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Cheryl Lindgren was excited when the three wind turbines down the road began turning in November, but within days her excitement turned to disbelief. The sound at her house, a half-mile or so away, wasn't what she had expected. As she sat reading in her quiet living room, she could detect a repetitive "whump, whump" coming from outside.
"I can feel this sound," she recalled thinking. "It's going right through me. I thought, 'Is this what's it's going to be like for the rest of my life?'"
Dedicated two months ago with great fanfare, the Fox Islands Wind Project is producing plenty of power, but also, a sense of shock among some neighbors. They say the noise, which varies with wind speed and direction, ranges from mildly annoying to so intrusive that it disturbs their sleep. And they say they lament losing the subtle silence they cherish living in the middle of Penobscot Bay -- the muffled crash of surf on the ledges and the whisper of falling snow [Tux Turkel, "Turbines Turn into Headache for Vinalhaven," Portland Press Herald, 2010.01.24].
Noise pollution can disrupt a community or an ecosystem, just as smog or chemicals dumped in groundwater can. Wind power will make some problems go away (like dependence on carbon-emitting fuel sources that will disappear within 1500 years... or 86 years... or less!). But, like any energy system, wind power will promote its own forms of entropy with which we will have to contend.
Perhaps this news from Maine will light a fire under the folks considering an initiated measure to restrict wind turbine locations.
"Wind power will make some problems go away (like dependence on carbon-emitting fuel sources that will disappear within 1500 years... or 86 years... or less!)."
ReplyDeleteSo why should the government makes us stop using the cheaper sources of energy now? Once the supplies of fossil fuels causes their prices to rise enough, other sources of energy will "naturally" become preferred. I thought you hippy types like doing things the natural way, and not artificially.
Perhaps we shold back off using "cheap" (i.e., cheap for the extractors and burners who don't pay the full cost of environmental damage) energy now for the same reason we shouldn't eat all the rations before the other folks climb in the lifeboat: we need to conserve those energy resources so our grandkids have more energy options. Some of us don't think counting on the Rapture is a sustainable energy policy.
ReplyDeleteThis shouldn't be a shock to you corey, didn't you judge enough policy debate rounds last year to know the damage that wind turbines cause? Granted, they don't lead to Nuke War - we'll, some students try to think they do - but there is a lot of arguments out there against them - that's why instead of wind turbines a lot of companies are looking at other options such as MARS (not the planet) check it out here http://www.magenn.com/
ReplyDelete"Perhaps we shold back off using "cheap" (i.e., cheap for the extractors and burners who don't pay the full cost of environmental damage)"
ReplyDeleteAgain, the global warming myth?
This is a hard one to know; it is hoped that enough data is being collected to determine which species are impacted by this technology.
ReplyDeleteThe earthworm, the most influential species in Earth's history, is susceptable to the vibrations produced by concentrations of wind farms:
http://m.npr.org/story/121426659
Yeah, offshore wind farms producing more interference for marine mammals can't be good, either.
Interesting article on magnetism, T.
Hey, TD, BB doesn't see my 8330. Any hints?
ReplyDeleteIt's "penis,". Steve;
ReplyDeleteRobin Williams said it best, "God gave men two heads, but only enough blood to run one at a time."
Cory seems to think you're harmless. Maybe you and I should get together for coffee.
I'm stuck in this stupid state for at least two more weeks. Elkton, actually.
605-484-7288
Larry,
ReplyDeleteSo you hate South Dakota has much as Cory.