Jeremy Lee
Today, wind energy is one of the fastest growing renewable energy sources in the world. By creating a source of electricity without the air pollution of fossil fuels, wind energy has provided a feasible, “clean” way to power homes and other electronics across the world. From 2000 to 2009 alone, wind energy capacity and generation increased by more than 1348% and 1164% respectively, with no other energy source even doubling during this time period3. Battelle Pacific Northwest Laboratory estimates that wind energy could supply around 20% of the United States’ electricity1, which is only going to increase as time goes by and advancements in wind turbine technology are made. However, wind energy is not without its disadvantages as there are various claims concerning the negative impacts that turbines have on the health of both the human population (ex: annoyance with turbine noise, injuries from transportation) and the natural environment (ex: bird/bat fatalities, destruction of natural habitats). With the emergence of these concerns comes the problem of how to plan the placement of wind turbines/farms. The question of whether rural areas or industrialized areas are better sites for wind farms has become a serious topic of debate. Only through examining the advantages and disadvantages of each area can a conclusion be drawn.
Rural areas have become a popular site for wind farm construction, due mainly to the fact that these areas are scarcely populated. Currently, one of the most significant problems with wind turbines is that they make enough noise to disrupt people that live around them. Although wind turbines cannot be linked to any specific health conditions, it has been shown that the noise they produce can both annoy and prevent sleep for neighboring residences. In three separate studies described by Eja Pedersen (Two in Sweden and one in the Netherlands), no relationship could be found between turbine noise and serious health conditions such as diabetes or high blood pressure, but there was a consistent correlation between the noise and elevated levels of annoyance in the people living close to the turbines7. Placing turbines in less populated areas greatly reduces this problem, as there are less people around to be bothered by the noise. Another advantage of placing wind turbines in rural areas is that in the event of a turbine collapse or the hurling of ice by the turbine blades, there is a reduced chance of serious property damage or human injury because there are not many buildings or people within striking distance4. Essentially, having turbines away from industrialized areas minimizes the negative effects of turbines on human health. However, this benefit comes at the expense of the health of the environment. Placing turbines out in the landscape can greatly disrupt natural habitats for various animals as well as harm bats, birds, and other animals in the area3. Wind turbines are responsible for about 28,500 bird fatalities per year6. The turbines can also obscure natural landscapes, resulting in possible losses of tourism as well as natural beauty in surrounding areas5. At the same time, turbines far away from the general population create increased expenses for both the transportation of the wind turbines themselves (Between $100,000 and $150,000 for transport per turbine2) and the connection of turbines to power grids in order to transport electricity produced. Basically, locating wind farms in rural areas benefits human health at the cost of the environment and increased expenses.
On the other hand, constructing wind farms in industrialized/highly populated areas has a different set of pros and cons. One obvious advantage of having wind turbines in industrialized areas as opposed to in rural areas is that the turbines have less of an impact on the natural environment and landscape. By placing turbines in urban areas, natural environments and landscapes are left untouched and animal habitats are unharmed. Another advantage of having turbines in industrial areas is that less transmission infrastructure is required to connect the turbines to power grids because the distance between the two is reduced. In other words, the turbines are very near to where the electricity they generate is being used which cuts down on the cost of transporting the electricity5. However, although the advantages make industrial areas appear to be very attractive locations for wind turbines, there are also many disadvantages to putting turbines in these areas. One of the biggest disadvantages of placing turbines near the population is that the noise from the turbines becomes a concern for people. In one study done in Vydmantai, it was proposed that the sounds from busy motorways could be used to mask the noise from nearby wind turbines5, but a second study done by Eja Pedersen, Frits V. Berg, Roel Bakker, and Jelte Bouma showed that the sounds of traffic may not mask this noise very well. In the second study, traffic sounds only masked the turbine noises when the turbine noise was moderate (~35-40dB) and the traffic sounds were much larger (traffic sounds had to be 20dB greater than turbine noise for masking to work)8. A second disadvantage of having turbines closer to the general population is that property damage and human injury can be great if turbines collapse3. This along with the noise of the turbines could also decrease the market value of neighboring homes and dwellings, which would upset a great deal of landowners4. Turbine transportation through industrialized areas can be hazardous to human health as well due to the immense size of the turbine parts (ex: Turbines can reach heights greater than 250 feet2). For example, in 2008 a woman was killed in Minnesota when her car collided with a truck carrying a turbine2.This clearly shows that placing turbines in industrialized areas can be a liability for human well-being.
By comparing the advantages and disadvantages of rural areas and industrialized areas as sites for wind farm construction, it appears that rural areas are currently the more logical location for wind turbines. Although turbines have the potential to disrupt natural environments and landscapes, they put people at a lower risk for annoyance from turbine noise and injury from turbine failure when placed in rural areas as opposed to industrialized areas. Placing turbines in industrialized areas doesn’t even make sense economically, as surrounding property values are decreased and repairs for property damages caused by the turbines can be costly. Because human health and well-being are major priorities, placing turbines in industrialized areas is not a viable option for now.
References
1Chockalingam, Siva. “Wind Energy Basics.” GE Wind. GE Energy. 23 June 2009. Web. 28
November 2012.
<http://www.geenergy.com/content/multimedia/_files/downloads/wind_energ
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2Galbraith, Kate. “Slow, Costly, and Often Dangerous Road to Wind Power.” The New
York Times. 22 July 2009. 27 November 2012. <http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/23/business/energyenvironment/23turbine.html?_r=0>
3Heintzelman, Martin D., and Carrie M. Tuttle. “Values in the Wind: A Hedonic Analysis
of Wind Power Facilities.” Land Economics 88.3 (2012): 571-88. Environment
Complete. Web. 27 Nov. 2012. <http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.bu.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer? vid=3&hid=110&sid=cfecad54-331c-4143-ad55-b679b3f30f12%40sessionmgr104>.
4Lansink, Ben. “Diminution in Value – Wind Turbine Analysis  .” National Wind Watch.
N.p., 2 Oct. 2012. Web. 28 Nov. 2012. <http://www.wind-
watch.org/documents/diminution-in-value-wind-turbine-analysis/>.
5Lina, Zukiene, Kanapickas Arvydas, and Zukas Simas. “Spectrum Analysis of Wind
Turbine Noise in Vydmantai.” Ekologija 57.4 (2011): 81-85. Environme Complete.
Web. 26 Nov. 2012. <http://http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.bu.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer? vid=5&hid=119&sid=652e3d0d-63ab-4980-995e-72d8a2a4bb6f%40sessionmgr114>.
6“Onshore.” Wind Energy: The Facts. Intelligent Energy Europe. Web. 27 Nov. 2012.
7Pedersen, Eja. “Health Aspects Associated with Wind Turbine Noise—Results from
Three Field Studies.” Noise Control Engineering Journal 59.1 (2011): 48-52.
Environment Complete. Web. 26 Nov. 2012. <http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.bu.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer? sid=9ad741b9-f9db-47e9-ab17-6559647f0dbc%40sessionmgr114&vid=4&hid=110>.
8Pedersen, Eja, Frits V. Berg, Roel Bakker, and Jelte Bouma. “Can Road Traffic Mask
Sound from Wind Turbines? Response to Wind Turbine Sound at Different Levels of Road Traffic Sound.” Energy Policy 38.5 (2010): 2520-527. Environment Complete. Web. 26 Nov. 2012.
<http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.bu.edu/ehost/detail?vid=4&hid=106&sid=4
64e5340-ee3e-4421-ad61-dbeb05a504c9%40sessionmgr114&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#db=eih&AN=48598526>