Content © Stopwoodlanewindfarm 2008 - 2011
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Noise - Davis family reach out of court settlement in long running noise case. |
Another wind farm, another set of noise problems.
Or consider the case of Billy Armstrong, a plumbing and heating engineer who lives in County Durham, England. Armstrong must endure the noise from several wind turbines that were recently installed 800 yards from his home. Armstrong says that he is frequently awakened by the noise from the turbines, particularly during the summer months. What is his advice for other rural landowners facing the prospect of wind turbines being built near their homes? His reply: “Fight them. Don’t let them do it.”
Its not just in the UK that there is a problem
Canada - Call for stricter rules to protect people from adverse effects of noise. Link
Australia -URGENT research should be undertaken into the potentially damaging health effects of wind farms on nearby residents, says a landmark Senate report released yesterday. Link
Nov 2011 - Davis noise hearing - Confidential out of Court Settlement agreed.
Shortly before the case was to resume an announcement was made that an out of court settlement had been reached. A condition of the settlement was that neither party would disclose any details of the agreement reached.
The couple moved out of Grays Farm in Deeping St Nicholas, near Spalding, Lincolnshire, in December 2006 six months after the eight-turbine wind farm began operating about half a mile from their home. It has taken almost exactly 5 years to reach this stage.
The down wind effect
Problems with noise from turbines are far more likely to arise for those living downwind of the turbines.
A resident near to Lissett who is complaining of noise lives downwind, the Davis family home is downwind and complaints at Rusholme are from somebody who lives downwind.
In the Woodlane proposal people in Gateforth are most at risk because they are downwind.
A caravan park near to Knabbs Ridge is downwind - residents have complained about the noise. With the Bishopwood proposal the caravans at Scalm Park could be subject to the similar problems because they would be downwind.
In Cumbria a family living near a wind farm in Askam (7 turbines, 62.5m tall) describe the noise as ‘a washing machine that’s gone wrong. Its whooshing drumming just goes on and on, it’s torture’ and ‘it is an audio version of Chinese Water Torture. The noise is such that it is felt as much as heard’
Wind turbine noise can be highly disturbing even if it isn’t very loud.
ETSU R 97, the noise rules for wind farms do not provide adequate protection for people living close to turbines.
In this case the noise heard in the affected home was amplitude modulated.
This problem has arisen at other wind farms. The cause is not fully understood. Noise models used for turbines are not able to accurately predict the level of such noise and the intensity, but when it does occur it can cause very high levels of annoyance.
How else could people be forced to leave their homes and have to resort to the courts to get a solution? The problem is not unique to the UK.
A simple condition to limit the permitted levels of such noise is all that is required to protect people. It is not satisfactory that the only way people can get a resolution it to take a wind farm developer to court.
July 2011 - Davis reaches High Court - Years after noise forced them to leave their home.
After years of seeking a resolution to the problem the case reached the High Court in July 2010. The case ran during July and was then adjourned until November.
The Davis family maintained that the noise is sometimes so severe that they cannot sleep in their home. They have moved out and have been advised by Estate Agents that their property is un-saleable. The landowner and wind farm operator says they have become “unduly sensitive “ to the noise. The farmer who lives a similar distance from the nearest turbine says he never hears them in his home. A statement for the defence was that it was “reasonable” for the wind farm operators to continue to operate an enterprise “in which they have substantial commercial interests while continuing to seek to address the claimants’ concerns about adverse impact.”
Press reports - Spalding Guardian
Comment about the case by EPAW - with links to other reports
For further details about the noise regulations and why they fail to protect people see here.
One of the first papers to report on the outcome. Read report here.
Comments from an International Acoustics Journal. Read the report.
Report and comments from readers - many showing no sympathy or understanding of the impact that turbine noise can have on peoples lives.
Every body has to share the burden of "civilization" that we currently enjoy, whether it be city life or rural life each has it's problems. These people in Deeping St. Nicholas should be prepared to suffer some of the pain. Read the report and comments.
At another wind farm the developer has attempted to buy off a pensioner who lives close to the site. The resident had complained about noise and the developer wanted to add more turbines. Read the report.
