Townships charged policing costs for wind turbines

Jeff Green | Jan 27, 2016

As part of his efforts on behalf of the Rural Mayor's Forum of Eastern Ontario (RMFEO), North Frontenac mayor, Ron Higgins, has been looking at some of the details in the OPP billing model.

North Frontenac is one the biggest losers under the new billing model, as their policing costs are to go from less than $250,000 in 2015 to over $1 million by 2020, and several details are among the issues of concern to the township. The largest cost factor for the township is the fact that seasonal residents are billed the same as permanent residents, but there are some other details that affect all municipalities.

For example, a shopping mall is billed the same amount as a private home - $250 to $300 (or more) depending on the crime rate within the municipality.

However, if a private home also functions as a retail outlet, it is billed for twice.

As well, cell towers are billed at the rate of a private home, and it turns out that wind turbines are as well.

Frontenac Islands is the only township in Frontenac County that has wind turbines within its boundaries. The 86 turbines on the island can generate up to 197 megawatts of power, making them the second largest wind installation in Canada, measured in wattage.

At a meeting of Frontenac County Council last week, Frontenac Islands Mayor Dennis Doyle said that he had been surprised when he saw the OPP billing for 2016, which arrived in December.

“We were dumbfounded by how high the bill was. When our staff looked at it we saw that we were billed for the turbines as well as the residential and commercial properties,” said Doyle.

Not only was Higgins interested in what Doyle had to say because he has been working on the OPP costing issue in his role with the RMFEO, he also may be looking at an added cost in North Frontenac.

The township was approached last year, as part of the latest Large Renewable Procurement for the Independent Energy Service Operator of Ontario, by a company, NextEra, that is hoping to put up 40 to 50 turbines in North Frontenac and create 100 MW of power.

The township has taken a stand against the proposal, which resulted in NextEra pulling an offer of an annual cash payment to the township. However, the township might still see a cost of $10,000 to $15,000 each year in added policing costs if the project ends up proceeding without municipal support.

Lanark Frontenac Kingston MPP Randy Hillier has been critical of the OPP funding model. He said it is unfair to rural municipalities.

"What is new to everybody is when you actually dig into the minutiae of these policing contracts," Hillier said. "This foolishness exposes the unjustifiable and often contradictory elements of this funding model."

In responding to media reports about the charges for wind turbines, OPP superintendent Marc Bedard of the Municipal Policing Bureau, took a step back from the issue, saying it is not a matter that comes from them but from the way properties are assessed by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC)

He said, in a letter to the Whig Standard, “Municipal policing invoices are comprised of household, commercial and industrial properties. The OPP will update the property counts annually based on MPAC data.”

Bedard also presented an alternate calculation of the amount Frontenac Islands is being billed for turbines.

“Frontenac Islands' base cost for turbines actually decreased from 2015 ($12,231) to 2016 ($11,970).”