THERE IS NO WIND TURBINE SYNDROME

Mass. panel: No major health impacts from turbines
January 17, 2012 (AP via Boston Herald)

Wind turbines do not pose serious health risks to people living nearby, though noise from some turbines could be annoying and cause sleep disruption…[according to a new report] commissioned by Massachusetts public health and environmental agencies after residents who live near existing or proposed wind energy projects raised concerns…[The report found] ‘no evidence for a set of health effects ... that could be characterized as “Wind Turbine Syndrome”…’ But the panel urged that more study be done on the sleep issue and also recommended that Massachusetts adopt noise limits for wind turbines similar to guidelines in place in Germany and Denmark…

"In the report, the panel said it found no scientific evidence that low-frequency sound emitted by turbines affects the inner ear and balance, or the vestibular system. It also said the ‘weight of evidence’ didn’t point to any links between the turbines and diseases including diabetes, high blood pressure and migraine headaches… ‘limited evidence’ exists that noise from louder turbines could cause annoyance or disrupt sleep…[though the link] was tenuous and based primarily on people who self-reported trouble sleeping…"

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"A coalition called Windwise Massachusetts called last year for a statewide moratorium on construction of industrial wind turbines until potential health effects were studied…Representatives of the group questioned the findings of the report…They said the panel relied on pre-existing data and studies rather than holding public hearings or speaking directly to people who claim to have been adversely affected…The group also questioned the objectivity of the panel, claiming at least one member had performed work on behalf of the wind energy industry…

"…Kenneth Kimmell, commissioner of the Department of Environmental Protection, said…that members who were chosen for the panel had no preconceived views about wind turbines and no connections to either the wind industry or opponents of wind turbines…[T]he panel said the scientific evidence suggested that infrasound produced by wind turbines even at extremely close distances was far too low to be felt as vibrations or pressure within the human body."