The shore is alive with the sound of turbines

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To the Editor:

Re “For Those Living Nearby, That Miserable Hum of Clean Energy” (front page, Oct. 6):

My husband and I spent a week on the island of Vinalhaven in Maine in August, within sight and sound of the three giant wind turbines. Not only are they visually disturbing in the otherwise pristine landscape, but the ebb and flow of sound is also more reminiscent of a jet plane than the woods of Maine.

After we spent two days driving, and an hour and a half on the ferry, to get away from the hustle and bustle of New York, it was quite ironic to find our rental house located across from the intermittently noisy power plant.

I can only imagine the effect of the proposed Long Island-New York City offshore wind project. Although the giant turbines are to be 13 to 15 miles off the shore of Long Island, I would guess that any endangered fish swimming above the proposed location on the Atlantic’s outer continental shelf might just call it quits altogether when they hear the roar of the turbines.

Ennid Berger
Glen Cove, N.Y., Oct. 6, 2010

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To the Editor:

The number of people complaining about noise from wind turbines is “small but growing” because the number of people who live near industrial-scale wind turbines is small but growing. In addition, leases and neighbor easements often include “gag orders” against publicizing complaints.

The Acoustic Ecology Institute notes as well that local news coverage of the issue may be wanting and that social and economic constraints can keep people from going public.

And a growing number of doctors and other scientists are taking the health effects seriously, even for what you call the “most extreme claims.”

The solution is simple: adequate distance from homes. The affected Vinalhaven residents live within one mile of the turbines. Most independent researchers suggest two kilometers, or 1.24 miles, as a minimum.

Eric Rosenbloom
President, National Wind Watch
Oct. 6, 2010

Source: nytimes.com

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