There is evidence that turbine syndrome exists 

I would like to respond to last week’s letters commenting on my letter alerting Jamestowners to the potential suffering associated with living near a wind turbine such as the one proposed for Taylor’s Point. I did not include the sources of the studies that I had cited in order to minimize the length of my letter.

To answer the questions about the sources of my information, I am providing the following for those readers wishing to study the problem for themselves, and make their own judgments regarding whether there are potential illnesses associated with living near a wind turbine.

“Wind Turbine Syndrome: A Report on a Natural Experiment,” by Dr. Nina Pierpoint, a pediatrician who was trained at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She has a Ph.D. in population biology. In my research, I found that criticism of Dr. Pierpoint’s book came mainly from the Checks and Balances Project, an anti-fossil-fuel lobbying group based in Washington, D.C.

“The Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society” has a wealth of information regarding wind turbines and health hazards, including the following:

• “Properly interpreting the epidemiologic evidence about the health effects of industrial wind turbines on nearby residents,” by Carl V Phillips, published August 2011. This study reports there is overwhelming evidence that wind turbines cause serious health problems to nearby residents, usually stress-disorder-type diseases, at a nontrivial rate. The bulk of the evidence takes the form of thousands of adverse event reports.

• “Toward a case definition of adverse health effects in the environs of industrial wind turbines: facilitating a clinical diagnosis,” by Robert Y. McMurtry, published August 2011. This study states that internationally, there are reports of adverse health effects in the environs of industrial wind turbines. There was multidisciplinary confi rmation of the key characteristics of the effects at the first international symposium on the subject. The symptoms being reported are consistent internationally and are characterized by crossover findings or a predictable appearance of signs and symptoms present with exposure to a turbine’s sound energy, and amelioration when the exposure ceases.

• “Industrial wind turbine development and loss of social justice?” by Carmen M.E. Krogh, published August 2011. This article explores the loss of social justice reported by individuals living in the environs of industrial wind turbines. References indicate that some individuals residing in proximity to a turbine’s facilities experience adverse health effects. These adverse health effects are severe enough that some families have abandoned their homes.

These are but a few of the articles that I found concerning the documentation the fact that living near a wind turbine can be hazardous to your health. So instead of ignoring facts and summarily dismissing these health concerns as nonsense, one needs to study the facts and make an informed decision on the risks of living near a wind turbine.

Hugh A. Murphy
Stern Street
Jamestown