Wind turbines, requirements re location
 55. (1) This section applies to a person who applies for the issue of a renewable energy approval or an environmental compliance approval in respect of a wind facility consisting of one or more wind turbines mentioned in subsection (1.1) if, at the time of the application, within a three kilometre radius of a noise receptor, (a) the person proposes to construct or install one or more wind turbines with a sound power level equal to or greater than 102 dBA as part of the same renewable energy generation facility; (b) a wind turbine with a sound power level equal to or greater than 102 dBA has been constructed or installed; (c) the construction or installation of a wind turbine with a sound power level equal to or greater than 102 dBA has not yet been completed but a renewable energy approval or environmental compliance approval has been issued in respect of it; (d) a wind turbine with a sound power level equal to or greater than 102 dBA has been proposed to be constructed or installed and, (i) notice of the proposal for the issue of a renewable energy approval or an environmental compliance approval in respect of the facility has been posted on the environmental registry established under section 5 of the Environmental Bill of Rights, 1993, and (ii) the proposal has not been approved or refused under the Act; and (e) a wind turbine with a sound power level equal to or greater than 102 dBA has been proposed to be constructed or installed and, (i) is identified in an environmental screening report or environmental review report that is made available under the Environmental Screening Process pursuant to Ontario Regulation 116/01 (Electricity Projects) made under the Environmental Assessment Act, (ii) is identified in a draft site plan of the project location at which the renewable energy project in respect of a wind facility will be engaged in that is made available or distributed in accordance with section 54.1, unless the person proposing to engage in the project did not apply for the renewable energy approval or environmental compliance approval within the period of time specified in paragraph 2 of subsection (2.4), or (iii) is identified in information made available to the public by publishing the location of the wind turbine in a newspaper or on the person’s website, if the person has a website, or by disclosing the location at a public meeting required to be held under section 16, if, (A) the day the location information was made available to the public was before the day subsection 1 (1) of Ontario Regulation 521/10 made under the Act comes into force, and (B) the person proposing to engage in the project did not apply for the renewable energy approval or environmental compliance approval within the period of time specified in paragraph 2 of subsection (2.5).  O. Reg. 359/09, s. 55 (1); O. Reg. 521/10, s. 33 (1-3); O. Reg. 231/11, s. 6 (1-3); O. Reg. 195/12, s. 22 (1-4); O. Reg. 333/12, s. 18 (1, 2); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 8 (1). (1.1) The wind turbines referred to in subsection (1) are wind turbines that meet the following criteria: 1. The wind turbine has a name plate capacity of greater than or equal to 50 kW. 2. The wind turbine is not located in direct contact with surface water other than in a wetland. 3. The wind turbine has a sound power level that is greater than or equal to 102 dBA. O. Reg. 97/16, s. 8 (2). (2) Subject to subsections (2.1) to (3), no person shall construct, install or expand a wind turbine mentioned in subsection 54 (1) except in accordance with the following rules if, within a three kilometre radius of a noise receptor, the sum of the wind turbines at the proposed facility and the number of wind turbines mentioned in clauses (1) (b), (c), (d) and (e) equals a number set out in Column 1 of the Table to this section: 1. If the sound power level of the wind turbines at the proposed facility corresponds to the sound power level set out in Column 2 of the Table opposite the number of wind turbines, the total distance from the centre of the base of the wind turbine to a noise receptor shall be, at a minimum, the distance set out in Column 3 opposite the sound power level. 2. For the purposes of this section, if the proposed facility is to consist of different models of wind turbines with varying sound power levels, the greatest sound power level of a wind turbine at the proposed facility shall be deemed to be the sound power level of every wind turbine at the facility.  