Okay.
Quite apart from an ongoing study by Health Canada into the relationship between noise pollution from industrial wind turbines and the possible health implications for those living nearby are the financial effects and the impact in Ontario specifically. I'm not referring to any other province. We have these wind farms that are increasing the cost of power generation by 20%. But when a consumer actually gets their bill, by the time the added costs are in there, it's almost double. They call it delivery charges.
I'm particularly concerned at the federal level that we're not countering the efforts we're trying to make in terms of developing small and medium-sized businesses, because this is the greatest hurdle they have to climb right now. Their soaring expenses are as a consequence of hydro. In fact locally we just had a medium-density fibreboard plant open in Pembroke. The reason they had largely closed for over eight years was because they could not afford the electricity rate.
I really want to ensure that the BDC does not fund projects that work counter to the best interests and the viability of small businesses. It's even more important here, Mr. Chair, because one of the very first companies in Ontario to receive a contract for a wind farm was owned at the time by the president of the Liberal Party of Ontario. He received $475-million contract, and subsequently sold that for a $100-million profit to, among others, foreign entities.
The reason that's important federally, in addition to the financial devastation and the costs it's going to cause Canadian federal taxpayers, is that the people who were part of that contracting and Green Energy Act, and who took advantage and are costing businesses and individuals dearly in electricity, are now sitting advising the leader of the federal Liberal Party here in Ottawa. I just wanted to ensure that the BDC is not helping that along.
Why are amendments being made to the BDC to help businesses grow beyond the domestic market?