Specified wind turbines, prohibition and requirements
 54. (1) Subject to subsections (1.1) to (2.1), no person shall construct, install or expand a wind turbine that meets all of the following criteria unless the centre of the base of the wind turbine is located at a distance of at least 550 metres from all noise receptors: 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. Either one of the following criteria is met: i. The wind turbine has a sound power level that is greater than or equal to 102 dBA. ii. The height of the wind turbine, excluding the length of any blades, is equal to or greater than 70 metres. O. Reg. 333/12, s. 16; O. Reg. 97/16, s. 7 (1, 2). (1.1) Subsection (1) 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. 16. (1.2) 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 (1) 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. 16. (1.3) Subsection (1) 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. 16. (1.4) 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 the issue of a renewable energy approval in respect of the 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 (1) 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 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. 16; O. Reg. 97/16, s. 13. (1.5) Subsection (1) 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 within a longer period of time as may have been specified by the Director. O. Reg. 333/12, s. 16. (1.6) Revoked:  O. Reg. 333/12, s. 16. (2) Subsection (1) does not apply in respect of a wind turbine that is constructed, installed or expanded as part of a Class 4 or 5 wind facility if, as part of an application for the issue of a renewable energy approval or an environmental compliance approval in respect of the facility, the person who proposes to construct, install or expand the wind turbine, submits, (a) results of measurements or calculations showing that the lowest hourly ambient sound level at a noise receptor is greater than 40 dBA due to road traffic for wind speeds less than or equal to 4 metres per second, obtained in accordance with the publication of the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change entitled NPC-206 “Sound Levels due to Road Traffic”, dated October 1995, as amended from time to time and available from the Ministry; and (b) 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, including a demonstration that the proposed facility will not exceed the lowest hourly ambient sound level measured or calculated under clause (a).  O. Reg. 359/09, s. 54 (2); O. Reg. 231/11, s. 5 (1); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 13. (2.1) Subsection (1) does not apply in respect of, (a) a wind turbine that is approved as part of a Class 3 wind facility before May 1, 2016; or (b) any changes to a wind turbine mentioned in clause (a) other than a change that would increase the wind turbine’s octave-band sound power levels (linear weighted), as calculated in accordance with the standard specified in paragraph 1 of subsection 1 (6.1), unless there would be no resulting increase in the sound level at any noise receptor within 1,500 metres of the turbine. O. Reg. 97/16, s. 7 (3). (3) If the issue of a renewable energy approval or an environmental compliance approval is required in respect of the construction, installation or expansion of one or more wind turbines mentioned in subsection (1) in a circumstance described in subsection (4), the person who is constructing, installing or expanding the wind turbine shall submit, as part of the application for the issue of the renewable energy approval or environmental compliance approval, a report prepared in accordance with the application 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. 231/11, s. 5 (2); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 7 (4). (4) Subsection (3) applies if, (a) one or more of the wind turbines has a sound power level greater than 107 dBA; (b) the application is in respect of one or more wind turbines that are to form part of a renewable energy generation facility consisting of 26 or more wind turbines, any of which has, (i) a sound power level greater than or equal to 102 dBA and less than 107 dBA, or (ii) a height, excluding the length of any blades, equal to or greater than 70 metres; or (c) the application is in respect of a renewable energy generation facility that would, once constructed, installed or expanded, result in 26 or more wind turbines located within a three kilometre radius of any noise receptor.  O. Reg. 359/09, s. 54 (4); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 7 (5). (5) For the purposes of clause (4) (c), the number of wind turbines within a three kilometre radius of a noise receptor shall be calculated by determining the sum of, (a) the wind turbines with a sound power level equal to or greater than 102 dBA or a height, excluding the length of any blades, equal to or greater than 70 metres that the person proposes to construct, install or expand as part of the facility; (b) any wind turbines with a sound power level equal to or greater than 102 dBA or a height, excluding the length of any blades, equal to or greater than 70 metres that have already been constructed or installed; (c) any wind turbines with a sound power level equal to or greater than 102 dBA or a height, excluding the length of any blades, equal to or greater than 70 metres that have not yet been constructed or installed but in respect of which a renewable energy approval or environmental compliance approval has been issued; (d) any wind turbines with a sound power level equal to or greater than 102 dBA or a height, excluding the length of any blades, equal to or greater than 70 metres that have been proposed to be constructed or installed and, (i) in respect of which notice of the proposal for the issue of a renewable energy approval or environmental compliance approval has been posted on the environmental registry established under section 5 of the Environmental Bill of Rights, 1993, and (ii) in respect of which the proposal has not been approved or refused under the Act; and (e) any other wind turbines with a sound power level equal to or greater than 102 dBA or a height, excluding the length of any blades, equal to or greater than 70 metres that have been proposed to be constructed or installed and, (i) are 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) are 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 (1.4), or (iii) are identified in information made available to the public by publishing the locations of the wind turbines in a newspaper or on the person’s website, if the person has a website, or by disclosing the locations at a public meeting required to be held under section 16, if 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, 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 (1.5).  O. Reg. 359/09, s. 54 (5); O. Reg. 521/10, s. 31 (3); O. Reg. 231/11, s. 5 (3, 4); O. Reg. 195/12, s. 20 (5, 6); O. Reg. 97/16, s. 7 (6-8).