STANSTEAD, Quebec – The winds blowing through Canada's broad St. Lawrence Valley andacross Vermont's hilltops are stirring up an international tempestover which country's laws should govern how those breezes areharnessed for electricity. Some residents of the Quebec town of Stanstead are upset aboutplans in Vermont to erect just south of the border twoindustrial-size wind turbines — one of which would be about1,000 feet from a few Canadian and Vermont homes. Quebec requires wind turbines to be at least 1,640 feet from homes,and the Canadian homeowners are demanding those rules be followed.But in Vermont, the allowable distance is determined by the soundof the spinning blades, and the project's developer says theturbines would meet those requirements. The plan has yet to win approval from Vermont regulators. But thedispute has gotten so rancorous that the mayor of Stansteadthreatened to cut off water to some homes on the American side. Theissue has even come up on the floor of Canada's Parliament. "You know, there really is no precedent to follow here," said ChadFarrell of Encore Redevelopment, the Burlington, Vt., companyworking with two dairy farmers to build the 425-foot windmills,each of which would be capable of producing enough electricity forabout 900 homes. Stanstead's Lynda Hartley lives on a horse farm about 3,700 feetfrom the turbine site, well beyond the Quebec setback distance, butis leading the opposition in the community. She said her 8-year-oldautistic son is hypersensitive to noise. "This is going to be stopped," she said. "I am not going to allowthis to happen. This is crazy." The Vermont farmers are counting on the money they would be paidfor hosting the towers as a steady source of income in an era ofup-and-down milk prices. One of them, Bryan Davis, said his neighbors in Derby Line who liveclose by are not complaining. The opposition, he said, is "scaringpeople with these tactics." It is the other proposed turbine in Derby Line that has generatedmost of the opposition. Seven homes in Quebec would be less than1,640 feet from it. The owners of the farm on which it would beerected did not return calls for comment. Julie Fauteux lives with her husband and two young children inQuebec, about 1,500 feet from where that second turbine would be.In front of her house is a sign in French that translates as"health and quality of life," with an image of a turbine inside acircle with a slash through it. "There is not going to be any quality of life with the sound ofthis," Fauteux said. She added: "They don't consider the closenessof our house. In the United States there's no law about how closeyou can put one, but in Canada there is." The farming villages of Stanstead, population 3,000, and itsAmerican twin, Derby Line, a section of the broader town of Derby,which has about 4,600 people, are practically one community, eventhough many people in Stanstead speak French as their firstlanguage and the international boundary cuts through yards and evenhouses. It was only after security was tightened following 9/11that residents had to start reporting at border stations beforevisiting friends or relatives on the other side. The breeze in Derby Line isn't as strong as it is on themountaintops where most Vermont wind projects are situated, but itis steadier, making the village ideal for generating power, Farrellsaid. The whooshing of the turbines would meet Vermont's 45-decibelnoise limit, he said. Supporters say the turbines would produce green energy, create jobsduring construction and provide income to the farmers. Opponentssay wind power harms the environment, wouldn't be practical withouthuge government subsidies, and is an eyesore. The giant spinningblades in Derby Line would be visible for miles on both sides ofthe border. Hartley said she and her neighbors did some research on theInternet and found complaints about shadows and glints of lightfrom the turbines, noise and vibration, and electromagneticradiation. "It was amazing the different things that we heard and how horriblethey were," she said. "It was things we'd never thought about." Farrell said scientific studies have found the health concernsunfounded, and he added that those aren't even the real reasons forthe opposition: "I think what it comes down to is some people justdon't want to look at them." Pat Parenteau, an environmental law professor at the Vermont LawSchool, said there is no law requiring a Vermont developer tofollow Quebec rules, but that would be a good practice. It's alegal concept known as "comity." "If the Canadian requirement is reasonable, there's sort of adiplomatic principle of why not honor it. If the shoe was on theother foot, wouldn't we want Canada to respect our laws andrequirements?" Parenteau said. "That's soft law. That ain't hardlaw. It's simple respect." Stanstead Mayor Philippe Dutil said he hasn't seen people in hiscommunity so worked up about something in Vermont since the early1980s, when there was talk of building a nuclear waste dump in thestate. "I am there to defend my citizens. If my citizens are worried, I amstanding behind them all the way," Dutil said. Last month, he threatened to cut off a Vermont neighborhood servedby a Stanstead water system. "I said that to catch everybody'sattention. And it did," Dutil said. Last week, a member of Parliament who represents the Stanstead areacalled on the Canadian government to "ensure that my citizens areconsulted in the development of this type of project." The project is awaiting approval from the Vermont Public ServiceBoard. Farrell had hoped to finish the turbines in time to takeadvantage of a wind power tax credit that expires at the end of theyear, but said he is willing to take extra time to work with theCanadians. Still, Farrell said moving the turbines farther from the Quebechomes would just put them closer to Vermont houses. "Every location has its challenges," he said. We are high quality suppliers, our products such as High Power Led Flashlights , Button Cell Batteries for oversee buyer. To know more, please visits Nicad Rechargeable Batteries.
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