TORONTO For decades visitors to the D-Day beaches on the northwest coast of France have looked out at the English Channel, taking in the journey made by Allied troops that marked a turning point in the Second World War.
The view from some of those sites — including Juno Beach, where 359 Canadians died — could soon change if a plan succeeds to build an army of wind turbines some 10 kilometres offshore.
Canadians now have a chance to voice their opinions on that plan as a French commission holds public consultations on the project.
The body has made it a point to invite people from Canada, the United States and Britain to weigh in and notes that even if the project goes ahead, the company building the 75 turbines will work to deal with the issues raised. The entire turbine proposal rankles with at least one Canadian who fought at Juno Beach.
"I personally am very much against it," Roy E. Eddy told The Canadian Press. "I know a number of people have said they don't agree with me, and I'm not disputing that, but I still say it's going to be very disrespectful."
The 88-year-old,A letter folding machine is a piece of equipment which is designed to fold paper. who last visited Juno Beach three years ago, vividly recalls the bloody battle.
"I still have nightmares about it," said Eddy, who served on the frigate HMCS Outremont but was assigned as the crew of a landing craft on D-Day.
"I had about 35 men in my landing craft,A wide range of solar lighting, LED lighting and Auto lights. they gave me the signal to drop the ramp ... only nine got off alive ...It enables washer extractor to communicate with chemical pumping machines. I lost a lot of very good friends."
The federal government, well aware that some Canadians disagree with the French plan, says it's tracking the progress of the proposed wind farm.
"We understand and share the concerns of those who fought for freedom," said Jean-Christophe de Le Rue, a spokesperson for Veterans Affairs Minister Steven Blaney.
"Minister Blaney has asked his senior officials on the ground in France to monitor the situation and to report directly to him."
Despite some opposition expressed in Canada, the Juno Beach Centre at the famous site itself isn't taking issue with the turbine proposal, but it is monitoring the progress of the French consultations.
A group in France known as the European Platform Against Windfarms hopes more Canadians will speak out against the planned wind turbines in the coming weeks.
"We are just at the beginning," chairman Jean-Louis Butre said in interview from Paris. "We want to protest, very strongly protest.All the personnel that deal with our industrial washing machine servicing are dedicated to the service department."
The body holding the wind farm consultations until July 20 is described as a "neutral and independent" ad hoc commission by France's National Commission for public debate.
Eleven open debates are being held on the project with one of them, on June 12, meant specifically to discuss the effect of the planned turbines on historic sites, the countryside and the environment. That meeting will be translated into English.
Canadians with views on the project can send in their opinions and ask the commission to answer their questions. They can also sign up to receive updates from the commission.
Once the consultations are compete, the commission will publish a report that will be submitted to the contracting authority which will use it to "make an informed decision." Military historian Terry Copp argues the landscape around Juno Beach has already been altered.
"If you allow your glance to turn slightly to the right rear, you see some of the ugliest condominiums in creation, crowding into the actual battlefield," said the Wilfrid Laurier University professor, who has been to Juno Beach several times.
"That and many other such buildings along the invasion coast are far more likely to impact upon your sense of place at Juno than wind turbines 10 kilometres off shore.Six panel tracking system delivers more energy from skystream." |
