The neighbors gathered in Dan and Tina FitzGerald's kitchen had a list of grievances about five wind turbines proposed for the mountain in his backyard. The list began with this: A fear their voices will not be listened to. "We feel there is a tremendous amount of money stacked up against us," said Darlene Ross, who would have a view of the turbines from her home on Arrowhead Lake.

P.E.I.'s environment minister says he plans to eventually introduce new laws to limit nuisance noise. The move comes after the provincial department received complaints from people who live near wind turbines and a motocross park. Environment Minister Richard Brown said he's a strong believer in people being able to enjoy the peace and quiet of their homes.

To the champions of wind power, the resistance is benighted and intolerable. "In a state that prides itself on its progressive renewable standards," says Eric Callisto, chairperson of Wisconsin's Public Service Commission, "getting our wind resources stymied at the local level is not acceptable." But to wind power critics, those restrictive local ordinances are enlightened and appropriate. Cartoonist Lynda Barry, a fixture in the Reader for years and now a Wisconsin resident, says she used to support wind power but believes its partisans have shut their eyes and ears to its victims, to people suffering physical ailments caused by living near the turbines.

Families who live on a portion of East Ridge Road and Mountain Road on the backside of Mars Hill say, at times over the past two and a half years, they've lived with unbearable noise. They feel their complaints have been ignored. Read and watch their story as reported by WLBZ Channel 2 in Maine.

But as wind farms proliferate, so do complaints about them. While some people experience no negative effects whatsoever, others have even resorted to leaving their homes to get away from the windmills they claim are making them sick. While research into the problem is lacking, some who live near the big turbines cite a raft of adverse health effects, including severe headaches, insomnia, dizziness, ringing in the ears, exhaustion, and even blood pressure and heart problems.

High-school teacher Sandy MacLeod is near tears as she reaches into her coat pocket and pulls out a plastic bag filled with a dozen or so orange earplugs. "I wear these every single night," she says, though occasionally she'll "switch to headphones" to muffle the sound of the wind turbine near her home. "But it doesn't matter. The noise still gets into your ears." And, she insists, it's making her sick.

The Town of Lyme wants the state Department of Environmental Conservation to consider the possibility that noise from Galloo Island Wind Farm could annoy town residents on Point Peninsula. "Whereas the Impact Statement declares the noise generated by this project poses no significant noise impact, the Town of Lyme respectfully submits this letter expressing its concern to the contrary," states an April 29 letter from the town to DEC and the town of Hounsfield.

For Sandy MacLeod and a group of 11 neighbours living in the Ripley industrial wind turbine project, it's been a very long 18 months. They just want the healthy home environment they had enjoyed for some three to 32 years returned. "We just want it to be over," said MacLeod. The simple request goes out to the companies Acciona and Suncor that own the project and to the provincial Liberal government who approved the operating standards.

About eight months ago, Melissa Smedema got wind of We Energy's plans to set up a 90-turbine wind farm in the Columbia County towns of Scott and Randolph. She said she went door to door in Wisconsin communities where wind farms already exist, and heard stories of noise, vibrations, headaches, dizziness and sleepless nights.

Libertyville officials are investigating complaints about noise generated by a 120-foot-tall wind turbine at a local business. The concerns arose just a few days before this Friday's planned ribbon-cutting ceremony for Aldridge Electric's turbine. The device was installed earlier this month to generate cleaner energy for the business, an electrical contracting firm at 844 E. Rockland Road.

Meridian Energy's new wind farm near Wellington will be switched on officially today, but is already generating noise complaints from nearby residents. "It's kind of a humming sound, not a swish-swish or a thump-thump," Makara resident Deb Compton said. The 62-turbine West Wind project has been taking shape southwest of Makara township since September 2007.

Black Creek Township residents' concerns weren't eased by testimony Thursday from a wind power company that plans to construct 22 turbines on the Buck Mountain ridge. ...Resident Edward Vergari said the township should collect more information and mandate that all applicable state, county and local permits be secured by Penn Wind prior to zoning approval.

The fight to keep wind farms out of southern Lambton County gathered ammunition this week with the release of a survey that found some people who live near the big turbines suffer serious health problems. ...The survey should grab the attention of government lawmakers, says Ann Towell, a resident in Dawn-Euphemia opposing a 35-turbine wind farm proposed for her township.

The fight to keep wind farms out of southern Lambton County gathered ammunition this week with the release of a survey that found some people who live near the big turbines suffer serious health problems. Fifty-three of 76 residents surveyed, primarily in the Kincardine area, said they suffer from headaches, sleep disturbance and depression. They said the wind turbines are having a significant negative impact on their lives.

Tom Lewis, planning and environment manager with IPC Energy, said his company takes the results of a Wind Concerns Ontario survey seriously, but pointed to an earlier survey that found an overwhelming number of Ontarians are in favour of wind energy. "I think there is a small number of people susceptible to health problems and I certainly empathize with them," Lewis said.

In an effort to make the Naples Town Board aware of the possible impact of Prattsburgh's wind turbines, two local residents were invited to present information about the Cohocton and Prattsburgh wind farms to the board during its April 13 meeting. The reports from Hal Graham and John Servo raised perennial questions about the hazards of wind turbines and the abrogation of property rights.

More people are coming forward saying they're experiencing sleep problems, headaches, and heart palpitations caused by living near windmills. ...The turbines don't appear to affect everyone equally and it is not clear what causes the health problems in some people.

As wind-power generation has ramped up, so have concerns about the health effects of living near wind farms. Although major environmental groups such as Greenpeace and the National Resources Defense Council have voiced strong support for wind power, opposition from a few grassroots anti-wind power groups potentially could hinder development in populated areas.

A group of concerned citizens in the Merigomish area have launched an investigation into the information Shear Wind has provided to the province as part of its environmental assessment.

Prolonged negotiations between the small Makara community and the electricity giant Meridian Energy have failed to reach agreement on a central issue: noise. The two sides have been having monthly meetings for a year and a half.