 |
|
|
 | Health Impacts
"Peace and quiet is the single most important factor people have in mind when buying a home -- with one in five prospective homebuyers rating it as the most important consideration when choosing where they will buy" (Alliance and Leicester Survey, 3/6/02).
There is now compelling evidence from Europe, the United States and Canada that repetitive noise and low-frequency infra-sound from wind-turbines and transformers, flicker effect in sunlight and shadow effect at night may be implicated in such things as cardiac problems, depression, chronic migraine headaches, learning difficulties in children, and sleep deprivation. These are now well enough documented that they have been given names: Vibro-Acoustic Disease and Wind-Turbine Syndrome. Some wind-power developers are anxious to deny such problems, but evidence, both anecdotal and scientifically reserached, is quickly accumulating that such problems are real.
Currently, there are no laws on the books, federally or provincially, to define setbacks. It is left up to the developers to do their own "environmental review," and then suggest to local councils how far wind turbines should be set back from residences and schools. The setbacks for turbines in Melancthon and Kincardine are 350 metres and 450 metres respectively from what the wind industry term "non-participating receptors" (people who did not want turbines on their properties). Those who have agreed to have turbines on their properties may have turbines as close as 50 metres from their homes.
|
| Dr. Nina Pierpont (Malone, NY), international authority on Wind-Turbine Syndrome, recommends an absolute minimum setback of 2000 metres (see her website below). The National Institute of Medicine in France suggests 1500 metres, and Dr. Alves-Pereira of Portugal, who is an expert in Vibro-Acoustic Disease, suggests setbacks of a similar order. Dr. John Harrison, Professor emeritus of Physics at Queen's University in Ontario, and a resident on Amherst Island, is currently preparing a paper on noise effects on health for the Ministry of the Environment and for Loyalist Township, which will detail the misleading way in which noise levels from wind turbines are currently measured. William K.G. Palmer, P.Eng. of Paisley, Ontario, has said in a report on Setbacks to Wind Turbines in Ontario (see link below):
"The evidence makes it clear that to prevent being above the Ontario standard, no wind turbine with a noise characteristic such as the Vestas V82 can be located nearer than 900 metres from any house. In some cases, the noise setback needs to be greater than 900 metres depending on grouping of turbines. To prevent having to shut down a turbine or turbines in the case of post-installation monitoring determining conditions above the Ontario standards, particularly given that noise will increase as turbine blades wear, a noise setback to any home should be 1000 metres" (section 4). |  |
|  | Here are some links to sites which discuss health effects of wind turbines:
Papers by Nina Pierpont, MD, PhD, Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. See especially these articles on the site:
"Wind-turbine syndrome: Testimony before the New York State Legislature Energy Committee, March 7, 2006";
"Wind-turbine Syndrome: Noise, Shadow Flicker, and Health" (August 1, 2006); and
"Health, Hazard, and Quality of Life Near Wind Power Installations: How Close is too Close?" (March 2, 2005).
Papers on low-frequency noise by Dr. Mariana Alves-Pereira and Nuno A.A. Castelo Branco. Papers are downloadable from this site.
Noise Radiation from Wind Turbines Installed Near Homes: Effects on Health. This study concludes that a 2 km setback for current turbine technology should be the minimum requirement.
William K.G. Palmer, Setbacks to Wind Turbines in Ontario: An Engineering Justification Based on Public Safety Risk and Ontario Noise Regulations. This site also has a paper, "Wind Turbines - The Issues, the Hype, the Truth, and Unresolved Questions," also by William Palmer. Mr. Palmer is an engineer and before retirement was employed at the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station, responsible for public safety assessment. If the link above does not work, copy and paste into your browser http://www.powerauthority.on.ca/Storage/52/4743_C-8-2_Att_17.pdf
Dissertation by G. P. van den Berg on why turbines sound different at night time.
Location, Location, Location: An investigation into wind farms and noise by The Noise Association.
A PDF file of the whole "Location, Location, Location" report is available on request by emailing info@ukna.org.uk. The report states that in general turbines should not be located within a mile of where people live.
|
|
| |
|
|
