When Linda Laepple (nee Schabel) came to Canada in 1980 from Germany, she had no idea of the importance the next 11 years would have in preparing her for what lay ahead. Her experience working on a horse farm near Stratford laid a foundation and appreciation for Canada which would later become an important part of her life. When she returned to Germany, she met and married Fritz Laepple whose dream it was to come to Canada and farm.
In 1998 the family of 2 adults and 6 kids purchased a 187 acre farm on Bleams Road and began organic farming. The Laepples were living their dream.
Bigger is Better in Wind Turbines
In Germany, wind energy is common so Linda and Fritz decided to explore the possibility of using wind energy on their farm. What they discovered was that bigger is better in wind turbines and that to be efficient and make a significant impact, their new dream would have to get a lot bigger. It would have to include more people, more money, and more time.
The vision had grown to include a 2 MW (megawatt) wind turbine which was very efficient and could profitably service the electrical needs of 600 homes. They were challenged, however, by the $4 million dollars in capital it required, the mountain of licenses and regulations they faced, and building a team of like-minded visionaries who wanted to see wind energy succeed in Wilmot township as much as they did. If that wasn’t a big enough challenge, there was seed capital to raise, feasibility studies to complete and an Offering Memorandum to file – most of which is distasteful to forerunners.
In spite of the size the project had become, Linda and the growing number of supporters took courage in the many advantages their project offered. The research revealed that Ontario has a lot of wind compared to Germany. Furthermore, the wind was constant all year long and blew primarily during the highest demand for electricity (10 am – 5pm). With the price of wind at free and a guaranteed 11¢ KW/hour price for any electricity they supplied to the electrical grid, the financial picture looked good. They also had the conviction that there needed to be an alternative to nuclear energy which makes up 95% of Ontario’s energy supply. If there ever was a problem with the existing system, wind energy would be able to supply some of the community’s critical needs. Each wind turbine installation was also a concrete step into the future of zero environmental impact energy. Linda and her group believed they were on the right track so they set a course to realize their dream.
It takes a lot of money to build a 2 Megawatt turbine and in order to get the money, the newly formed LIFE cooperative (Local Initiative of Future Energy Co-op Inc.) had to have investors. That meant that they had to prove every assumption as far as was possible and document every observation with data in their Offering. This is tedious detail work which takes time and is an irritant for visionaries. They like to get things moving, realize the vision and move on to climb the next mountain; however, there was no choice, it had to be done.
A Dark Day for Alternative Energy In Ontario
The political climate in Ontario is supportive of green energy, but Linda and her friends learned that there are two governments in Ontario. Politicians make the laws but bureaucrats regulate them and they can seemingly be going in opposite directions. Linda found out that what politicians were saying wasn’t what regulators were doing. The good news was that the government would guarantee the price of wind electricity to help small groups get investors and build turbines. The bad news was that the regulators set up large geographic areas where you couldn’t connect to the grid and sell wind generated energy. Many of the places that were restricted were the best places for wind turbines and almost all of Northern Ontario. Fortunately, the LIFE cooperative’s project was located just inside the boundary and was unrestricted, but a group in Milverton with whom they had collaborated were shut down, as well as many other small groups working to bring wind power to the province. It was a dark day for alternative energy in Ontario.
Barriers are road signs that should redirect, rather than defeat
Still reeling from the unexpected and fatal blow this regulation imposed on the wind energy community, the LIFE coop decided to diversify its efforts into biogas energy. Biogas would be insurance against possible future regulatory changes to wind energy. Barriers are road signs that should redirect, rather than defeat. The development of biogas energy from farm manure has many advantages. It reduces greenhouse emissions and produces both heat and electricity. LIFE believes both forms of energy will help our township become leaders in alternative energy and minimize the environmental impact on the plants, animals, and people of our community.
The vison of building a wind turbine on the Laepple farm has grown to become a community dream where together we move forward into new sources of energy from which we all will benefit. We have been empowered by the dream to create our own energy. We have also been challenged by their example to take ownership in creating and shaping the type of community in which we want to live. It took a spark of visionary light and the persistence and diligence of forerunners like Linda and Fritz Laepple to infect us with that dream and to lead us into “what could be”.
For more information on the LIFE cooperative visit their web site at: www.lifecoop.ca, email ritch_ca@yahoo.com or mail to P.O. Box 5158, Baden, ON.
Originally published in the New Hamburg Independent and other newspapers.
