Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Let them pay double for their power. They're earned it.

What about the fact that these SOB's intermittently spurting power generation are the sole reason that CMP needs a $1.5 BILLION dollar upgrade that will befall ratepayers, who are the same people as the taxpayers.

Baldacci told his biggest lie to date when he said that the CMP upgrade is needed because the lines are 40 years old, when in fact they have been maintained all along as population is forecast to barely increase over the next 20 years.

The people are getting wise to the scam so let's throw them some money. Money talks BS walks! Everyone will sleep better, the wildlife we can do without, the habitat destruction we can ignore as long as we have some money. How cynical can they get? Shame on NRCM!

Here's a novel thought: How about passing a bill that would protect homeowners from the attendant noise and light flicker created by these massive machines? How about talking to the people of Mars Hill that have been so negatively impacted the First Wind facility located in their backyard? Then perhaps get input from the Vinylhaven residents who recently learned first-hand just how non-intrusive their new neighborhood turbines really are...just like the developer promised.

But instead, the solution is to throw more money at it in an attempt to turn this bad idea a good one. If industrial wind power was such a great thing, how come every time you turn around First Wind and other Big Windees are ponying up money to buy their way into towns like Oakfield? Now ME's politicians are seeking to latch onto some loot and get a piece of the action. How did the Govnah miss that opportunity in the first place?

This whole thing is like health care reform. When the idea begins to smell bad, throw the sweet smell of money at it. And why not? It's only taxpayers' and rate payers' money anyway. Whadda they know?

Why Lincoln Lakes, why not "Stinkin Brook". Its all fenced off, so no one will see the mess that the pulp mill made, and the noise from the turbines won't be a problem. Dead birds, they can be blamed on the polluted brook not the turbines!

They ought to roll out the Red Carpet for these crooks to get on a plane to Africa and never come back to Maine. Maine does not even need the electricity that the foolish wind farms provide. This is the biggest scam that has come to Maine in decades. It is all about getting government subsidies for the turbines. Rate payers will be paying through the nose for years for power lines. The destruction to Maine ridges and mountain tops will never be reversed. Any tax benefits will be squandered by county governments. Local tax payers will be left out in the cold with the negative impacts of these noisy,ugly towers.

1111111111

You people are uneducated nimby victims. It truely amazes me how many of you cry about the Maine economy being so bad, than complain again when a business comes knocking on your door. No wonder why all the mills are leaving you. The people of Maine that use to be known for their hard work and grit are now known better for their meth addicts and unemployment. If you are trying to push companies away it's working. What most of you don't realize is that First Wind is a bottom of the barrel company in the wind world. Don't belive me, look at the rankings on awea.org, they are not even mentioned at all. The big companies that would offer much more won't even come close to Maine. Why would they come deal with you for 10 to 20 turbines when they can go throw 500 to 1000 turbines in the ground in places like Iowa and North Dakota are waiting with open arms. Note: states that have among the best economies in the country. Actually ND for sure has a surplus. You don't think that it is odd that Florida Power and Light, who owns and operates the Waymoth oil fired site and the simple cyle jets in south portland along with 20 or so of the Hydro sites in Maine (FPL whom is also the single largest wind farm owner in operator in the US by far) will barely even consider Maine for future projects. Look at the GE steam shop in Bangor, it won't surprise me if they are gone soon too. They already moved the gas shop to South Carolina and their wind and training facilities are already in NY. Good luck Maine, it's gonna be another real tough decade for you.

Thank you user5225 for trying to wake up this ignorant state. You are right in everything you say, Maine will always go backwards with their, "not in my backyard attitude". We will be a long time changing this terrible attitude of new Mainers.

user5225 - you call us NIMBY's, but what do you call the people in Vinalhaven who said YES IN MY BACKYARD and are now maybe the strongest opponents of wind anywhere in the state?

