Wind turbines are popping up in rural communities around the world, including Canada, in the hope that they will reduce reliance on coal and other sources for power. Currently, there are about 1,500 turbines across Canada and there are plans to build another 1,000 to 1,500 in the next year. But some residents who live near wind farms complain the turbines cause a number of adverse health effects, such as crippling headaches, nose bleeds and a constant ringing in the ears. ..."I had problems with my heart, with my eyes, my digestive system," Marshall told CTV News. "It traumatizes your whole body."

Homeowners in Aberdeenshire hoping to install domestic wind turbines in built-up areas are likely to have their applications rejected unless manufacturers provide the council with information detailing their impact, a councillor warned yesterday. Garioch area committee chairman Martin Kitts-Hayes made the comment following the "very reluctant rejection" of proposals to erect a turbine at a home at Kinmuck, near Inverurie. The committee is now planning to write a letter to companies who make the machinery, urging them to provide facts and figures on expected noise levels.

Forty pages of health and safety information surrounding the proposed wind turbine project in town may never have been created had it not been for some anxious residents. Ron Pitt, chairman for the health and safety subcommittee that researched and wrote the report, said interested and concerned residents, including members of the group Citizens Wind Watch, should be credited for pushing forward the process of learning more about wind turbines and the issues that surround them. ...Mr. Russo said the recent health and safety report spelled a certain end to the likelihood the turbine would be constructed at the high school.

Town officials have refused to let residents see a report evaluating the noise study done for Horse Creek Wind Farm. The officials claim the report, by Cavanaugh Tocci Associates, an acoustic engineering firm in Sudbury, Mass., is too complicated and preliminary to be released. Residents argue that the original noise study, done by consultant CH2MHill for Iberdrola, also was complicated, but that there are residents with acoustic expertise.

Government departments responsible for the increase in onshore wind turbines are using staff from energy companies to advise them on noise and safety issues. Concerns have been raised that the potential conflict of interest, denied by the civil servants, could result in the Government making policy decisions which directly benefit turbine manufacturers and energy companies. Guidance on noise issues was sent to planning inspectors as a result of Government meetings which in one case were chaired by a representative of RWE npower.

Many recent DailyTech stories have focused on the world's growing reliance on wind power, along with efforts to reduce the noise pollution resulting from the large farms. However, a new study suggests that living near a wind farm can cause serious health problems; including causes sleep disorders, difficulty with equilibrium, migraine headaches, panic attacks, and other issues.

If wind energy converters are located anywhere near a residential area, they must never become too noisy even in high winds. Most such power units try to go easy on their neighbors' ears, but even the most careful design cannot prevent noise from arising at times: One source is the motion of the rotor blades, another is the cogwheels that produce vibrations in the gearbox. These are relayed to the tower of the wind turbine, where they are emitted across a wide area - and what the residents hear is a humming noise. ...In a joint project with colleagues from Schirmer GmbH, ESM Energie- and Schwingungstechnik Mitsch GmbH and the Dr. Ziegler engineering office, IWU researchers have developed an active damping system for wind turbines. The project is being funded by the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt.

Perth councillors drew public applause tonight when they denied permission for a new city building to site wind-turbine power generators on its roof. The three bright-red vertical turbines would have reached 9m above the roof of a five-storey building under construction on the southern side of Adelaide Tce, with frontages to Terrrace Rd and Victoria Ave. Neighbours in surrounding high-rise apartments had complained that the Dutch-designed turbines would create a visual eyesore and unnecessary noise, affecting the values of their properties.

Her family suffered severe sleep deprivation and were forced to move out to a rented house in Spalding. She said: "This result is excellent for everybody who has had their lives devastated by noise, both audible and low frequency, from wind farms. "I think it's a very fair result and the tribunal was well aware it was being asked to make a national precedent. "This is one battle won but there's still the rest of the war to go."

A couple have won their fight to lower the council tax banding on their property, which dropped in value after wind turbines were built nearby. Julian and Jane Davis, along with their daughter Emily, had to endure endless sleepless nights after a wind farm, with turbines 100 metres high, was built less than 900 metres away from their home. In May 2007, the family abandoned their Deeping St Nicholas home and rented a property in Spalding five miles away. However, the house became un-sellable because of the problems created by the turbines.

