Keping Hua<\/p>\n
Health Impact Blog<\/p>\n
EK 132 Wind Energy<\/p>\n
Prof. Grace<\/p>\n
11\/16\/2012<\/p>\n
Wind Energy, considered to have high potential and have already realized relatively low production costs compare to other sustainable energies.<\/p>\n
However, it may be difficult to site wind turbines in some areas, due to the aesthetic or environmental reasons and might cause human health impact, such as noise, ice
\nthrow and shadow flicker.<\/p>\n
According to the residents of Wiittlesey, where a wind farm locates and impact by Ice-Tossing Turbine this winter, the ice that throwing by wind turbine smashed into a carpet showroom and a parking lot. However, the wind industry claims that the ice and snow are so heavy that would build up on the turbine and eventually, fall down and end up at places at the base of the turbine. They also claim that the turbines would not spin while so much ice on it, just as airplanes will not fly with too much ice on its wings.<\/p>\n
Based a Swiss report last year, \u201cWind Turbine Ice Throw Studies in the Swiss Alps\u201d, focused on turbines near ski places. The report states that ice throw is a \u201csignificant safety risk\u201d, that the most dangerous place is under the wind turbine, only about 5 percent of ice landed more than 80 meters from the turbine.<\/p>\n
According to the danger of ice throw, experts
\nrecommend that wind farm developers should take ice throw into account as a safety issue while they were choosing the wind farm location. Another good way to avoid this unnecessary impact is to build \u201cde-iced\u201d prior to take off the ice and snow that build up on the turbine.<\/p>\n
Wind turbine shadow flicker has the potential to induce photosensitive epilepsy; however the health risk is considered relatively small if proper planning of wind turbine\u2019s location and direction.<\/p>\n
Many data indicate that the three conditions that are necessary to cause the shadow flicker are: first, there
\nmust be sun shine and no cloud cover; second, the blades have to facing
\ndirectly toward or away from the sun; third, the observer has to be close
\nenough to the object to be in its shadow.<\/p>\n
First of all, there is very little chance to meet all three conditions
\nthat are necessary to cause shadow flicker. Secondly, we can avoid shadow
\nflicker from happening by proper sitting of the wind turbine.\u00a0 So many experts hold that shadow flicker is
\nnot the majority effects of health.<\/p>\n
However, shadow flicker is still a safety concern, since it can distract driver if it\u2019s locates by the road. In UK, wind turbine developer have been resolved the problem by shutting down turbines for the period during the day when shadow flicker is an issue.<\/p>\n
Noise impact has been considered as the most serious issue compare to other health impact by wind turbine. Wind turbine is easily annoyance even at a low frequency. Many residents, who live around the wind farm area, complain that they could not rest and always awakened because of the
\nnoise of wind turbine.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s a great idea that all wind turbines are tested before they\u2019re built or permitted,\u2019\u2019 said Eleanor Tillinghast, a steering committee member of Windwise Massachusetts. He states that \u201cThe problem is that the state\u2019s testing doesn\u2019t capture the infrasound, what you can\u2019t hear, which is what\u2019s affecting the body.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
The turbine noise can be controlled by reducing the rotational speed of the blades or shut down after a certain time to avoid affecting the residents.<\/p>\n
However, according to the chief executive of Fox Island Wind, George Baker, that turning down the turbines leads to an economic cost.<\/p>\n
Even though the wind turbines have been caused some impact to human\u2019s health. However, as a potentially excellent sustainable energy, by efficiently generate a great amount of energy with relatively low cost; wind energy is an indispensable second generation green energy. We can avoid those health impacts by carefully planning of location and the direction of blades. The simplest solution, suggests by Richard R.James, an acoustic expert, is that do not put the turbines so close to where people live.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Cite:<\/p>\n
Keping Hua Health Impact Blog EK 132 Wind Energy Prof. Grace 11\/16\/2012 Wind Energy, considered to have high potential and have already realized relatively low production costs compare to other sustainable energies. However, it may be difficult to site wind turbines in some areas, due to the aesthetic or environmental reasons and might cause human […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3677,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[26959],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/ek130wind\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/739"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/ek130wind\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/ek130wind\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/ek130wind\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3677"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/ek130wind\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=739"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/ek130wind\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/739\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":748,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/ek130wind\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/739\/revisions\/748"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/ek130wind\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=739"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/ek130wind\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=739"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/ek130wind\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=739"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}