Here are a few excerpts from a piece written in the 12/8/09 Working Waterfront by a person who supported the turbines after believing the lies.

http://www.workingwaterfront.com/online-exclusives/Opinion/13571/

"Although our group overwhelmingly supported the project, we now live with the daily presence of turbine noise, 24/7. As one of the Fox Islands Wind Neighbors (FIWN) recently noted, "We support the windmills, but not the noise." The noise is as constant as the wind, building in intensity according to wind speed and direction. It can be a low rumbling, whooshing, grinding background noise that one can just hear above the sound of the trees or it can build to an in-your-face noise, like jet engines roaring combined with a grinding and pulsating sound that echoes in your head, keeps you awake at night, and beats on your house like a drum.

As neighbors of the wind turbines, we find ourselves in the midst of an unexpected, unwanted life crisis. When GE flipped the switch and the turbines began to turn, island life as we knew it evaporated.

We have learned about state sound regulations and found that the 45 decibel limit that is designated as "quiet" in Maine, is truly a cruel joke. On our quiet cove, we now know that 45 decibels is loud.

More from that piece in the 12/8/09 Working Waterfront:

"We have studied spreadsheets, yearly wind speed records, and have worked to determine how much Fox Islands Wind can slow the turbines down and still cover the cost of the windmills. We are scrambling. We do not want to leave the homes we have built with our own hands, the gardens we have planted, the memories that are so much a part us, and the dreams we hold for the future. We are not looking for financial gain. We are desperate to gain back what has been taken from us.

It is very clear to us, that life as we know it on Vinalhaven has changed irrevocably.

Come stand on our porches, listen to the nonstop roaring, thumping, whooshing, grinding sounds of the turbines, and compare it to the quiet you currently experience."

http://www.workingwaterfront.com/online-exclusives/Opinion/13571/

jaygee - it is no FACT that wind energy is the cause for the need to improve reliability in CMP's grid.

In fact, the CMP grid was built out as a patchwork, piecemeal, poorly-designed system that grew out as the population began to spread into the rural areas. A comprehensive, well-designed solution for moving large amounts of power around the system is required at this time, or significant reliability concerns may impact the system as soon as 2012. What that means is blackouts. Studies are available tio support this - you simply have to read them.

The bill does not suggest throwing money at the issues - in fact, wind companies have been paying more than the floor amounts listed all along. On of the greatest benefits of wind is the increase in local tax base for everyone in a community.

windfuture said: "it is no FACT that wind energy is the cause for the need to improve reliability in CMP's grid. "

WRONG.

We want gasoline engines that don't pollute, diesel fuel that doesn't stink, nuclear power without radiation. Guess what, ain't gonna happen. With wind power, you get some noise. How serious? Well, if you stand in the woods when it is snowing, you will hear how noisy snow is. But if you are in town when it snows, you never notice because cars make more noise just idling by. I know the folks in Vinalhaven want/need electricity. They just have to figure out if it is worth the noise with the windpower, or if they want to use generators. They ain't quiet either, but we are more accustomed to some noises. Personally, when I go fishing, the noise of the motor drives me nuts and I can't wait to shut it off. My brother-in-law spends more time in a boat and he doesn't mind it at all.

Probably the same with wind turbines. I don't see them as blights on the landscape, instead every one I see turning reminds me that some oil dictatorship or terrorist supporting country (some are both) will be missing a dollar or 2 they would get otherwise.

I wonder how many of these militant pro wind people live near a wind farm or a proposed one?? I bet none. Talk about nimby. I am sick of people that support projects in someone else's back yard and then complain about the residents making comments about the impacts of these projects.

Have a party pro wind people. Put the towers next to your bedrooms.

ACountian wrote: Probably the same with wind turbines. I don't see them as blights on the landscape, instead every one I see turning reminds me that some oil dictatorship or terrorist supporting country (some are both) will be missing a dollar or 2 they would get otherwise.

They don't reduce our consumption of oil one bit because they produce electricity, which doesn't replace the oil we use - which is for driving and heating. We don't drive on electricity and in maine, we realistically don't heat with electric, an expensive way to heat by the way. Finally, we don't use oil to generate electricity in Maine, except for one plant, Wyman. Everything else is far cleaner and abundant natural gas generation - or hydro, biomass, etc.

