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WV wind farm: 55dB limit is being met in long-term average levels, while peaks continue to trouble neighbors
April 16, 2012Two recent articles have shed interesting light on the ongoing controversy in Keyser, WV, home of the Pinnacle Wind Farm, where many neighbors have been complaining about noise since the turbines began operating late last year. The first clarifies that most or all nearby residents signed agreements with the wind company, including the residence where […]
Health effects of wind farms: summary of recent research
April 3, 2012Here we go again! As in AEI’s similarly long recap of 2011 research on low frequency noise and infrasound published in December, I’ve tackled a similar task with close to a dozen papers published in 2011 on health effects of living near wind farms. Rather than publish the entire thing as a blog post, I’ve […]
Tubular wind turbine foundation much quieter to install offshore
March 30, 2012As countries around the world gear up to expand offshore wind development, one of the major concerns of ocean biologists is the exceedingly loud noise of pile driving during construction. Studies suggest that some ocean species move at least 20km from turbine construction areas, and in areas with lots of planned construction (such as the North […]
Japan commits to floating offshore wind
March 30, 2012In order to compensate for the abandonment of many nuclear plants, the Japanese government has set its sights on the abundant wind resources off its coast. A 15MW pilot floating wind turbine project is under construction not far from Fukushima; if all goes well, the project could expand to as large as 1000MW. Along with […]
AEI invited to shape renewables conference agenda, NOAA ocean noise mapping effort
March 24, 2012My dance card is filling up for the spring! AEI’s years of working hard to play a constructive role in public and professional dialogue about policy responses to noise-related environmental issues has been rewarded with two invitations that I’m very excited about. The first was an invite to server on the Wind subcommittee of the […]
Welch wind farm neighbors ask for night-time shut downs of turbines within 2km/1.25mi of homes
March 7, 2012Neighbors of the Alltwalis Wind Farm farm near Carmarthen, Wales, met with the Welsh Government Petitions Committee as the next step in their quest to regain a measure of night-time quiet. Several residents spoke of their difficulty in sleeping, and having to obtain prescriptions for sleeping pills. As one resident stressed, “We should not be expected to […]
5-yr wind farm health study begins in Ontario
March 5, 2012Researchers from the University of Waterloo are planning to begin canvassing several Ontario counties this spring, marking the beginning of a multi-year effort to assess health-related changes in the vicinity of wind farms. The research program in Renewable Energy Technologies and Health will include a wide array of scientific, technological, and health-related topics surrounding wind, solar, […]
NYC residents join “sense of place” chorus of resistance to wind turbines
March 3, 2012As regular reader will know, I tend to have a lot of empathy for quality of life and sense of place concerns raised in rural communities considering wind farm development, especially as related to even moderate levels of new audible noise in tranquil rural landscapes. But I was quite shocked to read today that New […]
NSW to audit sound of wind farms as new guidelines are finalized
February 20, 2012New South Wales is initiating an independent audit of sound levels around the three existing large-scale wind farms in the state. While the wind farms have previously been found to be complying with their noise limits, the Department of Planning and Infrastructure (DPI) has continued to receive neighbor complaints. The new audit will commence within […]
Offshore wind farm pile driving raises hackles in UK
February 9, 2012Construction of a wind farm a bit over a mile from shore near Redcar, on the northeast coast of England, has raised the hackles of local residents. At issue is the unexpectedly loud sound of pile-driving at the site; construction of the turbine foundations entails the construction of foundations that extend 32 m (about a hundred […]
Ontario farmers group says wind farms are tearing communities apart
January 24, 2012The Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA), the province’s largest farm organization, has called for a moratorium on wind power development. In a statement, the OFA says that “we are hearing very clearly from our members that the wind turbines situation is coming to a head – seriously dividing rural communities and even jeopardizing farm succession planning.” […]
UK researchers examine effects of noise on fish, crustaceans
January 24, 2012A research project in England is preparing to do some of the first field studies designed to see how human-made sound may affect non-cetaceans. While many field studies have tracked the responses of whales and dolphins in both opportunistic and controlled settings, and some lab studies have noted how fish or other sea creatures react […]
Wisconsin towns say: wind farms not so bad, but no more!
