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The owners of a woodlot in Essex County say the property with decades-old trees and several animal species is under threat of being cleared to make way for Hydro One’s Windsor Lakeshore power line.
Brothers Kurtis, Adam and Jakob Rhoads say they have about 80 acres of agricultural land, and the woodlot which has been in their family for generations has never been cleared. They’re urging Hydro One to select another route that won’t disturb the woodlot.
Included in the woodlot are large oaks, some believed to be more than 100 years old, with the brothers saying the old-growth lot should be protected.
“Our family has stewarded this land since 1864. It’s one of the few remaining sections of old-growth forest in Essex County and Lakeshore,” Kurtis said, as the brothers took CBC on a walk through the property.
Kurtis said he and his brothers like to spend as much time as possible enjoying the beauty of their land, which he said is an “ecologically significant” woodlot.
“We like to go for hikes, we like to watch the animals, we like to create sanctuaries for the local wildlife, and we enjoy the outdoors and everything that it offers,” he said.
‘We have oak, maples, beech, hickory [and] sycamore’
According to Adam, the family has planted a lot of endangered tree species on the property.
“We have some Kentucky coffeetrees, some [eastern] redbud and a couple other species along here that we’ve planted to introduce them back into the ecosystem,” he said.
“In the bush we have oak, maples, beech, hickory [and] sycamore.”
LISTEN | Essex landowners are concerned about Hydro One’s Line 5 impact on wildlife:
Afternoon Drive6:47Essex landowners concerned Hydro One’s plans for new line will clearcut their forest
CBC’s Mike Hargreaves visits a woodlot in Woodslee near Windsor. The Rhoads family owns the property and is concerned about Hydro One’s draft plan to run a transmission line through their land.
Meanwhile, Kurtis says the area serves as a buffer for migrating animals, allowing them to move back and forth, have a better food source, and a wider array of landscapes and ecosystems to enjoy.
He said it was “rather shocking” when he saw a pamphlet outline Hydro One’s plans, noting that one route would “travel right through a significant portion of our bush.”
“I was personally not pleased with seeing that, considering there are so many other avenues that could be taken,” he said.
“They’re asking for us to allow them to come in and clear a path so that they can run their new transmission lines.”
Early stage of development process, says company
Hydro One says it’s currently evaluating routes for the Windsor Lakeshore Power Line, adding that the project is needed to meet fast‑growing electricity demand in southwestern Ontario, which is expected to rise to more than four times today’s needs by 2035.
The project page shows two possible routes for the line — one that cuts through north Woodslee, while the second route runs parallel to Highway 401. The Rhoads family land is along the first proposed route.
Madeleine Porter, a spokesperson for the company, said Hydro One is in an early stage of the development process, and is collecting feedback and performing technical studies to evaluate the route alternatives in the study area.
Feedback from Indigenous communities, municipalities and the public guides how the final route is selected and refined, Porter wrote in an email to CBC News.
According to Porter, when the company develops new transmission lines, it look at the entire study area and consider feedback, local priorities and four main categories:
Indigenous community values.Natural environment.Socio-economic environment.Technical and cost considerations.
Porter said Hydro One hosted initial community open houses in December, and continues to meet with property owners one-on-one to understand the land and environment.
The company is encouraging residents and community members who have feedback to contact Hydro One’s community relations team.
Proper land use planning needed
Kurtis said proper land use planning needs to be in effect “to preserve these pockets of wildlife and nature so that the future generations can enjoy them.”
He said with a lack of land use planning, “we were going to end up decimating every pocket of natural beauty and natural significance that we have in our area in an attempt to push for progress in our society.”