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Wind Power Is Safe - Revealing Fact from Fiction

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Wind Power Is Safe - Revealing Fact from Fiction Wind Power is Safe - Revealing Fact from Fiction Studies show wind power is a safe energy source that benefits public health. Independent studies conducted around the world, including the U.S., consistently found that wind farms have no direct impact on physical health.1 • Wind farms have been developed in 89 countries around the world and at least hundreds of thousands of people live and work within close proximity to these facilities without incident • Reputable developers work closely with communities to mitigate noise and shadow flicker through siting and vegetative plantings • No energy source is without impacts; wind energy continues to be one of the lowest-impact forms of energy What about Wind Turbine Syndrome? “Wind Turbine Syndrome” is derived from the title of a self-published book by pediatrician Nina Pierpont, which points to 200 common symptoms as evidence for a phenomenon she called wind turbine syndrome. However, numerous health experts have disputed the premise of her theory, and question the credibility of her report, which is not based on sound science. • Much of the wind turbine syndrome literature is supplied by anti- wind activists. A report compiled by Intrinsik Environmental Sciences, Prior to construction, of Ottawa, Canada stated, “the primary authors of the articles are either board of director members or scientific advisors for the Society for Wind we heard naysayers Vigilance,” an anti-wind advocacy group based in Ontario. Those authors “ did not disclose their connection with that anti-wind group in the publi- [talk] about all of the bad cation that printed the articles.2 things. [A]fter six years of • Government studies in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and the U.S. have all found no evidence of any mechanism by which experience, they are full of wind turbine sound could have a direct physical effect on the human bologna. body. 3 – Kurt K., Glasco, KS • A growing body of evidence has emerged that support the idea that the ” power of suggestion is a significant contributor to the surge in com- Landowner plaints about wind turbines. Fear, anger, or annoyance resulting from the spread of unscientific, poorly documented “studies,” rumors and anecdotal information through the media, Internet, and word-of-mouth, is far more likely to be responsible for the symptoms and ailments reported by some wind project neighbors.4 • In addition to the report by an independent panel of expert acousticians commissioned by AWEA and the Canadi- an Wind Energy Association in late 2009, two new studies – one from New Zealand5 (appearing in a peer-reviewed journal) and one from Australia have strongly pointed to the “power of suggestion” conclusion. Together, these studies provide strong evidence that the maladies ascribed to I have visited a wind turbine sound result from what is called the “nocebo” (like placebo) effect, number of counties to in which individuals who are led to expect symptoms from some stimulus experi- ence those symptoms whether the stimulus is actually present or not.6 “present on the impact a wind The Australia study examined the timing and number of health complaints regis- project will have on their tered by neighbors about turbine sound between1993-2012 at all of the 49 wind farms in Australia. Among the findings:7 communities, including health 1. The number of complaints amounted to 1 in 272 residents within a 3-mile effects. To date, we have not radius of the wind farms. had any reports of 2. Complaints were highly concentrated (81 of 120 complaints filed) around 5 wind projects that had been heavily criticized by anti-wind groups. negative impact. 3. No complaints at all were made about 31 of the 49 wind farms. Accord- – Kelly Kepner, Director, ” ing to Dr. Chapman’s report, “The 31 farms with no histories of complaints, and Benton County Economic which today have some 21,530 residents within 5 km [3 miles] of their tur- Development, IN bines….” What is infrasound? Claims that infrasound from turbines directly impacts the vestibular system have not been demonstrated scientifi- cally. • “Infrasound is sound which extends below the range of human hearing (from 20 Hz down to 0.001 Hz), and it emanates from many natural and man-made sources. For example, some animals, such as whales, elephants and giraffes communicate using infrasound over long distances.” [Even] “…ocean waves … generate infrasonic waves.” 