February 15, 2013
Nevada

Nevada Supreme Court declares wind turbine a nuisance

By Cy Ryan | Feb 14, 2013 | www.lasvegassun.com

CARSON CITY – Building a 75-foot-tall wind turbine adjacent to a quiet subdivision is a nuisance because, in part, it ruins the scenery and creates noise, the Nevada Supreme Court has ruled.

The court, in a decision by Justice Jim Hardesty, said the turbine would also cause “shadow flicker,” an alternating pattern of light and dark shadows occurring when the blades rotate in the sun.

Rick Sowers wanted the windmill to supply energy to his home in the Washoe Valley. But the Forest Hills subdivision and residents Ann and Karl Hill filed suit and secured an injunction from Washoe District Court Judge Brent Adams.

The court quoted the law that a nuisance “is anything which is injurious to health, or indecent and offensive to the senses, or an obstruction to the free use of property, so as to interfere with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property.”

While stopping construction of the turbine, it noted that, “We do not believe that wind turbines are severe interferences in all circumstances…”

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2013/02/15/nevada-supreme-court-declares-wind-turbine-a-nuisance/