January 12, 2012A fascinating article appeared in Midwest Energy News just before the holidays, looking at the current feelings in Kewaunee County, home Wisconsin’s first two large-scale wind farms, which started operations in 1999 and 2000. Twelve years later, some residents who had raised concerns seem to have come to feel the impacts are less than they […]
Wind historian and booster urges remote locations for new wind farms
January 2, 2012A new book, Windfall: Wind Energy in America Today, by historian Robert Righter, was recently published by University of Oklahoma Press. Righter also wrote an earlier history of wind energy, published by UofO Press in 1996. In the intervening years, of course, the wind industry has blossomed from its initial mini-boom-and-bust in the California hills […]
Neighbors ask for night time shut down of new WV wind farm
December 15, 2011The Pinnacle Wind Farm in West Virginia has been gearing up in recent weeks, with all of its 23 turbines to be spinning by the end of the year. But even as the wind farm began initial operations, neighbors have petitioned their county commission to request that the state PSC require the turbines to be shut […]
Oregon county approves wind farm within its 2-mile setback
December 5, 2011The Umatilla County Commission approved construction of a 33-turbine wind farm, rejecting a citizens’ challenge of the recent OK given by the County Planning Commission. In June, Umatilla County enacted a 2-mile setback provision for new wind farms, but the Chopin Wind Project application was submitted in April, so was not subject to the new […]
UK wind farm challenge ended by financial settlement, the latest of many
December 2, 2011Jane and Julian Davis’ long-running dispute with a wind farm located 1km (just over a half mile) from their home in Deeping St. Nicholas has come to an end. On the day before their case, seeking either a permanent shut-down of the wind farm or 2.5 million pounds in damages, was due to hear the […]
Moderate noise changes bird communities
November 16, 2011Research summary of Francis, C.D., Ortega, C.P., Cruz, A. 2011. Noise pollution filters bird communities based on vocal frequency. PLoS ONE 6(11):e27052. An ongoing research project in New Mexico continues to shed more detailed light on the question of how moderate human noise affects nearby wildlife. In a study design that effectively separates out the […]
Wisconsin town officials reassured by visit to wind farm
November 15, 2011Town officials from Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin recently visited a wind farm in Brownsville in order to listen and take sound measurements of turbines similar to three being proposed by a local plant that aims to generate all its energy needs on site. What they heard reassured them, after hearing noise concerns from some local residents. “At […]
Maine couple push quality of life argument in wind farm appeal
November 15, 2011A couple living roughly 5000 feet from a proposed 5-turbine wind farm has appealed the project’s approval by the town of Clifton, Maine, citing quality of life concerns due to the likelihood that they will hear the turbines from their home and farmlands. “Our land is our home. We work here. We farm here. We recreate […]
Australia continues to chart cautious course on wind farms
November 9, 2011A wind farm in South Australia has been shutting down 16 of its 34 turbines at night since last December, after a nearby neighbor complained of noise keeping his family awake at night. This week, the state Supreme Court affirmed that the wind farm was breaking its noise limit, due to a tonal noise component, […]
Illinois forum addresses wind farm health issues, gag orders
October 17, 2011A brief article from a local paper in Illinois shed some new light on two key issues that have come up in many communities considering new wind farm proposals. The meeting of the Lee County Zoning Board of Appeals featured an hour-long presentation from Carl Phillips, an epidemiologist who has published a peer-reviewed study saying […]
Ontario wind farm resistance hits court, election
September 23, 2011Ontario is definitely at the heart of current controversies over wind farm siting. While an environmental tribunal ruled against a health-based appeal in July, allowing the 8-turbine Kent Breeze Wind Farm to continue operating, many of the same issues will soon be argued in court. A local family that lives just over 1.1km (just under three […]
Victoria 2km wind farm buffer takes effect
September 15, 2011The State of Victoria (Australia) has enacted new wind farm siting guidelines that prohibit construction within 2km (1.25 miles) of a home unless the owner has signed off on the nearby turbine(s). In addition, the new guidelines prohibit wind farms within 5km of many existing villages, in order to allow for future growth. And, several […]
Roanoke County decides 60dB, 1000ft is good for wind farms
September 14, 2011The Roanoke County Board of Supervisors has adopted a wind energy policy that sits on the least-protective edges of current siting standards: a 60dB sound limit, and setbacks of 1000 feet from homes. Four of the five supervisors supported the proposal, saying it would protect residents; the 60dB limit was said to be comparable to sound […]