It's a big lie Baldacci keeps repeating about oil. The man is a total liar who has already said he plans to work in the "Energy" field. Read: WIND.

He is doing everything he can to help his friends in the wind industry, including ramming through unconstitutional laws and concealing the real reason for the transmission lines. When this is over, I predict - and I don't say this lightly - he will go to prison.

jaygee - you are correct that we have a very complex energy landscape. The idea that Wind offsets oil is not a new one: as we move closer to electric cars, there will be a more direct connection to be made, and developing the resource now provides the basis for a conversion in the future. What is missed is the fact that LNG, and other forms of natural gas, come from the same places we get our oil from. And it won't last forever either, as we develop new industries and attempt to broaden nat gas's reach into our energy mix, as is proposed in Maine.

The fact is, every MW hour of wind produced in Maine and used in Maine and elsewhere in New England offsets natural gas generation that would otherwise be required. We generate electricity with natural gas for most incremental requirements. This creates pollution in the form of CO2, and to some extent, NOx, which causes air quality problems. That doesn't cover the process of capture and conversion, which creates more issues. European countries dealt with an increased dependence on natural gas over the last 20 years, when they were held hostage by North African supplies. The point is, we can learn from their mistake by not going down the same road. Once we build an ever-increasing reliance on any one source of energy, we are doomed to repeat the oil crisis, the nuclear opposition, etc. The answer is, we need a mix.

What a sham. "Bill Could Aid Towns...." This is the classic 1 step forward, 2 steps back scenario. The town gets bribed with dough that ultimately no one will even notice. Their landscape gets trashed, a few residents get thrown under the noise bus and the wind developers laugh all the way to the bank. I think the NRCM is scrambling to put a happy face on their huge miscaluculation in supporting the destruction of Maine's uniquely beautiful landscape. When their membership finds out what they've done, they might just vote with their feet and take their money to an environmental organization that GENUINELY cares about Maine's future. Folks, the future does not lie in large scale desecration of Maine's landscape and soundscape to be the power plant for southern New England.

And for those of you who keep insisting that wind turbines in Maine will help end dependence on foreign oil: Come on guys, open a book and get an education. You're embarrassing yourselves. Baldy's ignorance is obvious - don't follow his lead.

I live 2 miles from Mars Hill, play golf in front of the turbines, look at them every day. I've stood next to them, 1200 feet in front of them, 500-1200 feet behind them, etc. etc. They don't bother me. That doesn't mean they couldn't bother someone else - but they are not the epic problem that is reported ad nauseum by the folks who hate them. There are other sources of noise that cause concern - among them the incessant fans from the neighbor's potato storage, and the snowmobiles running past my house at all hours of the day and night. But you won't see me asking them to go away. We all have to live with neighbors and the issues that come with them. Or, we can buy an island or a cave and pretend the rest of the world isn't there.

My honest question for anyone who complains about wind turbines, or gas plants, or nukes, etc. is this: what do you want in your backyard? Because putting anything in someone else's backyard to serve your needs just doesn't cut it anymore. Until you produce your own power, refine your own gasoline, process your own hamburger, or create your own interstate, YOU are relying on someone else's backyard to get through life. I would think a little wind turbine or two would be a small price to pay for the greater good of society at large. Or perhaps you'd prefer a nuke plant in Mars Hill. Or maybe a new hydro dam in Fort Kent.

And for those who say we don't need more power in Maine, you are partially correct. The status quo works quite well when you enjoy electricity rates that are the highest in the country - currently 8.5 c/KWh or thereabouts. Do you realize we can't get industry in this state in part because of the high cost of electricity? Folks are complaining that we shouldn't build wind trubines here to benefit folks out-of-state. Then the same holds true for our lobsters, blueberries, potatoes, timber, and anything else we grow or produce here. Don't let ANY of it leave the state, lest someone else "benefit" from using it. The truth is, we should look for every opportuity to export our goods and services, since that is how ANY economy grows and thrives. Just look at how great it is to import goods from China instead of exporting (in the balance). How about more imports from Japan? Or maybe more energy from Canada? How much more of your money do you want to send overseas? Yes, some of the energy companies are based overseas. But the money for land payment, taxes, jobs, constrcution, etc. is ALL spent locally. That is what we should be doing with our resources.

