ERT ’s Bornish Wind Farm Decision Requires Sufficient Evidence Of Serious And Irreversible Harm

To prove that a wind energy project will cause serious and irreversible environmental harm, you will need an expert and a scientifically solid case.

In a decision released November 12, the Environmental Review Tribunal (ERT) said it will not overturn the approval of a large wind energy facility in southwestern Ontario that, potentially, could pose a threat to a pair of bald eagles nesting in the immediate vicinity. This case underscores the requirement that the evidence must show, on a balance to probabilities, that there will be – versus potential – "serious and irreversible harm."

In adjudicating Lewis v. Director, Ministry of the Environment (ERT Case No. 13-044), the Tribunal found the appellants had not met the statutory test set out in section 145.2.1(2)(b) of the Environmental Protection Act (EPA) and failed to prove that the project "will cause serious and irreversible harm to plant life, animal life or the natural environment."