Wind Turbine Noise - Articles, Comments, Letters and MPP's Response

“Do you think industrial wind turbines pose a health risk?”


A biased opinion is all that can be expected from uneducated urban dwellers as they are just not fully cognizant of the facts surrounding Industrial Wind turbines (IWT’s)

If Peterborough residents had the time to speak with those forced to live with IWT’s in rural Shelburne, and many other areas in rural Ontario. I can assure you their answer’s would be whole lot different than what has been said in your poll of late.

You only mentioned health problems, but totally forgot to mention the property value problem, which is that most people living in close proximity to IWT‘s have had no choice but to sell cheap, 20 to 40% cheaper than normal, or simply walk away from their family homes with nothing, but the shirt on their backs.

Health problems are a very real issue, and have been qualified by many independent scientists, such as the twenty or so that attended the first wind symposium in Picton last fall. These health issues are global and how anyone could suspect a conspiracy world wide is simply beyond me. More likely is the fact that conspiracy by wind Corporations to con the provincial government and the people of Ontario is far more realistic than Dalton McGuinty would have you believe.

One only has to look at the recent release of a document, obtained by John LaForet of WindConcernsOntario, who has waited patiently for over a year before it released it to him, under the freedom of information act to see exactly how this government has denied Ontarians the truth about this subject or how they have managed to twist truth into a shape completely unrecognizable, and decidedly meant to confuse the issues raised by hundreds of thousands of families in Ontario.

Most global governments have been under tremendous pressure to allow independent health studies to once and for all, confirm that hundreds of thousands of people are indeed suffering from serious health issues, and no matter how many polls your paper runs, it will always be one sided until the truth about health and property issues has become a subject with which everyone has been familiarized with. The studies have already started in Australia and are spreading, as we speak.

The most unfortunate part about most of this subject is as always, that this liberal government and some newspaper media are for IWT’s, and have the money and power to ingratiate them with swaying the urban public into accepting IWT’s green energy program, while trampling on rural families.

I would urge all city residents to please educate yourself by going to one of many sites, starting with windconcernsontario and see for yourself independent science that backs up our deep concerns, both here in rural Ontario and around the globe.

Graham Hawkridge
City of Kawartha Lakes

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MPP responds to wind turbine noise claims

By Lisa Gervais, Lindsay Post Reporter


KAWARTHA LAKES - Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock MPP Rick Johnson has responded to a claim by Wind Concerns Ontario that "the McGuinty Liberals were well aware (in April 2010), that noise from industrial wind turbines operating even in compliance with Ontario's wind turbine regulations were causing adverse effects on communities."

They say a damaging report - obtained under the Freedom of Information Act - "exposes several serious deficiencies in Ontario's legislated noise limits for wind turbines at 40 decibels, with a report author describing the noise from wind turbines as 'sound contamination discharged into the natural environment…'

In the document, Wind Concerns Ontario said the writer indicates that there are many characteristics of wind turbine noise not addressed in the regulations and that these characteristics must be factored into the equation when assessing tolerable turbine noise levels in quiet rural settings especially at night.

They said the author comments that wind turbines create an audible 'swish' or cyclical sound as the gigantic turbine blades pass the towers at speeds of more than 200 km/hr. Any other industrial noise with this quality receives a five decibel penalty. Currently the minister of environment says 40 decibels is the acceptable level for wind turbine noise. However with just that five decibel penalty the noise limit should be lowered to 35 decibels.

President of Wind Concerns Ontario, John Laforet said, "For almost four years residents in rural Ontario have played by the book. They have complained about the unbearable noise to the field officers in their region believing that the field officers would communicate the issues to the minister and his advisers. If this is how the government process works, by burying evidence, then the system is either broken or corrupt.

"The FOI document shows in statement after statement that the field officers do not support the ministry guidelines. Eg. "The assumption...is not supported by our field observations", "is not supported in the report", "...this conclusion is not supported by our field officers" , and " ...it appears reasonable to suggest the setback distances should be calculated using a sound level limit of 30 to 32 dBA at the receptor [home], instead of the 40dBA sound level limit."

