Huron County health investigation: most bothered by wind turbine noise

Home in Huron County: Finally, tracking wind turbine noise complaints — the government isn’t doing it [Photo Gary Moon]
July 31, 2018
The Huron County Health Unit has released an interim report on its public health investigation into wind turbine effects, which was launched earlier this year.
The investigation, approved by the Huron County Board of Health, was in response to the hundreds of complaints filed by residents over excessive wind turbine noise and vibration or sensation. Huron County has some of the largest wind power projects in Ontario.
The public health investigation is being carried out under the authority of the Ontario Health Protection and Promotion Act.
In the interim report (the study is ongoing until the end of the year), the preliminary results are described:

“Of the 40 people who have completed a Registration Survey so far, half are male and most are not leaseholders for a wind turbine company. Approximately 60% of respondents reported they have been bothered, disturbed or annoyed by noise, vibration, light and/or sensations from the wind turbines. Noise was most commonly reported.”

Although the epidemiologist supervising the investigation says the research team has enough participants, they would like more, Dr. Erica Clark told Ontario Farmer last week. Residents can sign up to participate until October 31.
Wind Concerns Ontario has documents from the former Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change, received via a request under the Freedom of Information Act, which shows that the Ontario government received more than 4,500 official reports of excessive wind turbine noise and vibration from 2006-2016. The government responded to few of those reports, and in 2015-2016, responded to only about 6.9%.
Meanwhile, Provincial Officers in the Master Incident Reports, which include excerpts from calls made to the government hotline, noted adverse health effects in 35% of those reports.
“That violates both the Renewable Energy Approvals and the Environmental Protection Act,” says Wind Concerns Ontario president Jane Wilson, who is a Registered Nurse. “The approvals state that the wind power operators are supposed to investigate every complaint of noise and make sure there is not a repeat —clearly, with some of these Master Reports containing hundreds of calls, that isn’t happening.
“It is a violation of the EPA, section 1 (1) to allow anything, in this case noise, to enter the environment and cause adverse effect,” Wilson says.
“The government has a clear case for enforcing the rules.”
While the Health Unit can carry out the investigation into wind turbine noise and any adverse effect, it will not be able to issue an order to shut down turbine operations, Dr. Erica Clark says.
Under the Green Energy Act, sole responsibility for the wind turbines was given to the Ministry of the Environment, even in matters of human health.
To sign up for the study please go to the Huron County health Unit website here: https://www.huronhealthunit.ca/reports-and-statistics/investigations/wind-turbine-study/
or for more information about the study, please contact Dr. Erica Clark at 519.482.3416 or 1.877.837.6143 extension 2022 or eclark@huroncounty.ca.  You can also contact her by mail at:

Dr. Erica Clark
Huron County Health Unit
77722B London Road RR5
Clinton, ON N0M 1L0

In the meantime, residents experiencing noise, vibration, sensation, or flashing lights/strobe effect/shadow flicker should report these incidents. Please call the Spills Action Centre at 1-866-MOETIPS. Be sure to get an Incident Report number at then time of your call, and keep a record yourself of the time of your call, and what you reported.

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10 Comments

  • Sommer
    Posted August 1, 2018 5:53 pm 0Likes

    The information given to professionals by Dr. Mariana Alves-Pereira in her most recent presentation in Slovenia needs to be seen by everyone. She speaks about the harm from LFN and infrasound from industrial wind turbines. Most people still do not understand this harm despite the fact that the Waubra Foundation has listed the progression of symptoms and this information has been in the public domain for several years. The impacts and annoyance from noise are easy to identify.
    The Huron County Health Unit refuses to acknowledge the connections between LFN and infrasound and the symptoms residents have been/are reporting. Most residents are still unaware because no one has informed them. Even doctors are not willing to acknowledge that the cause of symptoms being reported could very well be LFN and infrasound. Instead they order a battery of tests and procedures and they prescribe all sorts of pharmaceuticals, some of which have serious side effects.

    • Wind Concerns Ontario
      Posted August 1, 2018 6:39 pm 0Likes

      We are unclear as to what makes you conclude the Huron County Health Unit is refusing any acknowledgement of low frequency noise. There is, to the best of our knowledge, an entire section in the questionnaire on “vibration” with many opportunities to record the effects.

