February 19, 2016
Wisconsin

Winds of change for Brown County?

By Jordan Lamers | 02/18 2016 | www.wearegreenbay.com

The debate over wind turbines turned last night when a Brown County Supervisor proposed changing the way the county is investigating their impact, and easing the concerns of those who live next to wind turbines.

“The mission of the Board of Health is to protect the health of the citizens of Brown County,” said Richard Schadewald, a Board of Health member.

But the board’s focus on wind turbines and their impact on people’s health is being shut down.

On Tuesday we told you about the claims some people have that these large turbines create health hazards. For over a year the county Board of Health has been working to get answers.

“In the absence of sufficient scientific evidence, I can not declare wind turbines to be a human health hazard,” said Health Director, Chua Xiong at a board meeting about two months ago.

Now, county board Supervisor Erik Hoyer wants the Board of Health to focus on other issues. He’s proposing a new plan that would create a group of supervisors, citizens, physicians and scientists working together on this issue.

But people against the turbines are concerned that this move will slow down the process to getting to a solution. This is something Brown County doesn’t disagree with, but they see bigger issues.

“This issue has overwhelmed out county Board of Health and we have a lot of different issues that are important to the health of our citizenry,” said Hoyer. “These issues around the wind turbine are one of them, but their not the only one.”

He says issues like lead in the water, vaccines, and preparations for the Zika Virus should be on the mind of the Board of Health, and by creating this group, he claims “we’re able to better address the citizens who are impacted by the wind turbines.”

This debate is not going away, and finding a solution won’t be easy coming. Hoyer’s plan will go to committee for study, but it may be months before the next step is taken.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2016/02/19/winds-of-change-for-brown-county/