_____

From: Norm Negus [mailto:indianlinekennel@execulink.com]
Sent: September 23, 2011 12:44 PM
To: BoardSec
Subject: Fw: EB-2011-0063







Ms. Kirsten Walli

Board Secretary

Ontario Energy Board

2300 Yonge St, 27th Fl

P.O. Box 2319

Toronto, ON M4P 1E4

Dear Ms. Walli:

Re: Application by Grand Renewable Wind LP

For Leave to Construct Transmission Facilities

Board File No. EB-2011-0063

Please find attached Board Staff interrogatories for the above proceeding for distribution

to the applicant and all parties in this proceeding.

IN THE MATTER Of the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998,S.O. 1998,c 15,Sch, as amended(the "OEB Act");

AND IN THE MATTER of application by Grand Renewable Wind LP (the "Applicant") for an order under section 92 and subsection 96(2) of the OEB Act granting leave to construct and electrical transmission line and related facilities.



At this time I wish to point out a few concerns on this transmission facility.



There was a Samsung open house held on July 8.2010 and there was at that time not a lot of information for the public to learn about what is proposed to be constructed in the future. According to people and the Sachem newspaper no information on wind turbines, transmission station placements, solar placements, powerlines on the fields to wind turbines and roadways constructed to install and service said equipment. There were no answers provided to the public that day. There were a few lines on the board to show proposed routes, but no information on the magnitude of these 28 meter high steel mono poles and the high voltage that was to be installed. I do have a paper from that day or information can be obtained form www.sachem.ca it was published on July 22,2010

COST

The Applicant has provided a list of installations of 230,000 volt overhead lines in the USA. In Canada I have found out about other Provinces in regards to 230kv overhead power lines in the Right of Way. Alberta has a restriction on Transmission Line Towers mounted parallel to the Highway, they should be normally positioned outside and beyond 30 M. of the ROW. In Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Quebec they are not allowed in the ROW but we have one here in Canada in British Columbia where the installation of 230,000 volt overhead power lines installed in the R.O.W. effected 104 landowners and this was taken to the Auditor General of Canada and the B.C. government paid 58.4 Million Dollars for these homes in or about 2009 and still pays for security, matainance and upkeep, roofs and windows on these homes and out of the 104 homes sold to the Government 89 homes sit empty today as they can't sell. This is a direct rebuttal to homes not depreciating with the installation of overhead powerlines as mentioned by the Applicant. Also the applicant's lawyer remarked that no landowners have complained and there are no landowners that have intervenor status. I have been in touch with all 53 landowners on Haldimand Rd.#20 and NO one is in favor of these powerlines being installed in the R.O.W. We 'the landowners" feel it is better if only a few of us keep the Ontario Energy Board address of our concerns than everyone writing letters to the Board. There have been a number of comments posted on the OEB web site in regards to this proposed installation of over head 230k power lines. There are a number of us landowners that are indeed intervenors and also Mr. Philip Lee that does not have internet put has mailed in remarks and wishes to have a oral hearing,,, has this man been informed on any of the remarks from the Board or the Applicant by Canada Post?

Where Hydro One has installed powerlines there is a distance in meters that restricts homeowners from any construction of any type of building closer to the Overhead Power lines, but the Applicant wants to install the same just about over the roofs of some of these homes. Many of these homes are only a few meters from the property line which would mean that these high voltage lines will run over the roof top of said homes.The reason that some homes are only a meter or so from the property line is that this road use to have many slight curves and the county about 40 years ago purchased land to straighten out the road to the straight line it is today.

When Hydro One constructed the Power lines their corridor was 53 to 61 Meters wide to meet Safety and Security Standards.

We feel there is no need to cross the Provincial Highway #3 at the Hamlet of Nelles Corners as mentioned by the applicant. The Hydro One grid runs South to North and crosses #3 Highway so if the applicant agrees with a suggestion to connect with Summerhaven or run to the Hydro One Grid just North of the Esso Refinery, the cost of two transition stations, fencing, trenching and excavation, concrete,PVC Conduit, tape and planking, asphalt, stone, permits and the delays to traffic is totally unnecessary. If a different route was taken, there would be half the amount of road crossings,one third the amount of power lines crossed and 50 % less parallel runs to Haldimand County Hydro lines which will need relocation. Also any trenching will cost less where these other roads and not paved for the most part.

I am still at a loss trying to understand where our Hydro Rates are going. We pay 7.8 cents per kilowatt now across Ontario. In this area alone is proposed 69 turbines(200 proposed in Haldimand County) $25,000 to every farmer is about 1.75 million dollars per year for rent on the landowners property. The applicant has promised to these land owners that if the County applies a tax on these windmills that the Applicant would pay this for them. There is also the cost of construction for all the proposed wind and solar roads, powerlines and all the rest needed for these upgrade will be staggering. The Government of Ontario has provides a lump sum to the Applicant to provide this upgrade for the Power required for the Consumer of Ontario. This will be our tax increase for the next number of years. Not to mention that people with Solar tied into the Grid are getting as much as 82 cents per kw. at this present time and is10 times what we now pay for power now. Is that where our rates are going to be?

