PICTOU, N.S. – County council will not be changing setback requirements for wind turbines.
Council accepted a recommendation from its planning advisory committee that there be no changes to the setback requirements by municipal council to the Wind Energy Land-Use By-Law approved in 2007 and amended in 2014 and 2015.
Coun. Randy Palmer said a delegation of residents from Tower Road in Millsville approached council in June 2017 on the development of wind turbines. The group wanted the current setbacks increased and a reduction in the output of domestic turbines.
Council referred the request to its planning advisory committee which met with a resident of Tower Road as well as a representative of Northumberland Wind Field Inc., that has turbines on Fitzpatrick Mountain.
It told the planning advisory committee that it has COMFIT approval for three, 50 KW machines that are considered small wind turbines. These will be the last wind turbines to be placed here because it is running out of space.
The planning advisory committee also met with its own development officer who prepared a technical report on the issue and recommended no changes to the bylaw.