oh my a bribe, constant noise disrupes the human body in negative ways. With all the rivers and stream shouldn't need to put up noisy windmills or nucler plants.

user5225, jobs are the answer and if you don't like how we perfer an uncluttered non commie state like say Ma. then butt out. We don't have money to pay for this crap and then not be able to afford to use it after it's installed. We hate big city noise, we hate city attitudes, we hate that you made a mess of your state and now you want to ruin ours, and we hate the Mainers or pretend Mainers who back this crap. We don't give a good G.D. what anyone else does, we don't follow jerks off bridges just because thats what robotic flat landers do and we are sick to the death of flat landers coming in here and trying to push us around because they think we are too stupid and inbred to follow them into a hell of their making. LEAVE us alone. Welcome to vacationland, spend your money then get out and take your rubbish with you.

Unless you can prove I'm a druggie (lets compare it to your state) then I take that as defamation, care to try to prove it in a court room? Put your money where your mouth is or is that all there is to you?

NRCM has sold out to the wind people.

They should be supporting a new nuclear plant in every state now to solve the carbon and electricity problems of the future. 8000 windmills=1 nuclear plant. No Carbon, no destruction of view shed and no degradation of our tourist industry(the destruction of our scenic view sheds by putting in 360 miles of wind towers on our mountains will hurt tourism)

Scintillate- A BIG thumbs up for that comment! Couldn't have said it any better than that!!!!!! Seems the wind people are out in full force today, I think they are getting scared. Even T Boones Picken, or whatever his name is, is giving up the Wind scam. Was reading an article yesterday that said wind power is dead, dead dead, just the papers aren't reporting it yet. Must be because they are all paid off by the wind companies.

jmwld1 - nice try. 1 nuke plant of 1000 MW capacity is equivalent to approximately 1850 turbines, not 8000. that's assuming a net factor of 30% or so vs. the nameplate capacity. 8000 wind turbines at 1.5 MW each and a net factor of 30% would yield approximately 4 nuke plants.

Of course, you can take the turbines down at the end of 20-25 years and return the landscape close to its original look and feel. If even 1 nuke plant went boom, you'd have to wait 10-20,000 years to even get close enough to live for any length of time. Chernobyl, anyone? How about 3 Mile Island? And don't say it CAN't happen - it already has! Wonder what effect THAT would have on a tourist!

Windfuture, I invite you to post legitimate documentary proof that electricity production by wind has significantly reduced greenhouse gas emissions in those countries that produce a high proportion of their electricity from wind. It's well accepted that the idiosyncracies of electricity production by wind mean that it cannot provide a one to one exchange with regard to CO2 emissions reductions. I am fully in agreement with you that we should minimize our dependence on fossil fuels, if not only to reduce the tremendous damage of extraction. But, let's not throw out the baby with the bath water. Maine's landscape is one of our states greatest assets that keeps our resource balance sheet in the black. It's a resource that is rapidly disappearing in New England, if not worldwide. The actual electricity produced and actual emissions reductions realized per unit of landscape destruction if analyzed is not a wise trade, I would argue.

I will never be able to understand why people believe removing hundreds of miles of picturesque ridgelines from Maine's inventory of scenic assets to keep the hot tubs warm, and the backyard accent lighting bright in Boston, is a reasonable tradeoff. And this doesn't even consider the homeowners who lose out in the noise issue. Let's consider all sources of renewable energy, including wind, but let's be honest about the real price of wrecking our states asset base just to provide a short term economic stimulus and to avoid having to turn out the bathroom light when we're not using it.

Windfuture you do not factor in the fact that there will be a base load generator infrastructure to take the load when the wind does not blow. Also I believe that your 30%net factor is not correct. I still believe that in the end Nuclear and conservation is the answer to the carbon problem. Lets face it, wind would be dead dead dead without government $.

