Do wind turbines cause health problems? > Check the facts
Who: “[Health concerns are] justified on the scientific evidence. We know from evidence from field studies… that low frequency noise actually causes health problems, physiological damage to people.” Senator Nick Xenophon
The claim: There is scientific evidence that wind turbines cause health problems.
The facts: In July 2010, the National Health and Medical Research Council reviewed the literature and found that there is currently no published scientific evidence to positively link wind turbines with adverse health effects.
In January 2012, an Independent Expert Panel in the US released a Wind Turbine Health Impact Study Report for the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Public Health. The report found that literature on human response to wind turbines related to self-reporting of “annoyance”.
The finding: Negative health outcomes appear to be caused by people being stressed by incorrect information about wind turbines not from the actual wind turbines. There is no evidence to show that wind turbines cause health problems.
Discussion of evidence: Reviews of the scientific literature have found that wind turbines cause no ill health effects. Health effects that are reported are consistent with stress and further studies have shown that there is a correlation between these adverse impacts and exposure to negative health information about wind turbines. Senator Xenophon is incorrect to say there is scientific evidence that point to wind turbines causing adverse health effects in humans.
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I once tested a new modular office (ATCO style). What happened was the building structure was fully mounted on a steel support system. When the air-conditioners were activated and people started working in the building some people started getting symptoms of nausea and motion sickness. It was found that the air-conditioners were sending a vibration through the building which was affecting the ears and in particular balance of some personnel. Therefore causing the sensation of nausea. As soon as person whom was affected left the building the nausea and motion-sickness stopped. It did not affect all personnel but probably about 50%. Whilst I expect some people are getting placebo affect with the wind turbines I expect that the turbines are probably affecting people in a same or similar way as the situation I have just spoken about.
So there was no other factor in play here? Odourless emissions, and other airborne particles can cause nausea. It’s one thing to ‘suspect’ a cause, it’s another thing to actually prove it.
Let scientific fact be the standard, not urban myth please!
It seems unlikely that wind turbines would work the same way – every wind farm I’ve seen had the turbines free-standing and usually several hundred meters away from any buildings (presumably to improve airflow).
I don’t doubt that it is possible to mount wind turbines on buildings, but it doesn’t seem to be a popular choice; solar panels seem to be significantly more popular for buildings.
There have been some noise complaints, but that’s nothing that a service couldn’t fix.
(I have also read that conventional wind turbines can be dangerous to migratory bats as they confuse the bat’s echolocation, but there are designs that are bat-friendly if that ever does become an issue in Australia.)
But – realist – there is no SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE! And people aren’t living in a wind turbine and experiencing vibrations!
When I initially commented I clicked the “Notify me when new comments are added” checkbox and now each time a comment
is added I get four e-mails with the same comment. Is there any
way you can remove people from that service?
Many thanks!
People living near the windturbins have unforntunatily noticest that the livingarea has changed in a very negativ way. I live quite near Mervento windturbin in Finland. The turbin has big lowfrecvently noice with is very desturbing.