The State of Wisconsin Task Force on Wind Siting Reform is reviewing guidelines for the siting of utility-scale wind energy facilities, including development of a model wind ordinance. Noise experts Richard James (E-Coustic Solutions) and George Kamperman (Kamperman Associates, Inc.) submitted comments to the task force. The deadline for comments was December 14, 2007. The Wisconsin draft model wind ordinance can be accessed at http://www.windaction.org/documents/13190.

Mr. Sean Cox presented evidence at the Resource Management Act hearing for the Te Uku wind farm which directly countered the economic case for the wind farm, its carbon emissions justification, the available wind resource at Te Uku, adverse noise and health effects, and challenged the expertise of some of wind developer Wel's consultants. When completed, Wel counsel Simon Berry asked that the hearing be adjourned to permit the developer time to respond to Mr. Cox's submission. An excerpt of Mr. Cox's testimony is included below. The full transcript can be accessed by clicking on one of the two links provided.

This compelling message appeared in an advertisement run in the October 25, 2007 issue of the Times-Journal newspaper in Wisconsin. A .pdf copy of the ad can be accessed by clicking on the below link. IWA has authenticated this ad. It was written by Don Bangart of Chilton, Wisconsin following a 2 hour interview with a landowner in Northeast Fond du Lac County. The landowner, who wishes to remain anonymous, approved the text for publication.

This paper, presented at NOISE-CON 2007, explains methods of communicating the noise effects of wind farms to decision-makers and the general public. Below is the abstract of the paper. The full document can be accessed by clicking on the link at the bottom of this page.

In my opinion [Mars Hill] is some of the prettiest acreage in Aroostook and I was very happy to come home to it, in fact…it was my dream. ... The turbines however, have changed most of that as the land that was once known for its remote nature, wildlife and solitude is now home to an industrial power plant. For anyone to say that a wind turbine facility has a low impact on the local environment… is irresponsible. Yet the industry and the media surrounding it seem insistent on making light of the problems that exist. The problems are real and they are hurting families emotionally, physically and economically. ...

This letter was sent to the Steuben County (NY) IDA in response to UPC Wind's decision to hire outside contractors and construction workers to erect the Cohocton Wind facility.

Julian and Jane Davis reside on a farm in the Fens in Lincolnshire England. Shortly following the construction of a wind farm within 1000 meters of their home they had started to hear the noise of the turbines. This important paper, presented at the Wind Turbine Noise conference Sep 20-21, 2007, in Lyon, France, documents the “devastating effects of wind turbine noise pollution when wind farms are sited too close to homes or otherwise inappropriately sited.”

This paper was presented at the 2nd international meeting on Wind Turbine Noise held in Lyon, France, September 20 - 21, 2007. The authors, Hilkat Soysal and Oguz Soysal are with the Department of Physics and Engineering at Frostburg State University in Frostburg, MD.

The Cape Cod Commission (CCC) has asserted that the Cape Wind energy project qualifies as a Development of Regional Impact (DRI) under Section 12(i) and 13(b) of the Cape Cod Commission Act. The CCC staff report can be accessed from this page.

This paper on Infrasound and Low Frequency Noise Dose Responses, was presented at the Inter-Noise 2007 conference held in Istanbul, Turkey August 28-31, 2007. The authors are Mariana Alves-Pereira and Nuno A. A. Castelo Branco of the Erisa-Universidade Lusofona, Lisbon, Portugal and the Center of Human Performance, Alverca, Portugal.