_____

From: Catherine Bayne [mailto:cbayne@bayniche-conservancy.ca]
Sent: March 5, 2012 8:32 PM
To: BoardSec
Subject: EB-2011-0140 application for Intervenor status



Dear Ms. Walli



BayNiche Conservancy hereby requests intervenor status in the matter of the above referenced proposal, given the lack of access to Internet in Northern Ontario to facilitate written submissions and the strong oral traditions of First Nations and Metis culture as well as the lack of cost/benefit analysis for the renewable energy policy so unambiguously elucidated by the Auditor General of Ontario we feel that there are serious risks to the economic well-being of the North Shore of Lake Superior and the region as a whole which needs to be thoroughly and publicly discussed.

We ask that there be oral hearings on the proposed East-West tie line so that the issues of importance to landowners and tourist operators and First Nations heard in the context of the Northern paradigm.



The rationale for the East-West tie line is driven by the need to allow Wind Power onto the grid and the mistaken closing of the Northwest's two coal fired generating stations. The power to be supplied via the proposed transmission corridor is not needed at present , nor even for the reasonably foreseeable future as conservation programs and economic constraints decrease demand, so the potential for economic losses to the community should be thoroughly weighed against the value of unreliable, non-dispatchable, costly and therefore very low value generation added to an increasingly unstable grid. The cost/benefit analysis upon which this proposal is based is outdated and based upon carefully chosen assumptions which need to be questioned and examined more closely.



BayNiche Conservancy intends to model responsible private land stewardship and land use appropriate to a somewhat remote stretch of Lake Superior watershed which has great visual amenity thanks to the iconic majesty of its landscape and minimally impacted forest and wetland ecosystems. The wilderness allure of the region is the foundation for a sustainable eco-tourisim industry supporting many small businesses from artists to watercraft operators and builders.



This private conservation initiative provides a natural buffer for the neighbouring Living Legacy wilderness designation park on the North and mitigation of the highway influences on Lake Superior on the West. This is a power line free area.



BayNiche Conservancy's primary goal has been to protect the water quality of Lake Superior using a watershed approach and by raising public awareness of the urgent need to act on an individual as well as governmental level. As certified participant in the Ontario Benthos Bio-monitoring Network has identified and seasonally samples three "reference condition" streams on its protected property and has participated in public education out"reach to provide landowners with the tools to document the "baseline" condition of their own streams with a view to allowing them to better manage and defend their right to clean water and the biodiversity it supports.



BayNiche Conservancy supports stream and wetland projects recovery such as those which restored Manitoulin streams and objects to continued degradation of wetland complexes and wanton destruction of a carefully nurtured stewardship ethic.



BayNiche does not seek an award for costs, unless travel should be required.



Regards



Catherine Bayne

BayNiche Conservancy

Hwy 17 North

MRH ON P0S1H0

(705) 542-3482

www.bayniche-conservancy.ca