Wind Concerns Ontario submitted these comments to the Green Energy Approvals section of the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (MOECC), following testimony from acoustics experts at the appeal of the White Pines wind power project. In the letter (provided below and attached to this page), WCO requests that the MOECC review the testimony of the witnesses, specifically that Ontario’s noise regulations are inadequate to protect health, and to apply the information to the current review of noise regulations for wind turbines underway in the province. The White Pines Wind Project, if built, will consist of 29 wind turbines with a nameplate capacity of 59.45 megawatts (MW) situated in within the ward of South Marysburgh and a small portion of Athol, Prince Edward County, Ontario. For more information pertaining to the White Pines wind application appeal before the Ontario Environmental Review Tribunal, see this website - https://appec.wordpress.com/
Impact on People
Noise
Ontario
The WindAction Group (www.windAction.org)
Facts, analysis, exposure to industrial wind energy's real impacts
This report by the Fraser Institute finds that Ontario’s Green Energy Act and its induced inefficiencies, have caused electricity prices to increase dramatically —now the highest in Canada—have cost the province an estimated 74,881 manufacturing jobs since the 2008 recession. High electricity prices are threatening industrial competitiveness, in particular that of the manufacturing sector for which electricity is a major input cost. The executive summary is provided below. The full report can be accessed by selecting the links on this page.
In this important decision by the Ontario Environmental Review Tribune, the Tribune officially revokes Wpd Canada's permit to install eight 137-meter (450 feet) tall wind turbines in close proximity to the Collingwood Regional Airport and a private air field owned by Kevin and Gail Elwood. In its October 2016 decision, the ERT had determined that the appellants met the test that showed there would be harm to human health. The ERT also agreed that irreversible harm to the natural environment, specifically to bats, warranted further investigation. Wpd Canada was granted an opportunity to show that mitigation could resolve the concerns. The ERT in this decision held that the risk to human health and safety was unacceptable. A portion of the decision is provided below (paragraphs 15-20) pertaining to the turbines impairing safe air travel. The full decision of the ERT can be found by clicking the links on this page.
In November 2014, Health Canada released the results of its $2.1 million “Wind Turbine Noise and Health Study.” Despite public anouncements from Health Canada that the raw data originating from the Study would be made available, the data continues to be inaccessible making it impossible to validate the conclusions drawn by Health Canada researchers. For example, HC found high levels of annoyance but concluded no association to turbine noise.
Dr. Robert Y McMurtry and Carmen M. E. Krogh published this response to commentary contained in the presentation of McCunney et al. McCunney et al. addressing wind turbine noise and the impacts on nearby residents. A portion of the response is provided below. The full response can be accessed by clicking the document links on this page.
In this open letter, Barbara Ashbee of Mulmur, Ontario, together with hundreds of other Ontarians, sent an open letter to Health Minister Jane Philpott, asking why Health Canada has not insisted wind energy corporations report citizen complaints about noise radiation.The letter, attached here, asks the minister to meet with Ms. Ashbee and representatives of citizens suffering from turbine noise radiations. An excerpt of the letter is provided below. The full letter can be accessed by clicking the links on this page.
The Ontario Environmental Review Tribunal released this decision partially granting an appeal of the Province's decision to approve the White Pines wind energy facility. The panel upheld the appeal because of the risk of serious and irreversible harm to the Little Brown Bat and Blanding’s Turtle. The White Pines wind facility, as proposed, consists of 29 wind turbines with a nameplate capacity of 59.45 megawatts (MW). The Project will be located within the ward of South Marysburgh and a small portion of Athol, Prince Edward County. The background details of the case before the Tribunal are provided below. The full decision can be accessed by clicking the links on this page.
Horizon Wind Inc. first proposed the controversial wind project in 2007 that would place 16 wind turbines at various locations in the south Neebing area of Thunder Bay. The project was first approved by the city council but with objections to some turbine locations. Legal actions by Horizon eventually paved the way for the project but not without continued objections by the residents. Due to delays, the feed-in-tariff contract signed with Ontario was canceled in 2014. The project is now officially off the books in Ontario. This denial document, issued on October 29, 2015, explains why.
With the proliferation of recent research and the rediscovery of earlier, until now largely ignored studies, infrasound and low frequency noise (LFN) can no longer be dismissed as irrelevant. This report shows why LFN must be given full consideration as a contributing cause of the distress of some of those people living near wind turbine installations. It also demonstrates why the Ontario and Canadian governments must pay attention to this research. The table of contents for the report is provided below. The full report can be accessed by clciking the links on this page.
Health Canada asked the Council of Canadian Academies to conduct an in-depth expert panel assessment. The Panel’s report presents findings on the acoustic characteristics of wind turbine noise; evidence on causal relationships between exposure to wind turbine noise and adverse health effects; knowledge gaps and further research; and promising practices to reduce adverse community response. The resulting report is evidence-based and does not espouse recommendations. Its purpose, rather, is to assess the scientific evidence on the question of wind turbine noise and human health in order to provide a foundation of knowledge to support governments, policy-makers, communities, and the industry. A brief summary of the study is provided below. The full report can be accessed at the links on this page.
Virginia Stewart Love, a member of Victims of Wind in Ontario, published this open letter in response to the recently released literature review by the Canadian Council of Academies CCA which found that annoyance can be caused by wind turbine noise – a clear adverse health effect. Ms. Love's full letter is posted below and can be accessed by clicking the link on this page.
This paper focuses on public concerns about real estate value loss in communities in the vicinity of wind turbines. The abstract of the paper and excerpt of the discussion are provided below. The full report can be accessed by clicking the links on this page.
This paper focuses on public concerns about real estate value loss in communities in the vicinity of wind turbines. There are some conflicting results in recent academic and non-academic literatures on the issue of property values in general—yet little has been studied about how residents near turbines view the value of their own properties. The abstract and portions of the conclusion of this paper can be found below. The full paper can be accessed by clicking the links on this page.
Canadian health professionals Roy D. Jeffery, MD, Carmen M.E. Krogh, BScPharm, and Brett Horner, BA, published this peer reviewed paper which examines current literature on the impact of wind turbine noise emissions and the impact on residents nearby. The introduction and conclusions of the paper are provided below. The full paper can be accessed by clicking on the links on the page.
The attached poster entitled ‘Wind Turbine Noise, Sleep Quality, and Symptoms of Inner Ear Problems’ was displayed by researchers Claire Paller, Phil Bigelow, Shannon Majowicz, Jane Law, and Tanya Christidis at a recent symposium in Toronto. The research indicates statistically significant results for sleep, vertigo and tinnitus. The Results and Discussion of the posted are excerpted below. The full poster can be accessed by clicking the link on this page. In addition to the poster, this page includes a link to the letter sent to residents in Ontario who were asked to participate in the study.
The Ontario Environmental Review Tribunal has permitted the appeal of the Ostrander Point Wind Energy Project to proceed on the grounds that serious and irreversible harm to the natural environment will occur if the project is built. The permit granted by the Director of Ontario's Ministry of the Environment was revoked. The overview of the decision is provided below. The full decision can be accessed by clicking on the link at the bottom of this page.
Alberta’s electricity grid is characterized as deregulated and thermally dependent with a growing number of wind power facilities. Using a model to simulate both the unit commitment and economic dispatch decisions of the system operator, the total net CO2 reductions that result from the addition of wind energy into a heavily fossil-fuel based grid are estimated, assuming that contingency reserves are provided by part-loaded natural-gas fired units. Increasing wind generation levels lead to increased CO2 levels from reserve energy production but total CO2 levels decline slightly.