Proposed bill to allow people to sue over wind turbine damages

Wisconsin State Senator Frank Lasee says he plans to introduce legislation that would give families that have been physically, emotionally or financially harmed by industrial wind turbines the legal right to sue for damages.

As part of the measure, Lasee says his bill will enable anyone who is harmed by 500-foot industrial wind turbines the ability to sue the wind tower owner, as well as the owner of the land on which the tower is located, for loss of property value, cost of moving, medical expenses, pain and suffering, attorney fees, and any other loss as a result of the industrial wind turbine that is too close to their home or property.

"This bill makes it easier for families that have been hurt by industrial wind turbines to receive compensation for their losses," Senator Lasee said. "It is unconscionable for a family that has invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in their home that they have lived in for years to be forced to move because an industrial wind tower is built nearby. Or wish that they could move and just can't afford it."

The bill prohibits wind tower owners or the owners of the land they are sited on, located less than 1.5 miles from the residence of the plaintiff from using as a defense the fact that the wind tower obtained a certificate of public convenience and necessity from the Public Service Commission or was approved by a local government. He adds that this ability to sue was what eventually led to the correction of the stray voltage problem that was harming families and farm animals. Like wind tower damages, stray voltage was denied until proven in court.

"Despite personal testimony and scientific evidence that industrial wind turbines hurt people and their animals, the wind industry continues to push forward with plans to locate their 500 foot towers too close to people's homes," he noted.