Industrial and Commercial plants will have to leave Ontario because of the HIGH cost of power... Nuclear or the installation of the Sulphur Recovery Units for the remaining steam turbines at the Nanicoke Power Plant in my opinion would be a better option...after all the Grid is already in place thanks to Hydro One. There is coal to last the World 300 years and the SRU'S clean up the air 87%.

Reliability Health and Safety

There has been a change with the overhead lines the applicant wishes to construct on Haldimand Road #20 since we the land owners have received by registered mail around Easter this year. Have the 53 landowners been notified of this change? and that the leave to construct will now cross the paved roadway 4 times, and may be in front of their home. I would like to remind the Ontario Energy Board that Haldimand Road #20 is the busiest road in the County and thousands of cars and heavy trucks pass along this roadway daily. The new idea of crossing Haldimand Rd.#20 so many times will cause a greater loss of power being radiated directly from these power lines. At the Hydro One( West) side of this 19 kilometer run I noticed there is a single mono pole and the lines turn 90 degrees to the last pole where the station is proposed for the last interconnect station for Hydro One. This also will cause a power loss and will heighten the effects of this power line stated by the applicant.(the effects of electric fields, the effect of magnetic fields, ground currents and corrosion effects, radio interference, audible noise ) these will be greatly increased with the new change of this route not being in a straight line as previously informed even though I questioned this point regarding the landowners for the transition stations on both sides of Highway #3.

When Hydro One ran their tower lines they stayed away from the roadways and to my knowlege do not run in the Right Of Way. The only thing I have noticed is the change of a highway constructed for public transportation with a road change there may be the odd mono tower installed. To have over 115 of these gigantic 28 meter mono poles (92 feet high) 3 times higher than the existing wood poles in the ROW so close to a public roadway in a residential area will be increased risk to public safety on traffic flow. We here in Haldimand County do experience the odd ice and wind storm even though this is not an every day occurrence, it does happen form time to time. This year at Easter we had a bad storm pass and experienced a lot of line losses and again on or about August 24/2011 a storm produced winds around 175 KPH and in this case with 230,000 volt overhead lines will greatly endanger the public safety and reliability of said service on a larger scale.

A question on reliability, at Night when there is no wind and no sunlight and this Solar and Wind Turbine installation requires power form Hydro One will the consumers be affected by the transfer of power form one facility to the other twice a day?

Haldimand has had plans for a bypass to highway #6 to be constructed on the East side of the Hydro One power lines. This is where the Applicant wishes to install their last Transition Station. I am sure that Haldimand County has other plans for the future that will be prevented by the installation of this proposed overhead power line on Haldimand Road #20.

I as other landowners went to the Applicants open house in Cayuga, September 22/2011. There were a number of large boards around to perimeter of the room and many tables with binders on the tables for you to have a look at, there were many reps. to help you with questions..example I saw my neighbor walking around looking and asking questions . When Mr.&Mrs. Jansen in this case were finished they came up to me and said that the lines are being run clear of any homes and will not be close to us at all and that they will cross Haldimand Road #20 4 times to do this, as explained to them by a Applicant's rep..There was layout for the wind mills in the different areas in the County but no information on the roadways to access the turbine and the powerlines, nothing about how the turbines are going to be interconnected where the transformers stations are going to be what the voltage is going to be.

A few questions;

the overhead power line 230,000 volts along Haldimand rd.#20 is this going to pick up power from the turbines?

if so how, according to landowners that have signed up for windmills the Applicant is proposed to bury the 38,000 volt line 1 meter deep in PVC. Is this going from windmill to windmill along Haldimand road #20 ?

Is there some sort of transformer needed to convert this power to the 230,000 volt for the overhead line?

If so where are they going to be? could not find out at the open house.

The 800 meter trench, that is proposed under the Hamlett of Nelles, is this to cross private property?

If so will the Applicant have to bring in large excavators or blast the rock in that area for said trench?

If so how about damage to said homes?

an Applicant's rep. said at the open house last night Sept 22/2011 that If we get more wind mills we will add more lines to this proposed overhead 230,000 power line, is this true?

Finally We "the landowners" feel that this line should be buried or taken completely away from Haldmand Road #20.

Norman J Negus
indianlinekennel@execulink.com
Phone 905 768 3997

Cc: The Applicant\par
Grand Renewable Wind LP
c/o Grand Renewable Wind GP Inc.
55 Standish Court
Mississauga ON L5R 4B2
Att Mr. JeongTack Lee
Email: leejt@samsung.com\cf0\ulnone\par

Council for the Applicant
Mr. George Vegh
McCarthy Tetrault LLP
66 Wellington Street West
Box 48, Suite 5300
Toronto ON M5K 1E6
Email: gvegh@mccarthy.ca\cf0\ulnone\par
And

Ms. Kristyn Annis
McCarthy Tetrault LLP
66 Wellington Street West
Box 48, Suite 5300
Toronto ON M5K 1E6

Email: kannis@mccarthy.ca\cf0\ulnone\par