October 18, 2005 WIND FARMS NOT GETTING FAIR PROPERTY ASSESSMENTS Halifax, NS - NDP Leader Darrell Dexter is calling on Premier John Hamm to create a level playing field for wind power generators when it comes to property assessments by dropping its appeal of a property assessment decision for Nova Scotia’s first wind farm.
“The Canadian Wind Energy Association reported that Nova Scotia’s property taxes for wind farms were the highest in the country,” says Dexter. “How can this industry be expected to flourish when its property taxes are well above those in other jurisdictions and higher than other power generators right here Nova Scotia?”
“The government is making it more difficult for Nova Scotians to harness this opportunity, to create a major new source of affordable, renewable energy.”
A recent study prepared for the Canadian Wind Energy Association shows the average property taxes for a 20-megawatt wind project in Nova Scotia to be $679,810 versus $42,785 in Ontario. The study also suggests there is inequity in the way wind power is taxed compared to other forms of power generation in the province.
The issue was raised in Nova Scotia when Atlantic Wind Power Corporation, who operates Nova Scotia’s first wind farm in Pubnico Point, appealed its assessment as unfair compared to other forms of power generation.
The appeal was granted at the Regional Assessment level, but the government has since launched an appeal of that decision before the Utility and Review Board.
“This industry has unlimited potential in Nova Scotia. The government should be doing everything it can to support it, not fighting it every step of the way.”
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