Comments on: Most comprehensive meta-study to date concludes: wind turbines don’t make people sick

By: Dan Wrightman

Dan Wrightman — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 19:58:47 +0000

The explanation that anticipatory fear of wind turbines is a possible cause of adverse health effects doesn’t explain why toddlers and small children are experiencing the same symptons as adults. Are children too young to understand adult anxieties about health issues also getting sick because of suggestibility?

By: Jim Cummings

Jim Cummings — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 16:32:52 +0000

This study is one of several useful overviews of wind farm noise released in 2009. It found no evidence of DIRECT health effects from noise exposure near wind farms, which is unsurprising since noise levels are moderate. However, it nearly completely omitted any consideration of sleep disruption, which is likely to be the direct effect that CAN sometimes be severe enough to lead to related health effects. See an assessment of this, with links to other recent studies on night noise issues from WHO and others, at
http://aeinews.org/archives/584

The noise issues near wind farms is complicated by the well-known individual variability in sensitivity to noise. Well-designed surveys seem to indicate that while a majority of those who can hear turbines from their homes are not particularly bothered, a significant minority can be quite severely disrupted. Nearly all serious problems occur when turbines are within a half mile (though again, among a minority of these neighbors); virtually no major impacts appear to occur beyond a mile. Ongoing relatively non-adversarial coverage is available at the url in the header.

By: Patrick

Patrick — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 15:50:07 +0000

The one aspect of the study I found interesting and something I hadn’t given much credence to prior was the part about “anticipatory fear”, which is essentially, if you think about something or worry about it enough over and over in your mind your create an anxiety or negative image of it. Most anti-wind people I’m sure would say this isn’t true but the power of the media to shape our views and fears is not uncommon.
So if someone hears about the negative effects of wind turbines in the media and in their community long enough, when a turbine is placed near them, they automatically develop this fear and it negatively effects their health.

By: Mike

Mike — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 20:06:27 +0000

In fairness Scatter, you chose your home and location with either an existing airport or a planned airport nearby (I am also guessing significant ambient noise from the city included…I too live in a flight path just west of Canada’s busiest airport with little other noise pollution).
I have been following the wind story for quite some time, and this video is the first real documentation of true effects on neighbors I have seen. I am one who leans towards the argument with regards to hysteria etc. relating to the sickness (not actual disorders). However, it would be very difficult for me to see how one could argue that your comparative be sufficient in comparing the shading impact occurring on those residences. If these people did not build the units or benefit from them, how can one justify those impacts. I would not move there, that feeling in of itself devalues these peoples’ homes and causes real negative economic impacts and resulting mental stresses. I am no nay sayer, and know we need greener solutions. However, we need to properly and fairly account for all of the real impacts and clarify the perceived impacts, as this article has begun to deal with.
I now see better justification for set backs. I welcome more information as has been provided.

By: Scatter

Scatter — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 00:34:09 +0000

I could watch that and not feel ill. Perhaps a bit annoyed for the hour it would affect me each day but not ill. From personal experience having lived under a flight path 10 miles from an international airport i find you adjust to these sorts of local environmental quirks fairly rapidly.

By: Kristina

Kristina — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 18:06:09 +0000

What about annoyances other than sound? Such as shadow flicker? Your article on the Toronto Star doesn’t address that either. You can’t watch this video and tell me it wouldn’t cause you to feel ill: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbIe0iUtelQ&feature=related