Wind may be ‘free,’ but there are costs
Bennington Banner | August 23, 2013 | www.benningtonbanner.com
Bennington Banner | August 23, 2013 | www.benningtonbanner.com
An important letter was published by the Banner on Aug. 15, from several families in northern Vermont who live near the mammoth wind turbines at Lowell and Sheffield. Although I strongly support efforts to convert to energy sources other than fossil, I have been following the serious problems that families are enduring from the noise and powerful vibrations set off by these huge wind towers, far taller than the Bennington Battle Monument.
Wind energy may be “free” but it is clear now that this freedom involves some profound costs. People who live within a few miles of the wind turbines report suffering several maladies, from sleeplessness and heart palpitations to persistent noise that they say resembles a jet plane taking off but it never takes off.
State agencies and Gov. Peter Shumlin in particular have appeared to be insensitive to these concerns. Not only are these families suffering physically but they are also impacted financially because their homes are unsalable. Most of those who signed the recent letter pointed out how long they have resided in their homes.
Similar situations have become evident at locations of other huge wind turbine “farms.” Nearby, families – including some in Readsboro – living within a few miles of the fifteen massive towers of the Hoosac Wind project just south of the Vermont border, north of North Adams, are also suffering the same physical and financial woes.
In the rush to convert to energy sources other than fossil, families cannot just be considered expendable. More understanding and more open dialogue are needed to focus on these serious concerns.
TYLER RESCH
Shaftsbury
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2013/08/23/wind-may-be-free-but-there-are-costs/