The engineer who spearheaded the Wolfe Island wind farm has been granted approval to build an even bigger turbine project in the waters of Lake Ontario off Kingston.

Ian Baines, president of Windstream Wolfe Island Shoals Inc., foresees about 60 turbine towers emerging from the lake within a 48,000-acre area bordered by Kingston, Amherst Island, Prince Edward County, the water boundary with the U.S. and Wolfe Island.

“It’s the first of its kind in Canada,” said Baines. “Offshore is the fastest-growing wind source.”
His proposal was one of 184 renewable energy projects approved and announced by the Ontario government this week under the Feed-in Tariff (FIT) program.

Baines now has four years to build the project and get it producing

energy — up to 300 megawatts, 50% more power than the 86 turbines on Wolfe Island can produce at maximum efficiency.

A Queen’s University engineering graduate based in Burlington, Baines envisioned the original Wolfe Island project in the 1990s.

He conducted wind studies and finalized the lease agreements with island landowners before selling the rights in 2005 to Canadian Hydro Developers.

Canadian Hydro built the project then sold it to TransAlta of Alberta.

Baines said that even after the sale, he never stopped investigating offshore wind generation around Kingston.

Provincial government announces a number of renewable energy projects for Kingston region.Page 10 “I had an agreement with Canadian Hydro Developers not to compete on Wolfe Island so I looked at the potential offshore,” he said. “By 2005, I was already starting the work on the offshore project. We’ve got a lot of information now. A lot of work has been done.”

The Lake Ontario turbine towers would be anchored to the underwater shoals that extend westward from Wolfe Island. The shoals, Baines said, are under about 30 metres of water.

“It’s a more expensive project (than on land),” he said. “Offshore power costs twice as much as onshore power.”

Baines is already anticipating area concerns and has placed calls to bordering municipalities, the Kingston Economic Development Corporation, Queen’s University, St. Lawrence College and other organizations to let them know about his plans.

“I think I understand something of the sensitivities. I’m going to try very hard to work on the local authorities,” he said. “I’m going to ask everyone how to do this as unobtrusively as possible.”

Baines said the project design will have to take into account the locations of shipping lanes, sailing areas, underwater wrecks used for scuba diving, aquatic life and birds.

“We are not planning on building them close to shore,” he said. “My feeling is 5 km would be close to shore.”

The Wolfe Island turbines have their detractors in the community, residents who don’t like how they look and have concerns about negative health effects.

Some island residents are also petitioning to have their tax assessments reduced, anticipating lower resale values.

Baines said the majority of Wolfe Islanders are happy with the project, particularly with how it has boosted the economy.

“I’ve talked to so many people. People sometimes just like to hear themselves complain,” Baines said. “People tell me, ‘Ian, you’ve done a good thing.’ ”

He’s already received a supportive call from Township of Frontenac Islands mayor Jim Vanden Hoek about the new project.

“He was very positive about how it went last time,” said Baines.

Baines said a big difference with the offshore project is he won’t need to sign agre ements with landowners.

However, the location of the water-based turbines will be subject to environmental reviews.

And he said the offshore turbines will be less intrusive than those on Wolfe Island because they will be spread over a larger area.

There could also be fewer of them — 60 compared to 86 on the island — because the new turbines can produce up to five megawatts of power. Those on Wolfe Island generate a maximum of 2.3 megawatts.

Offshore turbines also operate more efficiently, he said, because the wind is unimpeded.

“Offshore winds are higher. They’re steadier. They don’t gust as much,” said Baines.

That also means the towers could be shorter.

Baines said he will be conducting further wind tests and may seek approval to place highly sensitive laser detection machines on Wolfe and Amherst islands.

The $1-million detectors send out a 6-km beam that senses wind velocities.

Baines says that this time he plans to take the project from start to finish.

“I learned my lesson. I very much wanted to build Wolfe Island,” he said.

“Wolfe Island is the only project I sold. What happened was our investors got an offer they couldn’t refuse.”