O. Reg. 359/09, s. 55 (2); O. Reg. 521/10, s. 33 (4, 5); O. Reg. 333/12, s. 18 (3, 4). (2.1) Subsection (2) applies in respect of a noise receptor described in paragraph 4 of subsection 1 (4) only if the noise receptor is specified in the environmental compliance approval or the renewable energy approval. O. Reg. 333/12, s. 18 (5); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 8 (3). (2.2) If the person proposing to construct, install or expand the wind turbine issued or published a notice of completion in respect of the renewable energy generation facility pursuant to Ontario Regulation 116/01 (Electricity Projects) made under the Environmental Assessment Act, subsection (2) does not apply in respect of a noise receptor that did not exist on the day on which the notice was issued or published. O. Reg. 333/12, s. 18 (5); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 8 (3). (2.3) Subsection (2) does not apply in respect of a noise receptor that did not exist on the day the person proposing to construct, install or expand the wind turbine submitted an application for the issue of an environmental compliance approval or a renewable energy approval in respect of the renewable energy project. O. Reg. 333/12, s. 18 (5); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 8 (3). (2.4) If the person proposing to construct, install or expand the wind turbine has not yet submitted an application for the issue of an environmental compliance approval or an application for the issue of a renewable energy approval in respect of a renewable energy project, has published or posted notice of a draft site plan in accordance with subclause 54.1 (c) (i) or (ii) and the following conditions are met, subsection (2) does not apply in respect of a noise receptor that did not exist on the day before the person first published or posted the notice of the draft site plan: 1. If the construction, installation or expansion is on private land, the person must have obtained property rights sufficient to permit the construction, installation or expansion of all of the wind turbines that are proposed to form part of the wind facility. 2. The person must submit an application for the issue of an environmental compliance approval or an application for the issue of a renewable energy approval in respect of the renewable energy project within 18 months after the publication or posting of the notice. 3. The person must meet the requirements set out in section 54.1 in respect of each draft site plan that is made available. 4. If the person proposes to change the location of one or more wind turbines, the person must, within the 18-month period mentioned in paragraph 2, prepare an updated draft site plan and meet the requirements set out in section 54.1 in respect of each updated draft site plan. 5. If subsection (2) does not apply as a result of subsection (3) and the notice of a draft site plan or updated draft site plan is published or posted after the day Ontario Regulation 333/12 made under the Act came into force, the person must prepare a draft report in accordance with the publication of the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change entitled “Noise Guidelines for Wind Farms”, dated October 2008, as amended from time to time and available from the Ministry and make the draft report available along with the draft site plan in accordance with clauses 54.1 (d) and (e). O. Reg. 333/12, s. 18 (5); O. Reg. 97/16, ss. 8 (3), 13. (2.5) Subsection (2) does not apply in respect of a noise receptor that did not exist on the day before the person proposing to construct, install or expand the wind turbine made the location of the proposed wind turbine available to the public by publishing the location in a newspaper or on the person’s website, if the person has a website, or by disclosing the location at a public meeting required to be held under section 16, if the following conditions are met: 1. The day the location information was made available to the public must have been a day before subsection 1 (1) of Ontario Regulation 521/10 made under the Act came into force. 2. The person must submit an application for the issue of an environmental compliance approval or a renewable energy approval in respect of the renewable energy project within six months after the day subsection 1 (1) of Ontario Regulation 521/10 made under the Act came into force or such other time as may have been specified by the Director. O. Reg. 333/12, s. 18 (5); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 8 (3). (2.6) Revoked:  O. Reg. 333/12, s. 18 (5). (3) Subsection (2) does not apply if, as part of an application for the issue of a renewable energy approval or an environmental compliance approval in respect of a wind facility that consists of a wind turbine mentioned in subsection 54 (1), the person who is constructing, installing or expanding the facility submits a report prepared in accordance with the publication of the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change entitled “Noise Guidelines for Wind farms”, dated October 2008, as amended from time to time and available from the Ministry.  O. Reg. 359/09, s. 55 (3); O. Reg. 231/11, s. 6 (4); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 13. Table  Item   Column 1 Number of wind turbines calculated in accordance with subsection (2)   Column 2 Sound power level of wind turbine (expressed in dBA)   Column 3 Total distance from the centre of the base of the wind turbine to a noise receptor (expressed in metres) 

  1.   1-5   102   550 

  2.   1-5   103 - 104   600 

  3.   1-5   105   850 

  4.   1-5   106 - 107   950 

  5.   6-10   102   650 

  6.   6-10   103 - 104   700 

  7.   6-10   105   1000 

  8.   6-10   106 - 107   1200 

  9.   11-25   102   750 

  10.   11-25   103 - 104   850 

  11.   11-25   105   1250 

  12.   11-25   106 - 107   1500 O. Reg. 97/16, s. 8 (4).