This document authored by Acoustic Ecology Institute provides a comprehensive overview of noise issues pertaining to utility-scale wind energy development. This AEI Special Report will be continually updated, incorporating new research, more recent reports, and suggestions/comments from readers. Planned topics to be added over time include: effects of noise on wildlife and habitat, offshore wind energy, and the health effects of chronic noise exposure.

This important collaborative document describes the current research on wind energy and the assessment of impacts on nocturnally active birds and bats.

This compilation of scientific reports provides compelling evidence of significant bird mortality at windfarms. Its cumulative effect with other causes of bird deaths may bring many species to extinction - especially as captivity-bred specimens will be lacking turbine-free habitats where they can be released safely.

In this letter to residents of Burke, NY, Dr. Nina Pierpont briefly discusses her findings of health impacts on families living in proximity to industrial-scale wind turbines.

This document prepared by Gamesa contains the specifications for building access roads to service the wind facility as well as the platform areas where each turbine will be sited. Wind developers often cite in their marketing literature that access roads will be 16-feet in width following construction. According to the document, the minimum width of an access road between wind turbines must be 10 meters (33-feet). This width does not include side slopes or additional clearing for culverts.

In this report we discuss some recent studies that have occurred in the United States since our previous work [2, 3]. The key objectives of these studies were to quantify the physical impacts and costs of wind generation on grid operations and the associated costs. Examples of these costs are (a) committing unneeded generation, (b) allocating more load-following capability to account for wind variability, and (c) allocating more regulation capacity. These are referred to as “ancillary service” costs, and are based on the physical system and operating characteristics and procedures. This topic is covered in more detail by Zavadil et al. [4].

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.

This short report discusses the impact of insect debris build-up on turbine blades and the resulting reduction in performance. Questions remain regarding how the blades are cleaned, whether detergents or chemicals are used in cleaning, the source of water to be used during the process, and whether the waste water is treated.

International Experience With Implementing Wind Energy examines the relative costs, advantages and disadvantages of wind generation. In addition, the report explores infrastructure issues, public attitudes toward wind development, and the various policy instruments used to support the development of wind energy in countries that are leaders in implementing wind energy.