Windfuture you do not factor in the fact that there will be a base load generator infrastructure to take the load when the wind does not blow. Also I believe that your 30%net factor is not correct. I still believe that in the end Nuclear and conservation is the answer to the carbon problem. Lets face it, wind would be dead dead dead without government $.

Its nice to finally see some reporting that at least touches on giving both sides of the issue. I noticed that they left off the test towers and eary permitting process for the Bowers Mountain Project and the entire ridge of Passadumkeag Mountain.

Wind energy pro or con, you should look into it and see how Baldacci has circumvented the democratic process of Maine and offered our cherished landscapes to special interest companies with a myriad of financial links to the wind industry. And we will see NO fossil fuel reduction and NO reduction in the excessive energy bills we pay.

Let's sell out for a few bucks now, screw the later generations.

So, Senator Mills, you are concerned about the towns, but the Unorganized Territory has to give these companies tax breaks (through the county commissioners)? I believe a method should be devised that makes the companies pay a certain fee to whereever they locate these windmills. If, the windmills are located in an area where it affects the towns, then and only then should they receive any payment from the company. However, I do not believe that windmill companies need a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) break. They are receiving oddles of federal funds and tax breaks in addition to their very good profit margin which is, by the way, of no benefit to the residents of Maine. Maybe there should be another requirement that at least some of the power remain in Maine.

10:30 user5225 I am not totally against wind farms. But please explain to me how they are an economically viable source of power when they must be subsidized? Explain to me how we are going to keep any business in Maine if we raise the cost of energy even higher than it is now.

If anyone should be compensated for the inconvenience of living near turbines, shouldn't it be the people directly affected by them? These people probably can't sell their homes now unless it's for the purpose of erecting more turbines.

The whole thing is a disgrace. Please google4 "Citizens' Task Force on Wind Power - Maine" and you can start learning more of how truly a criminal scam it all is.

Same old tried and true American method BUY THEM OFF OR BUY THEM OUT, works every time if the price is right. Trouble is it works for all sides regardless of the merits of the case, which all too rarely get due attention.

BRILLIANT! ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT! Make an already prohibitively expensive source of 'energy' even more expensive by raising even more taxes to pay the towns where these albatrosses are built. This makes much more sense than drilling for our own oil or improving our natural gas infrastructure or building a nuke plant or seeding the growth of the wood pellet business.

I can look out front of my house and see most of the Stetson Mtn. wind farm and now the Jimmy Mtn, wind farm and also the Owl Mtn. wind farm and the thing that really tics my off is sometimes some of the fans aren't turning, and I ask myself whats the matter with these people don't they know that it's taking oil from Iran or Venezuela or some other nice country like that to generate the power that these towers could be making but usually they are only down for a short while and I have to remind myself that its a new project and they are still working the bugs out of it and before you know it they will be humming away mostly uninterrupted, its a beautiful sight to see!

On 1/25/10 at 10:30 AM, user5225 wrote: You people are uneducated nimby victims. It truely amazes me how many of you cry about the Maine economy being so bad, than complain again when a business comes knocking on your door. No wonder why all the mills are leaving you. The people of Maine that use to be known for their hard work and grit are now known better for their meth addicts and unemployment.

user5225 - The way you use words like "you people" and "all the mills are leaving you" one can only assume you live out of state. Why would a non-resident like yourself care enough about any of this to spend time on BDN online? Got a camp or second home in Maine you love to visit? Or are you just trying to impress us 'hicks in the sticks' in Maine with your superior intellect? It's people like you who make me so proud of the fact that I chose to live here ... and that you don't! As to your closing comment, "Good luck Maine, it's gonna be another real tough decade for you", that's OK, we're used to doing things the old fashioned way - we earn our living. We don't sit around like you and many of your fellow Bay-Staters waitng for another Barnie Frank socialist handout.

There is no monetary price that can be paid that will allow the health effects to be ignored by this negligent industry and naive Power Elite concerning heath effects of these things. They are real, sorry, you will NOT atempt to buy off the affected public or ignore the reality of the health impacts. Expedited Wind Law is illegal and immoral.

