Wind turbines have too many negatives

Credit:  South County Independent, www.scindependent.com 11 March 2010

It is puzzling that there have not been more outcries over the proposal to put wind turbines in Narragansett, especially since they would be flanking Scarborough State Beach, one of the town’s, and the state’s, most valuable assets. This is such a bad idea for so many reasons.

First and foremost, the huge towers and their propellers would be a blight on the landscape and the seascape, ruining a day at the beach or a drive down Ocean Road. It doesn’t matter who owns the property, this is not the place for these monstrosities. If you don’t know just how ugly they are, or how they dominate the view for miles, you haven’t been to Portsmouth lately or driven past New England Institute of Technology on Route 95.

Devaluing state, town and private property around the area’s most popular beach is certainly another reason to abandon this plan. So is the fact that, as most taxpayers know, this will only wind up putting money into politicians’ pockets and, in the end, little or no savings will be seen on utility bills. That’s the sad way government works, or fails to work, these days.

Then there is the health issue. The Wall Street Journal recently published a piece by Robert Bryce, managing editor of the Energy Tribune and author of the forthcoming book, “Power Hungry: The Myths of Green Energy and the Real Fuels of the Future.” In the article Bryce reports that people living near wind turbines complain that the noise causes serious sleep deprivation as well as headaches and vertigo. A pediatrician studying 36 people in diverse locations including the United States, Canada, England, Ireland and Italy said that the subjects found relief only after relocating at least five miles from a wind turbine.

Lawsuits are pending in Maine, Pennsylvania and New Zealand. Vermont has a pending bill that would require all wind turbines be located no closer than 1.25 miles from a residence, according to Bryce. I think it’s pretty certain that, should this project go forward, the town of Narragansett and the state of Rhode Island also will be facing lawsuits.

This is a quality-of-life issue and we have to ask, is it worth it? Going green is a good idea, but not if we are hurting people and our land. This will not change our lives for the better, but instead take away things that we hold dear. Wind turbines are a boondoggle that will come back to haunt town and state officials.

Brian Beaulieu

Narragansett

Tags: Wind power, Wind energy

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