At least 70 Group of Seven sites at stake say local experts

SooToday.com has received the following letter from renowned local environmental activists Joanie and Gary McGuffin as well as past Art Gallery of Algoma Director-Curator Michael Burtch highlighting their reasons to oppose the Bow Lake Wind Project.

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On Monday March 11th, SooToday published statements about the potential impact that the 36-industrial wind turbines planned for the Bow Lake Wind Project will have on the area where the Group of Seven first gathered to paint Canada’s wilderness here in Algoma.

As the “local experts” referred to in these statements, we want to set the record straight.

The citizens of Algoma deserve to know the facts relating to this potential threat.

Our credentials as “experts” are as follows: Michael Burtch is Past Director-Curator of the Art Gallery of Algoma 1981-2008, sculptor, art historian, teacher at Algoma University, and Joanie and Gary McGuffin are writers, photographers, adventurers who

have eight published books celebrating Canada and the magnificent landscape of northern Ontario, particularly Algoma and the Lake Superior watershed.

For the past five years, we have been working collaboratively on a project to identify the exact sites where the internationally renowned Group of Seven painted in their formative years in northern Ontario with particular focus on the Algoma region.

This research is ongoing and we are constantly discovering new paintings and their matching locations.

Facts About the Bow Lake Project Impact:

1. The first Heritage Assessment report, prepared by the Bow Lake Wind Project developers, missed the Group of Seven presence in Algoma entirely. The Ontario government also forgot about the Group of Seven and accepted this report.

2. Concerned citizens informed the Ontario government about this unbelievable mistake. The Bow Lake Wind Project developers were then required to complete a revised Heritage Assessment report.

3. The revised Heritage Assessment report that the Bow Lake Wind Project developers submitted to the Ontario government reflects inadequate research and inaccurate information.

4. The errors and omissions in the revised Heritage Assessment Report were made very clear to the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport, the Ministry of Natural Resources and The Ministry of the Environment. For example, the revised report identified ONLY 10 Group of Seven painting sites within 30 km. of the Bow Lake project and claimed none of the vistas would be affected. This is simply not true. We have provided the government with an initial list of 70 Group of Seven painting sites within a tighter 20 km. radius and have given specific evidence that vistas would be affected by the construction of wind turbines.

5. We volunteered to work with these Ministries to ensure the Heritage Assessment gets done fairly and accurately. The Ontario government has had this documented information and our offer to help for months and has chosen to do nothing. We have attached an example for the public to decide for themselves whose research is more accurate.

The Bow Lake Wind Developers revised Heritage Assessment Report uses the following painting to photograph comparison to support their claim that the site has radically changed.

Our painting to photograph comparison demonstrates that J.E.H. MacDonald’s painting from more than 90 years ago is, in fact, almost unchanged. Photo:

©GaryMcGuffin taken October 5, 2009.

This site is one of many cultural heritage landscapes existing in Algoma today.

Facts about Cultural Heritage Tourism in Algoma

1. Algoma’s largest employment comes from the tourism industry. It provides hundreds of jobs. Algoma Tourism is Sault Ste. Marie’s second largest economic driver.

2. Sault Ste. Marie is the only city anywhere in the world that is close to the landscapes that inspired the Group of Seven.

3. Sault Ste Marie is the only city in the world that can provide an authentic Group of Seven train experience.

4. Cultural heritage tourism is the most lucrative and fastest growing form of tourism in the world today.

5. This important year-round economic opportunity for Sault Ste Marie and Algoma is getting overlooked.

These are the facts.

The Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport, Michael Chan, has said that, “Cultural tourism is a powerful force that is transforming global travel and trends. Our diverse arts, culture and heritage has helped us attract visitors from within our borders and beyond to explore and experience our exciting province. Our government is committed to evolving our tourism strategy to align with our cultural assets….”

(Source: “Ontario Arts and Culture Tourism Profile commissioned by the Ontario Arts Council January 2013.)

Why then has his Ministry failed in its commitment to protect the cultural heritage of the Group of Seven painting sites located in the Bow Lake area?

We rely on our government to carry out its responsibilities to protect our cultural history and heritage, and just as importantly, to help us develop our economic future.

It is the responsibility of the Ontario government to ensure that locally-driven initiatives which benefit local residents are not jeopardized by large-scale industrial provincially-driven projects which, in the end, profit only the developers.

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