Only REAL SCIENCE with real NOISE REGULATIONS will be usedthat is Independently applied. And NOW..NO more projects in Maine until real science is applied to this lying Wind Industry.The LIES will END!!! NOW..NO DEAL..EVER!! . NO PAYOFFS for injured citizens ..EVER....!!!! Sorry , NO DEAL on this ...EVER!!!

SEE Below.

Dear editor,

In response to the letter "fearmongering about wind" Jan 22nd I must state that this is an international problem and I have first hand knowledge of the destructive living conditions brought on by wind turbines situated too close to residences. Sleep deprivation is constant and there is never a chance to recuperate because of the widespread reluctance by developers to acknowledge the problem and to mitigate the noise. The sound coming off turbines is loud, cyclical and has the added measure of low frequency vibration coming through the homeowners walls, making life unbearable. These industrial wind turbines do not run at 35 decibels or less all the time as the letter writer implies.

The wind industry has been denying adverse health effects from the start and it is unconscionable for our governments to allow people to continue to suffer the way they are. The "exhaustive study" referred to was nothing more than a literature review, sponsored by American and Canadian wind lobby groups. Not one victim was interviewed or considered. In my opinion, any doctor who can conclude that no harm is being done, without first conducting a proper investigation and doing the ground work, lacks integrity.

We need a proper 3rd party independant health study. Until then, these machines must be decommissioned and no new building take place. Never in my lifetime, have I seen so many people - adults, small children, teens and elderly be allowed to suffer in their own homes and be forced to leave, many permanently, while the government turns a blind eye. I applaud Dr. Shapiro and the other medical professionals who have come forth to assist the multitude of victims who have been routinely ignored.

Please visit www.windvigilance.com where you will find a very enlightening analysis of the above mentioned study.

Barbara Ashbee

RR1

Orangeville,Ontario,

Canada L9W 2Y8

Submitted to the Rutland Herald by Carmen Krogh:

Re: The truth about risks to health and wind energy

Bruce Peacock would benefit from a bit of research before he distributes erroneous opinions about the health risks associated with wind turbines.

Mr. Peacock states “noise from turbines located on ridges is amplified in valleys below is pure conjecture that is not supported by studies.”

Funny: The American Wind Industry Association fact sheet Utility Scale Wind Energy and Sound states “…in hilly terrain…wind turbine noise may carry further than on flat terrain.”

A Sweden peer reviewed study describes “The increased risk of perception of wind turbine noise in a rural landscape… where the houses are located in a valley and the turbine on a hill.”

Mr. Peacock’s opinion that sleep disturbance is insignificant is not supported by the 2009 World Health Organization report Night Noise Guidelines for Europe. This 184 page peer reviewed report documents the serious risks to human health from noise induced sleep disturbance.

World Health Organizations states “Sleep disturbance and annoyance are the first effects of night noise and can lead to mental disorders. The effects of noise can even trigger premature illness and death.”

Mr. Peacock may wish to reread Wind Turbine Sound and Health Effects An Expert Panel Review 2009, Prepared for American Wind Energy Association and Canadian Wind Energy Association(A/CanWEA Panel Review) as it acknowledges that people are experiencing adverse physiological and psychological symptoms from exposure to industrial wind turbines.

The A/CanWEA Panel Review also acknowledges that wind turbine noise, including low frequency noise may cause annoyance, stress and sleep disturbance.

One of the authors of the A/CanWEA Panel Review W. David Colby M.D. reinforced this position by stating during a radio interview: “We’re not denying that there are people annoyed and that maybe some of them are getting stressed out enough about being annoyed that they’re getting sick."

Globally victims are reporting adverse health effects from exposure to industrial wind projects. Many families have abandoned their homes to protect their health. This cannot be denied.

To assist Mr. Peacock in his research he may wish to visit www.windvigilance.com to learn the truth about wind turbines and adverse health effects.

Carmen Krogh, BScPharm

--------------------------------------------

letters@rutlandherald.com

Commentary Article Submission

Wind Turbines, Health, Ridgelines, and Valleys

Wind Turbines, Health, Ridgelines, and Valleys

Michael A. Nissenbaum, MD

Fort Kent, Maine

Mr. Peacock’s letter of January 22, 2010 taking issue with Dr. Stan Shapiro’s piece in the Rutland Medical Center’s Heart Health News is off the mark and contains inaccuracies and misinformation.

