Susan de Avellar of Oakville has been appointed one of five
vice-chairmen of the Ontario Environmental Appeal Tribunal.
She has been a member of the Ontario Municipal Board since
2005 an vice-chair of that board since 2011.
The
Environmental Appeal Tribunal deals with appeals under the Environmental
Assessment Act, the Environmental Protection Act, the Ontario Water Resources
Act, the Nutrient Management Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, the Waste
Management Act, the Pesticides Act, and applications to appeal under the
Environmental Bill of Rights.
It has been
dealing with appeals about wind farms, including a recent dismissal of the
appeal filed by a group near Varna, in Huron County, where there are plans for 40 wind turbines.
The appellants raised concerns about noise and stray tingle voltage; the
tribunal sided with Varna Wind company on those issues.
The tribunal also
handles appeals from decisions of the Niagara Escarpment Hearing Officer on development
permits and Niagara Escarpment Plan amendment applications under the Niagara
Escarpment Planning and Development Act.
The Tribunal also
functions as the Hearing Officer under the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Act
and under the Greenbelt Act.
This tribunal
reports to the Attorney General and, judging by its website listing of
decisions, is quite busy.
