[continued from previous message]   
      
   symptoms such as dizziness, headaches, and sleep disturbance but   
   concluded “the scientific evidence available to date does not   
   demonstrate a direct causal link between wind turbine noise and adverse   
   health effects.”23 The lead author of the report,23 Dr Gloria Rachamin,   
   acknowledged under oath that the literature review looked only at direct   
   links to human health.24   
      
   Focusing on “direct” causal links limits the discussion to a small slice   
   of the potential health effects of IWTs. The 2011 environmental review   
   tribunal decision found that serious harm to human health includes   
   “indirect impacts (e.g., a person being exposed to noise and then   
   exhibiting stress and developing other related symptoms).”20   
      
   According to the night noise guidelines for Europe:   
      
   Physiological experiments on humans have shown that noise of a moderate   
   level acts via an indirect pathway and has health outcomes similar to   
   those caused by high noise exposures on the direct pathway. The indirect   
   pathway starts with noise-induced disturbances of activities such as   
   communication or sleep.25   
      
   Pierpont documented symptoms reported by individuals exposed to wind   
   turbines, which include sleep disturbance, headache, tinnitus, ear   
   pressure, dizziness, vertigo, nausea, visual blurring, tachycardia,   
   irritability, problems with concentration and memory, and panic episodes   
   associated with sensations of internal pulsation or quivering when awake   
   or asleep.13 The American Wind Energy Association and the Canadian Wind   
   Energy Association convened a panel literature review that determined   
   these symptoms are the “well-known stress effects of exposure to noise,”   
   or in other words, are “a subset of annoyance reactions.”26   
      
   Noise-induced annoyance is acknowledged to be an adverse health   
   effect.27–30 Chronic severe noise annoyance should be classified as a   
   serious health risk.31 According to the WHO guidelines for community   
   noise, “[t]he capacity of a noise to induce annoyance depends upon many   
   of its physical characteristics, including its sound pressure level and   
   spectral characteristics, as well as the variations of these properties   
   over time.”32 Industrial wind turbine noise is perceived to be more   
   annoying than transportation noise or industrial noise at comparable   
   sound pressure levels.33 Industrial wind turbine amplitude modulation,34   
   audible low frequency noise,35 tonal noise, infrasound,36 and lack of   
   nighttime abatement have been identified as plausible noise   
   characteristics that could cause annoyance and other health effects.   
      
   Go to:   
   Health effects in Ontario expected   
   Evidence-based health studies were not conducted to determine adequate   
   setbacks and noise levels for the siting of IWTs before the   
   implementation of the Ontario renewable energy policy. In addition,   
   provision for vigilance monitoring was not made. It is now clear that   
   the regulations are not adequate to protect the health of all exposed   
   individuals.   
      
   A 2010 report commissioned by the Ontario Ministry of the Environment   
   concludes:   
      
   The audible sound from wind turbines, at the levels experienced at   
   typical receptor distances in Ontario, is nonetheless expected to result   
   in a non-trivial percentage of persons being highly annoyed .…   
   [R]esearch has shown that annoyance associated with sound from wind   
   turbines can be expected to contribute to stress related health impacts   
   in some persons.37   
      
   Consequently, physicians will likely be presented with patients   
   reporting health effects.   
      
   Family physicians should be aware that patients reporting adverse   
   effects from IWTs might experience symptoms that are intense and   
   pervasive and that they might feel further victimized by a lack of   
   care-giver understanding. Those adversely affected by IWTs might have   
   already pursued other avenues to mitigate the health effects with little   
   or no success. It will be important to identify the possibility of   
   exposure to IWTs in patients presenting with appropriate clinical   
   symptoms.38   
      
   Go to:   
   Conclusion   
   Industrial wind turbines can harm human health if sited too close to   
   residents. Harm can be avoided if IWTs are situated at an appropriate   
   distance from humans. Owing to the lack of adequately protective siting   
   guidelines, people exposed to IWTs can be expected to present to their   
   family physicians in increasing numbers. The documented symptoms are   
   usually stress disorder–type diseases acting via indirect pathways and   
   can represent serious harm to human health. Family physicians are in a   
   position to effectively recognize the ailments and provide an empathetic   
   response. In addition, their contributions to clinical studies are   
   urgently needed to clarify the relationship between IWT exposure and   
   human health and to inform regulations that will protect physical,   
   mental, and social well-being.   
   --   
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