(Reprint from 2009
)
Letter dated Sept 30, 2009 from Bill Bardswick, Director, West Central Region, MOE:
Unlike typical industrial noise sources, measurement of noise from wind turbines raises technical challenges. Typical noise measurement protocols call for no wind during noise measurements since background wind will result in inaccurate measurements. However in the case of wind turbines, wind must be present for them to operate. Continue reading
By Jamie Smith tbnewswatch.com
THUNDER BAY – The Ontario government has put people in harm’s way and needs to address the situation says the chair of a provincial wind energy concern group.
Society for Wind Vigilance chair Bob McMurtry was in Thunder Bay Friday to talk about wind turbines and the adverse health affects associated with them. McMurtry, an orthopedic surgeon and professor emeritus at the University of Western Ontario, has been lobbying the provincial government to obtain third party studies on wind farms since 2008. He said since that time, 102 people have come forward across the province with helth issues from turbines, the most common being sleep deprivation.
“Our bottom line message is if you’re going to build them for Heaven’s sake don’t put people in harm’s way,” McMurtry said. “At this time we (Ontario) are putting people in harm’s way.” Continue reading
How Stuff Works by Julia Layton
The rapidly spinning blades of huge wind turbines have an effect on their surroundings, and it goes beyond aesthetics. The blade tips of a wind turbine can spin at speeds of up to 80 meters per second, or about 180 miles per hour. In high winds, this rapid spinning can produce sound and vibration — in addition to disruptions in air pressure .
The extremely low air pressure surrounding a wind turbine could be the reason why bats die near them. A bat’s lungs are very delicate, and it seems the low pressure might cause them to expand to the point of bursting blood vessels. Scuba divers can certainly attest to the effects of pressure on the human body. And the corporeal effects of sound — essentially fluctuations in air pressure that vibrate the eardrum — are well-documented. For instance, infrasound — sounds at such low frequency that they can’t be picked up by the human ear but can carry through the atmosphere for thousands of kilometers — is believed to cause certain breathing and digestive problems. Continue reading
The wait is over…..
In any grassroots revolution there is a period of reaction to the implementation of government rules before people start to organize their response based upon the revealed facts of a situation.
Such is the case with the McGuinty government’s support of wind power and its misguided attempt to reduce Ontario’s reliance on conventional (non-green) energy sources while maintaining Ontario as a competitive business environment and a great place to live!
windfacts.ca is pro-active in its efforts to identify the errors in thinking and advertising of the wind industry and show some of the success stories that indicate there are some ways to fight back successfully, how it was done and what you would need to do to use the same measures.
The Society for Wind Vigilance
Toronto, January 20, 2010 – The government of Ontario admitted this week that it does not know ‘how or whether’ to measure for low frequency sound at wind turbine installations.
Two Requests for Proposal www.merx.com were issued yesterday by the Ontario Ministry of Environment to help the ministry in “determining how or whether to regulate low frequency noise emissions from wind turbines”.
The requests go on to state:
“The Ministry requires a consultant to assist in the development of a measurement procedure to assess noise compliance of existing wind farms with the applicable sound level limits” Continue reading
Credit: By Sara Bender, Lucknow Sentinel, Lucknow Sentinal
Some Huron-Kinloss Twp. residents want to make it clear that they are still concerned with wind turbine development in the municipality.
Township resident David Colling attended the Jan. 11 council meeting and said he wanted to clear up any misconception about the wind turbine company burying the transmission lines. He said not all lines have been buried yet and families are not able to move back into their homes.
“One family is still in a hotel, paid for by the wind turbine company; another has left the township and two other families have moved back to their homes but they are still experiencing health problems,” said Colling. Continue reading
The Noise Abatement Society (NAS) has today issued a stark warning that public health could suffer from low frequency noise and a possible hum.
The NAS is familiar with complaints about the health effects of onshore wind farms, and has seen a “significant” increase in recent years.
Locals near the wind farm at Bears Down in Cornwall, for example, say they have experienced headaches, migraines, nausea, dizziness, palpitations, tinnitus, sleep disorders, stress anxiety and depression. Continue reading
Credit: Wind Turbine Syndrome
“I am a professional consultant engineer, and my company is based in the United Kingdom,” begins Dr. Malcolm A. Swinbanks in his testimony to the Michigan Public Service Commission, “but fourteen years ago I was asked to come to the US to lead an advanced research project for the Office of Naval Research. My American wife & I now live in Port Hope, Michigan. During the course of my career, I became a consultant to many different companies and research organizations on a wide variety of problems related to unsteady dynamics, noise, vibration, shock and acoustics. Continue reading
Professor (Emeritus) Ph.D. (Leeds)
By PAUL SCHLIESMANN, THE WHIG-STANDARD, 16 January 2010
Some might accuse John Harrison of tilting at wind turbines, but the retired Queen’s University physics professor says he’s got the science to prove that wind farms are bad for people’s health.
