South Canoe Wind Farm in New Ross area now officially open

A major wind power project officially opened in central Nova Scotia Sunday.

The South Canoe Wind Farm consists of 34 turbines near New Ross in the municipality of Chester.

The wind farm is expected to provide enough energy for about 32,000 homes.

The project had some bumps in the road, encountering some opposition from local residents.

"It's health and it's property devaluation," nearby resident Susan Deal told CBC News in 2013. "This is an industrial facility put in the middle of rural Nova Scotia. It does not belong there."

A large crowd attended the grand opening, with several hundred people on hand early Sunday afternoon.

A spokesperson for the project says using local labour and equipment was a priority for the project.

"We've been able to spend $80 million in Nova Scotia," said Mary-Frances Lynch.

She did not know exactly how many Nova Scotians were employed in bringing the project to fruition, but she did say the turbine towers themselves were manufactured in Trenton, N.S.

With the wind farm up and running, Lynch says a local operations maintenance team with between five and six people will now be responsible for taking care of the wind farm.

The province has legislated that 25 per cent of electricity must come from renewable resources in 2015 and 40 per cent by 2020.