It is a medical fact that sleep disturbance and perceived stress result in ill effects, including and especially cardiovascular disease, but also chronic feelings of depression, anger, helplessness, and, in the aggregate, the banishment of happiness and reduced quality of life. Cardiovascular disease, as we all now, leads to reduced life expectancy. Try and get reasonably priced life insurance if you are hypertensive or have suffered a heart attack.

If industrial wind turbines installed close proximity to human habitation result in sleep disturbance and stress, then it follows as surely as day follows night that wind turbines will, over the long term, result in these serious health effects and reduced quality of life.

The question is, then, do they?

In my own work at Mars Hill, Maine, 22 out of about 33 adults who live within 3500 feet of a ridgeline arrangement of 28 1.5 mW wind turbines were evaluated to date, and compared with 28 people of otherwise similar age and occupation living about 3 miles away.

Here is what was found:

82% of study subjects reported new or worsened chronic sleep disturbances, versus 3% in the control group. 36% reported new chronic headaches vs 3% in the control group. 55% reported ‘stress’ versus none in the control group, and 82% persistent anger versus none in the people living 3 miles away. Fully a third of the study subjects had new or worsened depression, with none in the control group. 95% of the study subjects perceived reduced quality of life, versus 0% in the control group. Underlining these findings, there were 25 new prescription medications offered to the study subjects, of which 15 were accepted, compared to 4 new or increased prescriptions in the control group. The prescriptions ranged from antihypertensives and antidepressants to anti migraine medications.

The Mars Hill study will soon be completed and is being prepared for publication. These preliminary findings have been presented to the Chief Medical Officer of Health for Ontario, and will soon be formally presented to Health Canada. They have been presented to the Maine Medical Association, which followed up with a Resolution calling for caution, further study, and appropriate modification of siting regulations, where required.

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind, and that of other physicians who have reviewed the work, that people living within 3500 feet of a ridgeline arrangement of turbines in a rural environment will suffer negative effects at similar rates.

What is it about northeast USA ridgelines that contribute to these ill effects, and how can they be avoided?

Consider, the Northeast is prone to icing conditions. Icing will increase the sound coming off of turbines by up to 6 dbA. As the icing occurs symmetrically on all blades, imbalance detectors do not kick on, and the blades keep turning, contrary to wind industry claims.

Sound is amplified coming off of ridgelines into valleys. This is because the background noise in rural valleys is low to begin with, increasing the sensitivity to changes, particularly the beating, pulsatile nature of wind noise, and sound sources at elevation do not undergo the same attenuation that occurs from groundcover when noise sources are at ground level. The noise travels farther at hits homes and people at greater amplitude that it would from a lower elevation. Even though this is not rocket science, it was conclusively proven in a NASA funded study in 1990.

Snow pack and ice contribute to increased noise transmission. Vermont valleys have both, I believe.

When pre construction modeling fails to take the pulsatile nature, propensity for icing, and ridgeline elevation into account, as well as a linear as opposed to point source of noise, problems can be expected. What distance is safe? It depends on the terrain, the climate, the size of the project and the turbines themselves. Accurate preconstruction modeling with safe targets in mind is critical. The WHO says that 30dbA is ideal, and noise levels of above 40dbA have definite health consequences. At Mars Hill, where affected homes are present at 3500 feet, sound levels have been measured at over 52.5dbA. The fiasco there has been acknowledged by the local wind energy company, and by a former Maine governor.

Vermont would do well to learn from the affected people in Mars Hill, and heed Dr. Shapiro’s well-informed warnings. Be very careful about accepting at face value the A/CANWEA white paper referred to by Mr. Peacock, which seems an industry-funded exercise in dissembling and selective review. The parallels with the tobacco industry of the 1960’s are striking.

