Bay of Fundy turbines deployment moves on

Bay of Fundy tidal turbines installation will continue until the next February, following the decision of Justice Jamie Campbell of the Nova Scotia Supreme Court not to halt the turbines deployment.

The decision was made after the local fishermen association complained about the potential impacts of the turbines on the fish and Bay of Fundy’s ecosystem, filing for a stay to stop the installation of two 2MW tidal turbines until the February hearing review.

According to the Supreme Court, there’s no evidence that suggest the irreparable harm will be made to ecosystem by putting the turbines in the water until February, when the Court will hear an appeal of the government’s decision to permit the deployment of the turbines, CBC reported.

The association is challenging the decision by Nova Scotia Department of Environment to approve the monitoring program for Fundy Ocean Research Centre for Energy (FORCE) and Cape Sharp Tidal, which cleared the way for the installation of the turbines.

Cape Sharp Tidal, a joint venture created by Emera and OpenHydro, plans to begin with the turbines deployment in November.