GUYSBOROUGH – Port Hawkesbury Wind, a branch of Port Hawkesbury Paper (PHP), received environmental assessment (EA) approval for its proposed Goose Harbour Lake Wind Farm in the Municipality of the District of Guysborough (MODG) from the province on March 20.
The company, which proposes to build and operate 29 wind turbines with a projected output of 130.5 megawatts (MW), is located seven kilometres from the community of Lincolnville, Guysborough County.
In the decision to approve the EA application, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Timothy Halman wrote, “I am satisfied that any adverse effects or significant environmental effects of the undertaking can be adequately mitigated through compliance with the attached terms and conditions.”
The terms and conditions to be met by project proponents include replacing, at the company’s expense, any water supplies lost or damaged resulting from the project, developing a mortality monitoring program for bats and birds and implementation of a plan to monitor noise levels under various climate conditions.
PHP Wind Project Director Mark Savory told The Journal in an email, “With the EA approval in hand, the project now moves forward with execution phase while satisfying the EA conditions of approval.”
Next steps, Savory wrote, include site clearing in the fourth quarter of this year, road network and wind turbine foundations construction in the second quarter of 2024, with wind turbine delivery and construction in the second quarter of 2025.
The Goose Harbour Lake Wind Farm has a commissioning date set for the end of 2025, and that may only be the beginning of major wind energy development in eastern Guysborough County. EverWind Fuels’ proposed green hydrogen/ammonia project in Point Tupper, Richmond County, also includes a wind farm in its second phase of development, with an eye on locations across the Strait of Canso in MODG. The municipality foresees so much demand in the sector that it has created a new employment position – energy transition manager onshore/offshore wind development – to help guide the process.
The list of terms and conditions of the EA for the Goose Harbour Lake Wind Farm is available online at https://novascotia.ca/nse/ea/goose-harbour-lake-wind-farm-project.
