Touted as a clean, renewable, and environmentally-friendly energy source, wind power may have its ‘own environmental problems.’ The energy source’s infrasonic waves produced by the windmills’ rotors may cause health problems in humans that manifest in muscle pains, headaches, tremors, and insomnia. Incidences in Japan have been reported.
“Wind-power generation has been a business success, costing less than solar power generation,” said Tetsuya Iida, head of Japan’s Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies, a nonprofit environmental organization. “There must be a path for residents and nature to coexist. The central government must consider establishing a framework to support finding that way.”
In Japan, there are guidelines that deal with infrasonic noise that causes damage at factories and construction sites which come at the frequency of 20 hertz to 200 hertz, but these guidelines do not cover infrasonic noise that comes from windmills because of the latter’s relatively lower frequency. Oscillating up to a frequency of 20 times per second, these sound waves are not audible to the human ear.
There is a major hindrance correlating infrasonic noise with health problems and further studies are needed to validate the causal relationship. ‘Sensitivity to infrasonic noise’ is relative to every individual, thereby making it a tough challenge to create a standard that would apply across all complaints.
Via PHYSORG
