fellow arrestees. They include retired teachers, nurses, Order of Canada recipients, a young man who works for a housing cooperative, retired opera singers in their 80's, the former BCTF president, and Burnaby residents. There comes a time when all of your options to speak out against an insane proposal have been exhausted and without success. Further action was needed and taken.

As you may be aware the Court of Appeal has since halted the pipeline expansion siting lack of and/ or inadequate consultation.

I am happy to be writing to add my voice to keeping a renewable energy project versus speaking out against a fossil fuel project.

I hope you will make the right decision and continue the operation of White Pines Wind Project. Your children and grandchildren, nieces and nephews are counting on you to protect them now and in the future by helping to mitigate climate change.