      • Richard Mann
        Posted August 7, 2018 11:56 am 0Likes

        Re; Health impacts. Will Huron County Health Unit acknowledge ongoing harm of wind turbines, and if so, will they order a halt to turbines? All of this is known, and complaints were made public in Jan 2016.
        I include the first complaint below. There are 26 in total.
        http://cmajblogs.com/health-canada-and-wind-turbines…/…
        January 26, 2016 at 2:21 pm
        Here is a list of 26 statements of adverse health impacts from Huron County.
        Property 1
        Living among the 18 Industrial Wind Turbines that are located within 3 km of our farm house has caused us many sleepless nights that interfere with our physical and mental well being. We suffer from ear aches, headaches, “swimming” in our head, foggy brains and the inability to think clearly. Many days after a sleepless night, we are not “alert” like we used to be. Is it causing our short term memory loss/ confusion? We become very agitated and irritable. We had a picture fall off our wall four times one extremely bad day this past summer. It was on the wall closest to the turbines. That picture or an identical one has hung on that wall for over six years. It has never fallen off before.
        We listen to the sounds of tractor trailers sitting in front of our place that never seem to go anywhere, whooing and whining sounds that penetrate through the walls of our home and drive us crazy. There are the whomping and whooshing sounds. We are unable to open our windows at night, sit on our deck or back step due to the noises of these monsters. We have family who do not want to come here because they are getting headaches after being here for a brief time. Headaches that go away shortly after they leave here

  • Sommer
    Posted August 1, 2018 5:55 pm 0Likes

    Here is the link to Dr. Mariana Alves-Pereira’s most recent presentation in Slovenia on harm from LFN and infrasound.
    http://en.friends-against-wind.org/health/infrasound-and-lfn

    • Sommer
      Posted August 5, 2018 5:16 pm 0Likes

      Given the information provided by Dr. Mariana Alves-Pereira, regarding the harm from low frequency noise and infrasound, could someone please explain why the HCHU would not go to the government and order the turbines to be turned off now?Is it not their mandate o protect the health of residents?
      How on earth can they be aware of this and allow the harm to continue?
      Many residents who are not doing the research still have no idea that LFN and infrasound are impacting them. Residents have reported the traumatizing harm to the Health Unit.

      • Wind Concerns Ontario
        Posted August 5, 2018 9:25 pm 0Likes

        Sorry, question: so, people are not participating in the research initiative, but they have reported the harm? It would be best if they participate in the research project. We have received queries from people who weren’t sure about what they were experiencing; the advice of the Health Unit was, contact them as soon as possible.

        • Sommer
          Posted August 7, 2018 11:04 am 0Likes

          People were reporting harm from LFN and infrasound already 3 years ago, shortly after the turbines were turned on. The impact is cumulative.
          The Health Unit study will not be complete until the end of 2019 and if amalgamation disrupts the study, it will be even longer.
          How can anyone ethically justify having people exposed for another year, given what Dr. Mariana Alves- Pereira is reporting in her recent presentation to professionals in Slovenia?

  • Stan Thayer
    Posted August 3, 2018 9:41 am 0Likes

    What an incredibly interesting era we are experiencing!
    No-one listens to experienced doctors anymore.
    No-one listens to experienced electrical technicians anymore.
    No-one listens to experienced nurses anymore.
    Know nothing ministry of something officials seem to be taken as god like prophets.
    The whispers of well funded lobbyists mean more than the outcry of the constituents.
    I will say again, Ontario is an outlaw society. Your legal cousel decides what law applies to you after they check your personal connections.
    These windmills are like the old hustler shell game where you can pick a day any day and your chances of coming out ahead are pretty slim.
    Once again I will offer anyone anywhere to prove to me any industrial electrical wind turbine that has produced more power than was used to manufacture and install that unit,—– please, no more quotes from Internet websites being produced by paid conforments.
    So, to conclude my rant, IWT’S in Ontario have proven to be useless at generating reliable electrical power so building more must be for some other reason!
    Everyone, look up the definition of the word, “STUPIDITY”.
    Stan the power man

  • Stan Thayer
    Posted August 3, 2018 11:42 am 0Likes

    I found the definition of “STUPIDITY”.
    It’s the Ontario Green Energy Act.
    For example- Friday August 3rd 2018 9am 26°C and climbing.
    Entire Ontario wind farms monitored output at a staggering low of 129MW.
    Most turbines drawing from the grid supplied by gas backups.
    Ontario solar farms output at 123MW.
    Wind/Gas back ups providing 2954MW.
    Ontario grid demand at 17,429MW and climbing like the temperature.
    Burning gas to keep windmills turning is difinitively total stupidity.
    Can’t argue with stupid!
    Stan the power man

  • Catherine Mitchell
    Posted August 4, 2018 5:20 am 0Likes

    ‘IWT’S in Ontario have proven to be useless at generating reliable electrical power so building more must be for some other reason!’
    A rogue industry that fails to deliver a reliable product, destroys our viable energy system, and transfers tremendous wealth to the private for profit multinational corporations – all in the name of saving the planet! You can find ‘snake oil’ in the same section of the dictionary as ‘stupid’

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