An increase to 10 decibels to a noise is perceived by the human ear as a doubling of that sound. The fact is wind turbine developments in Ontario are permitted to go to 51 decibels even at night - a full 20 decibels over the tolerable threshold for human perception.

"What is really disturbing," said Laforet, "is that it appears this Liberal government is operating in a culture of willful blindness at the most senior level including the ministers of environment, health and inside the premier's office."

However, Johnson replied "all of this information was already examined by the Environmental Review Tribunal; an independent, quasi-judicial body, which ruled that wind farm projects in Ontario are safe. The chief medical officer of health reviewed all the evidence and found there are no direct health effects associated with wind turbines. So did the Wisconsin Public Service, Quebec Public Health and many others around the world.

"The Ontario government and the ministry of the environment values its field officers who enforce our stringent noise regulations. When it comes to noise standards we rely on sound experts who have their professional engineer of Ontario designation. When it comes to human health we rely on the chief medical officer of health.

"We strictly enforce the 40 decibel noise limit, which Dr. David Suzuki says is the noise in someone's bedroom. If we were to lower the noise limit below 40dB, which the World Health Organization says is safe, we would need to shut down most industry in Ontario.

"This is about making sure we have clean air to breathe and that these projects are safe, and we designed our approvals to protect human health," Johnson said.

http://www.thepost.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3271379

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Open Letter to MPP Rick Johnson Your letter August 24th Lindsay Post

You replied that all this information was already examined by the environmental review Tribunal, an independent, Quasi-judicial body, which ruled wind farm projects in Ontario are safe.

Please answer this Mr. Johnson, if they are so safe, why then have many of your senior MOE officers accepted that there is a problem with the sound from them, and claim they have no guidance as to the correct acceptable sound levels?

As to your reference about the chief medical officer reviewing all the evidence and finding no direct health issue with wind turbines.

I have, over the last 2-1/2 years, written numerous times and asked that the source of her “evidence be revealed” for all to see, but have been ignored by her as well as yourself at every turn. Perhaps your evidence was supplied by the wind corporations?

We too have numerous sources of evidence, which has indeed been released through wind concerns and many, many other “independent sources” Karmen Crogh recently had an article published in the Science Journal. We have nothing to hide from any one person least of all “your government”

If your field officers are indeed the sound experts that you claim and have their professional engineer of Ontario designation, then I would suggest that your government has a very serious problem with communications, as their have been two emails leaked (under the freedom of information act) that pertain directly to show cause and effect when speaking about complaints from rural Ontario folks over health issues. They were to the best of my knowledge passed up stairs, and then forgotten about or ignored.

Their claim that they have not been instructed as to an acceptable and accurate level of sound, and that their equipment is of insufficient quality to measure accurately, only goes to show the ignorance and blindness of their superiors.

Attempting to use Dr David Suzuki to lend credence to your claim is laughable, and most rural folk now recognize that he only sees what he wants to see, and not what he hears, he is not an expert in sound, I don’t believe, neither in the bedroom nor out of it.

Your attempt to sway the public by saying we would have to shut down most of the industry, because most of us think that 40decibels is too high at night is a joke. Had your government and Dalton McGuinty taken the time and care to investigate this more scientifically and openly, you wouldn’t be in the mess your all in now.

Finally Mr. Johnson, if you expect any Ontarians, especially rural people to accept “your stated fact” that Industrial Wind Turbines are not causing health issues. Then I would suggest you look around the globe, one more time, at Germany, Denmark, Australia, France, The United Kingdom, and by no means last, Canada. All of whom, have had hundreds of thousands of reported health issues with IWT deployment, over the last several years.

I laughed out loud when I read your statement that the 40 decibel limit is strictly enforced, as we all know someone from Ripley or Shelburne that have been contiually ignored when reporting a noise abuse problem.

Rural Ontario folks, will never rest until these money hungry, bad health monsters are gone, and our local councils restored to full democratic ideology.