A couple who say their home has been blighted by noise from a wind farm have won a 20% reduction in council tax because the house's value has dropped. ...Although investigators sent by the Lincolnshire Valuation Tribunal to measure noise levels did not find any problems, the panel conceded the construction of the windfarm "had had a significant detrimental effect on the appellants' quiet enjoyment of their properties. "The tribunal therefore found that the nuisance caused by the wind farm was real and not imagined and it would have had some effect upon the potential sale price of the appeal dwellings."

"It makes a terrible air raid noise," says Debbie Behrens, about the high-pitched whine made by the turbine. "It's driving me crazy." What's worse, is that Debbie and her son Lance both say that high-pitched hum is now causing them problems, physically. "You occasionally have the dizziness," explains Lance, "The ringing in the ears, I've never experienced the ringing in the ears." It turns out, there is a documented health condition associated with the noise generated by some windmills called: Wind turbine Syndrome. Symptoms include headaches, dizziness, nausea and ringing in the ears -- known as tinnitus.

A Springhill Township man concerned that his sound recording equipment may be rendered useless if a proposed wind turbine project is built near his home brought his concerns Tuesday to the Fayette County commissioners. Thomas John Bozek III, who lives on Wymps Gap Road, asked the commissioners to "consider the people the proposed project is going to affect." "I'm asking you to protect my investment, my property and my life. All I want to do is be left alone and play my music," Bozek said.

Wendy Brock says the family have been suffering from both loud noise and low-frequency sound that comes up through the floor of their house, causing weeks on end of sleepless nights. Wellington consultant engineer John Third said wind turbines created a broad and complex spectrum of noise. The problem was beyond the expertise of acoustic engineers, and the health effects were a matter for audiologists, not engineers, he said.

At a lively meeting in which the Princes contingent were often heckled and saw one couple walk out, objections centred around increased noise and health and safety issues. Paul Jackson, general manager of the Princes plant, said the turbine would reduce the firm's energy costs. He said: "We need to be as competitive as we can in what can be a very aggressive and competitive market.

Concern about noise impact on neighbors again delayed a vote to allow residential windmills in the Town of Ithaca. At a Monday night meeting, the Town Board voted 4-3 to send the law back to committee. Town Supervisor Herb Engman and board members Pat Leary and Bill Goodman voted against, hoping to get the law passed Monday. ...Board member Rich DePaolo called the change in the law a "loophole" that would potentially allow "the noisiest windmills in the quietest areas." "I think it applies the law unequally, based on where you live," DePaolo said.

An Ashhurst family have been asked to record noise from wind turbines they say are making life a misery. The Brock family, who have complained about loud noise and low-frequency sound from Meridian Energy's Te Apiti wind farm since 2004, say Meridian has now sent them a recorder and microphone to use on days the turbines are especially noisy. Wendy Brock said the recorder would catch the roar of the turbines during strong easterlies, but would not register the low-frequency sound that sometimes wrecked her family's sleep for weeks on end.

The Stulls first filed a lawsuit in April, but according to Jill Stull, after Gamesa objected to their claims that the noise coming from those turbines has been more than a nuisance, it has impacted their health, they've refiled. Stull said this time they have an environmentalist and a sound engineer on board. While their problems are still the same, they hope the words from the experts carry a little more weight.

An energy company has pulled out of plans to build a wind farm in Rhondda due to concerns over noise. E.On and community group Arts Factory wanted to build the eight-turbine wind farm between the Rhondda Fach and Fawr, near Ferndale. But E.On said it was worried that the project could potentially pose a "noise nuisance" to nearby homes. Arts Factory said it was looking for a new partner so that it could continue with the scheme.

A family forced to move home because of the noise generated by a nearby wind turbine have given evidence to the House of Lords. Jane and Julian Davis were plagued by sleepless nights when they lived close to the wind farm at Deeping St Nicholas and eventually moved out. They were recently told that their house was unmarketable and now live in Spalding. They documented their wind turbine nightmare and sent evidence to the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee, which is investigating the economics of renewable energy.