I have long been a supporter of alternative forms of energy. While the geography is not always ideal, I felt for a long time that the Ontario's pursuit of wind and solar power suggested a government with a vision for the future. Those who complained about wind turbines near their homes, were, I believed, simply examples of Nimbyism, worried about their property values, their views of adjacent vistas, etc.
However, a column by Thomas Walkom in today's Star suggests that there in fact might be reasons for caution. Bob McMurtry, an orthopedic surgeon and former Dean of Medicine at the University of Western Ontario, heads a group called the Society for Wind Vigilance, which has uncovered disturbing evidence that turbines may not be as benign as we have been led to believe. You can read the article here.
Funny, 90% of those complaining about the humming, don't see to mind the air conditioner hum, isn't that bad for your health then? It's all such overstated nonsense to be honest.
ReplyDeleteAnd, don't even get me started about the neverending hum from the refrigerator, the television, the furnace, I mean its just hypertension and heart disease everywhere I turn! Then I go into the car, with it's engine hum, where does it end!!
ReplyDeleteSome of these people in Ontario have actually abandoned their homes. I guess that's just an example of more "overstated nonsense". There is a whole scientific speciality dedicated to INDUSTRIAL noise and vibration and I think you might easily determine that there are significant differences between 430ft machines (drives the size of city buses and propellors the size of a 747) and televisions, furnaces, air conditioners, and cars. Consider if you were trying to sleep and you were surrounded by 50-100 LARGE air conditioners - the size of buses. Then you starting to understand the scale of what is being done to rural Ontario. Take a drive down towards Shelburne, maybe even knock on a few doors down there. Maybe you'll start to develop some empathy for people, voters and citizens just like you, who are having their lives changed by Industrial Wind Turbines. Research this - you will learn something.
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