8 • “Sources of infrasound are in the range from very low-frequency atmospheric fluctuations up into the lower audio frequencies. These sources include natural occurrences, industrial installations, low-speed machinery, etc. … . Over the past 40 years, infrasound and low-frequency noise have attracted a great deal of adverse publicity on their effects on health, based mainly on media exaggerations and misunderstandings. A result of this has been that the public takes a one-dimensional view of infrasound, concerned only by its presence, whilst ignoring its low levels.9 • “In independent reviews of available evidence, Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health and Australia’s National Health and Medical Research Council found that sound from wind turbines does not cause negative health im- pacts.”10 What is Shadow Flicker? 11 Shadow flicker occurs when the blades of a turbine pass in front of the sun, creating a recurring shadow on an object. • Computer models can predict the days and times during the year that specific buildings in close proximity to tur- bines may experience shadow flicker. • Turbines can be sited to minimize flicker to a few hours per year. Everyone likes clean air and water; and everyone benefits from it. It is undisputed that burning fossil fuels emits harmful toxins into our air. With the current 60 GW of installed wind capac- 12 ity in the U.S., wind energy is avoiding 98.9 million tons of CO2 (the equivalent of taking 17.4 million cars off the road) because it is used first to displace more expensive fossil fuels, like coal. Wind emits no sulfur dioxide, which causes acid rain. Wind emits no nitrogen oxides, which causes smog. 17 Studies on wind and health show no negative health impacts from wind turbines MASS Dept. of Environmental Protection. Wind Turbine Health Impact Study 2012 http://www.mass.gov/dep/energy/wind/impactstudy.htm OR Health Authority: Strategic Health Impact Assessment on Wind Energy Development in Oregon 2012 http://public.health.oregon.gov/healthyenvironments/trackingassessment/healthimpactassessment/pages/windenergy. aspx Fiumicelli D. “Windfarm noise dose-response: a literature review.” 2011. Bolin, et al. “Infrasound and low frequency noise from wind turbines.” 2011 http://iopscience.iop.org/1748-9326/6/3/035103 Knopper, Ollsen. “Health effects and wind turbines: a review of the literature,” 2010 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21914211 UK Health Protection Agency Report on the health effects of infrasound. 2010 http://www.hpa.org.uk/webc/HPAwebFile/HPAweb_C/1265028759369 (pdf) NHRMC Rapid Review of the Evidence (Australia) 2013 http://www.nhmrc.gov.au/_files_nhmrc/publications/attachments/new0048_evidence_review_wind_turbines_and_ health.pdf Chief Medical Officer of health in Ontario. 2010 http://news.ontario.ca/mohltc/en/2010/05/new-report-from-ontarios-chief-medical-officer-of-health-says-there-is-no- direct-causal-link-between.html UK Health Protection Agency: Environmental noise and health in the UK. 2010 http://www.hpa.org.uk/webc/HPAwebFile/HPAweb_C/1246433634856 Minnesota Dept. of Health Environmental Health Division: Public Health Impacts of Wind Turbines. 2009 http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/hazardous/topics/windturbines.pdf CANWEA. Addressing Concerns with Wind Turbines and Human Health. 2009 http://www.canwea.ca/pdf/CanWEA%20-%20Addressing%20concerns%20with%20wind%20turbines%20and%20 human%20health.pdf Colby, et al. “Wind Turbine Sound and Health Effects: An Expert Panel Review.” 2009 http://199.88.77.35/EFiles/docs/CD/PlanCom/10_0426_IT_100416160206.pdf Chatham-Kent Public Health Unit. 2008 National Research Council (US): Impact of Wind Energy development on Humans. 2007 Jakobsen. “Infrasound emission from wind turbines.” 2005 http://www.oddzialywaniawiatrakow.pl/upload/file/284.pdf Leventhall. “Low frequency noise and annoyance.” 2004 http://www.noiseandhealth.org/article.asp?issn=1463- 1741;year=2004;volume=6;issue=23;spage=59;epage=72;aulast=L eventhall Eja Pdersonse review for the Swedish EPA. 2003. http://www.naturvardsverket.se/Documents/publikationer/620-5308-6.pdf Resources Further Reading Opinion: Health Effects of Wind Towers Hyped by Media, by Richard Jennings, M.D., member of the Maine Medical Association. [Numerous valu- able links and related articles are available for easy reference at the end of the article.] Useful articles on the nocebo effect: [List compiled by AWEA] Fourteen wind energy myths debunked, June 20, 2012 New Yorker blog, “The Nocebo Effect: How We Worry Ourselves Sick” Wind turbines not a threat to human health, another study finds, May 31, 2012 Media Matters for America blog, “NPR Gives Wind Power Hypochondriacs a Platform” Fact check: Lomborg lacking on wind’s economics, emissions reductions, March 23, 2012 Slate, “Can Wind Turbines Make You Sick?” Public opinion watch: Ontarians: Wind power one of safest forms The Conversation, “How the power of suggestion generates wind farm of electricity generation, March 6, 2012 symptoms” Opinion: Wind turbines are good for our health, March 2, 2012 Related articles: Review of wind turbine sound studies gives debate needed bal- More positive
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