G Hawkridge

City of Kawartha Lakes

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Re: “MPP responds to wind turbine noise claims” (Aug. 23) –
MPP Johnson: give us facts not fictional fairytales”

After reading the fictional fairytale presented by current Liberal MPP
Rick Johnson and other members of the Dalton McGuinty Liberal
government, here are some fact-based statements on the issue of
industrial wind turbines, noise levels, and human health concerns.

First, I would ask MPP Johnson to fully explain his statement, “We
strictly enforce the 40 decibel noise limit”, given the fact that Gary
Tomlinson, Sr. Environmental Officer, Guelph District Office of the
Ontario Ministry of the Environment (MOE), stated in a June 12, 2009
email to Jane Glassco, of the MOE, “In short, MOE field staff have no
approved methodology to determine compliance with the noise levels
identified in the Guideline(s)/Certificates of Approval Air for noise
emissions from dispersed multiple wind turbine sources, (or any other
dispersed multiple noise sources).”

Second, I would ask Johnson to pinpoint exactly where the
Environmental Review Tribunal (ERT) Decision released on July 18, 2011
regarding the Erickson v. Director, Ministry of the Environment (Case
Nos.: 10-121/10-122), states that it, “…ruled that wind farm projects
in Ontario are safe”.

In fact the Environmental Review Tribunal (ERT) Decision on page six
states, “…the evidence shows that there are some risks and
uncertainties associated with wind turbines that merit further
research.” The ERT Decision also states, “What the Tribunal can state
is that the need for more research came up several times during this
Hearing. Time will tell as to what that research will ultimately
demonstrate. The Tribunal is hopeful that, whatever the results,
further research will help answer some of the concerns and
uncertainties raised during this Hearing.” Regardless of Johnson’s
attempted ‘spin’, this does not read, “…wind farm projects in Ontario
are safe”.

On page 207, the ERT decision states, “The Tribunal notes that the
research in this area is at quite an early stage and that our
collective understanding of the impacts of wind turbines on human
health will likely progress as further research and analysis is
undertaken.” On page 208 the ERT Decision states, “The Appellants have
not shown that engaging in the Project in accordance with the REA will
cause serious harm to human health as required by section
145.2.1(2)(a) of the EPA.” Again, one will note however, that the ERT
decision does not state that, “…wind farm projects in Ontario are
safe”.

Likewise, MPP Johnson’s statement, “The chief medical officer of
health reviewed all the evidence and found there are no direct health
effects associated with wind turbines” is another example of political
spin, that is, a mistruth. In fact , Dr. Arlene King, Chief Medical
Officer of Health for Ontario had a ‘literature review” performed and
did not “…review all of the evidence…” at all. Another disturbing fact
regarding the CMOH Report was that no “victims” were consulted,
interviewed, surveyed or spoken to regarding possible health impacts
of industrial wind turbine to humans.

Like most voters, I prefer to base my decisions on fact not fiction.

On October 6, I will be voting for a Progressive Conservative
candidate.

Debbie Lynch, Norwood

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To the Editor:

Re: Rick Johnson's response to the latest MOE scandal with regard to industrial wind turbines and noise levels.

What would it take for someone to abandon their home? The obvious response is that it is no longer habitable due to serious structural damage or due to the ravages of some environmental disaster. No one would abandon their domicile for the sheer 'heck of it'.

Yet people living among industrial wind turbines in Ripley near Lake Huron are doing just that - they are abandoning their homes due to serious adverse health effects as a result of the audible and inaudible sound being emitted by nearby industrial wind turbines.

Mr. Johnson would be well advised to contact Mayor Mitch Twolan from the Township of Huron-Kinloss who has on several occasions tried to obtain some relief for his suffering constituents from the Liberal government and the Ministry of the Environment to no avail before Mr. Johnson makes claims "that these projects are safe, and we designed our approvals to protect human health".

"Mayor Mitch Twolan has stated his concerns that several residents near the existing wind park near Ripley have left from their homes due to illness thought to have been caused by being too close to wind energy projects."- February 27th, 2011 issue of the Owen Sun Times

Jane Zednik

Campbellcroft, ON