Think about wind turbine setbacks
Paulding Progress | November 28, 2018 | progressnewspaper.org
A recent lawsuit filed in Paulding County alleges that wind turbine setbacks are too restrictive here in Ohio. What they don’t want you to know is that wind turbine setbacks are being increased in many counties, states and countries as we learn more and more about health and safety risks.
Those setbacks are in place to ensure safety for those living around industrial wind turbines and even at its present form, does not completely protect Ohio’s rural residents. Blade failure is one of the most common, twice in Van Wert County, the last time not even reported by news media. Studies have found that pieces of failing blades can be thrown over 1,800 feet. Now our protection is just at 1,125 feet, measured from a property line. The lawsuit’s plaintiffs, as well as many wind energy companies, want them even closer to your home and measured from your home’s foundation.
Industrial wind turbines are getting taller and taller destroying our rural landscapes and our farmland. This lawsuit and HB 114 wants to not only put turbines closer to your home but also rob non-participating landowners of their property rights. Should setbacks be lessened they want to measure from your home’s foundation, not from your property line. This could prevent you from using your property the way you wish. Termed “trespass zoning” it means that you would not give your permission nor receive compensation for the use of your own property.
Fire is also a problem and has occurred in many areas consuming acres and acres of land. For some, health issues from noise, flicker, sound below our hearing capabilities, even vibration can occur. All have been proven to affect human health.?Why the lawsuit? Wind energy companies want to put out more and more turbines in closer proximity and some landowners want to enrich their pockets should a turbine be placed on their land. The factor comes down to just one thing – Money.
You may hear someone say that they have a right to do with their property as they wish by signing a wind turbine lease. If you have read the contracts these landowners sign you would soon realize they have lost many of the rights to their own land and signed away the right of their neighbors for a peaceful and quiet existence, our reason for living in the country in the first place.?Take time to research the inefficiency of wind energy and its cost to Ohio’s rural residents before we all lose our quality of life. Wind does not blow all the time, nor does it reduce the amount of fossil fuels needed if you want a reliable energy source. Wind energy companies have made inroads into our communities due to politics and government handouts.?Also remember that transportation is now a greater air polluter than electrical generation. And conservation of energy is still a way to improve our reliance on more and more electricity.
Jeannine Roediger
Van Wert
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2018/11/29/think-about-wind-turbine-setbacks/