Harrison became an expert critic of wind technology — and an ally of those who oppose it — after learning that his retirement community of Amherst Island could become the site of a wind farm like the one on nearby Wolfe Island. Continue reading
Posted By LAURA MACDUFF, The POST
The Municipality of West Grey is taking a stand against the proposed wind turbines coming to the area. In a resolution approved on Monday afternoon, the municipality is requesting the Province of Ontario to put a moratorium on the proposed wind turbines.
Before a handful of concerned residents of West Grey in council chambers at the municipality of West Grey, councillors passed their own resolution, with plans to send it to MPs and MPPs, as well as surrounding municipalities of West Grey and the County of Grey.
Posted By DAVE FLAHERTY, LINDSAY POST
LINDSAY-A group of citizens have taken their concerns regarding a proposed wind turbine project in the former Manvers Township on the road.
Manvers Gone With The Wind representative Heather Stauble spoke at Tuesday’s Trillium Lakeland District School Board (TLDSB) committee of the whole meeting, voicing concerns about the proximity of proposed wind turbines to Grandview Public School and Rolling Hills Public School near Hwy. 35 and Hwy. 7A. Continue reading
by Bob Aaron Toronto Star
In a precedent setting move, a recently discovered decision of the provincial Assessment Review Board (ARB) has cut a homeowner’s assessment in half because the house is located near a noisy hydro substation. The hydro plant serves a nearby wind farm producing “clean” electricity.
The decision of ARB member Ana Cristina Marques was issued following an appeal by Paul Thompson of the assessment on his house. Continue reading
George W. Kamperman, INCE Bd. Cert. Emeritus, Kamperman Associates Inc.
Richard R. James, INCE, E-Coustic Solutions Continue reading
Wind industry study says no health effects – but “omits” any mention of sleep disruption
A report issued by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) and the Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA) purports to assess all currently available research on the health effects associated with exposure to wind farm noise, and concludes that there are no such problems. The report centers on the symptoms of the reported “wind turbine syndrome,” and offers a robust critique of the idea that low frequency noise from wind farms can cause direct health impacts; meanwhile, however, the report minimizes the levels of annoyance and impacts on quality of life reported in other studies, and completely omits any assessment of the most widely reported health-related impact of living near wind farms, sleep disruption.
[Note: The developer of this project is AIM Powergen whose CEO, Mike Crawley is also President of the Federal Liberal Party (Ontario)]
—Tracy Whitworth, Schoolteacher (11/5/09)
Clear Creek, Ontario. Quiet, peaceful. The sound of the lake; the overhead passing of migrating geese; tundra swans in the early spring. Deer and wild turkeys. Clear starry skies. Silent except for the sounds of the crickets and bullfrogs. The sight of a small country church across the way; the church I remember attending as a young girl with my Grandmother.
Sounds nice, doesn’t it? That was my retreat of 11 years. A place I called home, a place I loved, a place I miss. It was my heaven on earth. Continue reading
By Bill Henry Owen Sound Sun Times
Three months after the Ripley Wind Farm went online in December, 2007, Dave Colling’s phone started ringing.
Three of his neighbours were seeing doctors about recurring ear aches. They knew Colling, a former dairy farmer who lives within two kilometres of the turbines near the southern Bruce County community, had an interest in and could test for what he calls “electrical pollution.”
“It’s like living inside a microwave. It radiates,” Colling told more than 100 people Tuesday night in Keady.
He said stray voltage eventually forced four families from their homes. Two have not returned, and one family sold the farm and moved away. Continue reading
Martin McConnochie
Provincial Officer Badge #400
Ministry of Environment, Hamilton District Office
905.521.7649 Fax 905.521.7806
This letter is in regard to my phone call to the Spills Action Centre on Oct 9 at 11:15 PM to file a complaint about noise from the Clear Creek wind farm. The situation got so bad that night I had to leave my house at 12:30AM to sleep somewhere else.