References:

Technical Requirements for Rotor Blades Operating in Cold Climate

H. Seifert,

Deutsches Windenergie-Institut, 2003

Wind Turbine Acoustics

H. H. Hubbard, K.P. Shepard,

NASA Technical Paper 3057, DOE/NASA 20320-77, 1990

Voorhees is an imbecile. NRCM is a farce and a SHILL of First Wind!

Voorhees needs to check his math. Or better still, stay out of an area that is beyond his core competency.

BTW, you have to love when all of a sudden a person like Voorhees is passing himself off as an economist and an authority on private sector job creation. Not only is he straying into an area that has nothing to do with the natural resources of Maine, but he is speaking with a background of never having held a real private sector job in his life. This is why people like him insist on the nanny state. They can't survive in the wild.

Dylan Voorhees is a paid shill and pathalogical liar for Big Wind. He brought his wind energy "Dog & Pony" show to Lincoln last winter and was visibly flustered by the knowledge about wind issues thrown at him by local citizens. That night he stated that NRCM had not taken a position on the Rollins Project, that the organization looked at the pros & cons of each individual project. One week later Voorhees was at the DEP hearing in Lincoln testifying in glowing terms about how NRCM viewed Rollins as a perfect wind project. Obviously, the guy didn't listen to Lincoln people the week before. When confronted, he admitted he had never been to Lincoln before bringing his little show to town---after dark. He never laid eyes on Rollins Mt., the rolling ridges of Rocky Dundee, the 13 beautiful lakes nestled amongst these highlands, nor seen the eagles, ospreys, and loons that inhabit the area. Shame! Shame! Shame! Shill! Shill! Shill!

Dylan Voorhees should go back to where he came from and quit pushing sprawling, destructive industrial wind sites all over rural Maine. This yuppie twit out of stater has no credibility amongst real Mainers.

Ahhh...windfuture, now I understand your position. I will bet you have sold or leased land to FirstWindSprawl!!! That explains your comments. Windsprawl is not about generating electricity primarily. It is about REC credits and the Wall Street games the developers can't wait to play. The Fed gives our tax dollars away to the schemers. Isn't that enough to make any Mainer mad? Each project wants a TIF or Credit Enhancement which is not fair to other businesses who cannot get half their tax dollars kicked back. HydroQuebec will sell juice to Maine for 2cents per kw/h. Problem solved! Ridges and mountains saved! Lakes may be enjoyed! People's health is not sacrificed! Critters are saved! Why do our legislators and Gov. ignor the facts? Could it be because they are in on the Great Wind Lie? Why do they want us paying for EXPENSIVE WIND POWER at 23 cents per kw/h? How do we impeach the Gov and get rid of the legislators at the same time? That would be a blessing. Windfuture, you may want to ride around in electric golf carts but do not expect everyone to share your enthusiasm. Windsprawl is not like blueberries , timber, potatos, or lobster.Windsprawl needs massive subsidies to survive. The RECs meanwhile are packaged, bartered, traded sold and are responsible for NO REDUCTIONS in CO2 emissions. Instead of cleaning up dirty coal plants, the owners buy RECs and continue polluting. Dylan Voorhees knows this. So why is the NRCM supporting the madness? Maybe to keep his job? Anyway, would people please stop using the "foreign oil" argument? It does not apply.to Maine.Anyway whatever oil Americans do not buy, China and India will. If electricity was generated by thousands of windsprawl monstrosities no body could afford it. HydroQuebec is truly "green" and Canada is nowhere near the Middle East.

"Maine should roll out the welcome mat for wind power" said John Cooney. Mr.Cooney, Maine has enough road and bridge projects to keep you guys busy for quite some time. Windsprawl is not welcome in Maine when it is so environmentally destructive. Even the turbines and blades will be produced cheaper as they are now in China and Brazil.. What happens when the subsidy spigot gets turned off? Say hi to Pat D.

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The nation's wind-power industry provides about 2% of the USA's electricity. That could rise to 20% in the eastern USA by 2024 if enough money is invested in transmission lines and the power grid, said a study recently released by the Department of Energy.

Web link: http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/20...

Sounds like if Maine gets transmission lines in we are going to be covered with wind towers.