My entire house was vibrating along with all the contents, including me. I tried to lie down and sleep a few times, but got jolted awake with a full body twitch each time. My skull was resonating to the extent that I became swimmingly dizzy, even just sitting, with sharp pains developing in my head.
I was nauseous, I was aware of my insides trembling, and to lay or even sit down against something vibrating at a different frequency was totally unbearable. I could feel my fingers tingling with the vibrations. My eyes started to blur, an indication of oscillating eyeballs. The only alternative was to get out, and I did so in tears. Continue reading
(sorry this is unavialable at this time)
Click here to Listen to Newsmaker Kevin Doran WLEA Interview with Dr. Robert McMurtry and Carmen Krough
Possible causes and effects upon land-based animals and freshwater creatures
Download Document Here
Excerpt: Unless the problem is recognised as real and acute the potential for further chronic and significant harm to land based animals and fresh water creatures.
Jean Majeau, Kruger’s senior vice-president of communications
A Blenheim woman claims her family is still suffering effects from a nearby wind farm.
Kruger Energy’s 44-turbine Port Alma project became operational last year.
Nikki Horton, who filed a complaint with the Montreal-based company, said the wind farm is impacting her family’s quality of life, with symptoms such as headaches and fatigue.
“We’re still ill. We’re still sleep deprived,” she said. “Our children are still experiencing problems.” Continue reading
Download Appraisal Group One Wind Turbine Impact Study (4 MB, .pdf) Released 09/09/09
Appraisal Group One is an independent appraisal company specializing in forensic appraisal, eminent domain, stigmatized properties and valuation research.
Conclusion: After reviewing articles and studies on wind energy, wind turbines appear to have a negative impact on the property values, health, and quality of life of residents in close proximity. Of the studies that found no impact on property value, nearly all were funded by wind farm developers or renewable energy advocacy groups. Of the studies and reports showing property loss, the average negative effect is -20.7%. Continue reading
Two noise surveys from Europe are frequently cited by energy industry defenders as evidence that there are no ill health effects found in people living near industrial wind turbines. The applicability of these surveys to most proposed and recently built facilities, however, is very limited. And in fact, their findings of significant annoyance at low sound levels and small relatively turbines suggest reason for concern. Annoyance from noise, by the way, is an adverse health effect, according to the World Health Organization (“Guidelines for Community Noise”, 1999), as is disturbed sleep, which can lead to many physical and psychological symptoms. Continue reading
Victims of the Ripley, Ontario Industrial Wind Facility
We suffer from:
House Vibration Electrical Pollution
Tightening in the Chest Ringing in the Ears
High Stress Cardiac Arrythmia
Acute Hypertension Sleep Deprivation
Depression Severe Financial Loss
Altered Living Conditions Abandoned by our government
Art by Paul Bloomer, The Money Counters
FOR 35 years, Noel and Janine Dean lived on a small western Victorian farm, where they raised crops, cattle and three children.
They planned to spend the rest of their lives on that lush, green plot of land, but that would change three years ago, when an executive driving a red BMW approached the gates of their property, wound down his window and asked: “You got anything against wind farms?” Continue reading
Update to this story, See: Natural Resources Canada Eco-Bullies
So whatever happened to Barbara Lormand and Dennis Lormand? The picture shows it all. They have finally been driven from their home.
Read the Hansard transcript from Barbara Ashbee’s Testamony to the Green Energy Act Standing Committee. After pleading with Laurel Broten, Peter Tabuns, Carol Mitchell and others on the committee, Barbara and her husband Dennis have finally had to abandon their home. These same politicians continue to push for more wind development in populated areas of rural Ontario.
VACATED
Download Full Report Here (3 MG pdf)
Wolfe Island Ferry Dock
Sarah Boesveld – Globe and Mail
By now, the residents of Wolfe Island, Ont., are getting used to the whirr and thump of wind turbines overhead. By next year, they’ll get a glimpse of whether those whirrs and thumps could be damaging their health.
Researchers at nearby Queen’s University have embarked on the first study to probe whether wind turbines built over communities can cause adverse health effects. The study measures residents’ health and well-being before the turbines arrived on the island, again when the turbines were built but not yet operational and again after they’d been operating for a few months. Continue reading
Physorg.com By Noriyuki Yoshida and Koichi Yasuda
Wind power generation is expected to be a clean and environmentally friendly natural energy source, but a new kind of environmental problem has surfaced as infrasonic waves caused by windmills are suspected of causing health problems for some people. Continue reading
(From Ontario MOE website) Download Detailed Proposed Regulations Here Continue reading
