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Senator wants inquiry into 'unhealthy' turbines

28 Jul, 2010 01:00 AM
A MEETING with Cape Bridgewater residents has spurred Family First leader Senator Steve Fielding to call for a Senate inquiry into the health effects of living near wind farms.

The Melbourne-based politician yesterday said he had met more than 25 people from the Portland district coastal area and Waubra near Ballarat who told him wind farms caused major health problems for those living near turbines.

"There is an obvious cluster of health issues ranging from sleep disturbances, headaches and problems with concentration and memory," he said.

"It makes no sense the National Health and Medical Research Council can release a report claiming there is no evidence linking health issues and wind farms without interviewing anyone living near the turbines.

"I've heard about a local farmer who has moved out of his home because of the adverse health effects he and his family have been suffering from the windfarms."

A total of 29 turbines were commissioned at Cape Bridgewater in 2008 after the planning minister went against recommendations of a Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal and a government-appointed panel.

Senator Fielding's office would not reveal the names of Cape Bridgewater residents who told him of their complaints.

"They were a mixture of medium and long-term residents," a spokesman said.

"As they live in a small community they do not want to be identified."

Waubra has 128 turbines completed last year.

Senator Fielding said given the mounting physical evidence from people living near wind farms parliament should investigate.

"I think it's only fair that if a cluster of symptoms arise in a local population at approximately the same time we owe it to the people to take a closer look," the senator said.

"We all want to live in a clean environment, but we need to make sure it's not at the cost of the local population who have to live near wind farms.

"It may be the case that we need to set out guidelines as to how close wind farms can be built to someone's home, but I wouldn't want to pre-empt any Senate inquiry."

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Date: Newest first | Oldest first
The Turbine Peddlers Represent Green Fraud...........Message from a Wildlife Biologist There is growing worldwide opposition the deadly propeller style wind turbine for good reason. There has been a corporate/government cover-up for over 25 years concerning the extreme danger they pose to birds and bats. For those that have not seen it, take a look at the YouTube video “fatal accident with vulture on a windmill”. A Griffon Vulture gets smashed out of the sky by the innocent looking blades of a propeller style wind turbine. The wind turbine in the video is spinning at just 12 rpm or about half speed. After seeing this you will understand what is coming to the local and migratory bird populations, all over the world. In Canada, a recent study of bird and bat mortality at Wolfe Island’s 82-turbine wind farm found 600 birds and more than a thousand bats were killed by the windmill blades in a six-month period.
Posted by wiegand, 28/07/2010 4:34:12 AM, on The Warrnambool Standard
FRAUD.............Over the last 25 years in Altamont Pass, more than 2,000 golden eagles have been killed by the blades of the propeller-style wind turbine. The corrupt wind/oil industry (they are one in the same) paid experts to say it was just an aberration and that Altamont was unique. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is involved in this fraud because they deliberately looked the other way while wind farms were built in the habitat of the condor and whooping crane. They even helped write the “No Surprises” clause into federal law, which gives this industry a free pass for killing endangered species. They have a relationship with the wind industry just as the MMS has with their connection to the oil industry. It is Corrupt. The most insidious impact from the use of propeller style wind turbines, is the slaughter of migratory Birds. The negative footprint from wind energy is far greater than the obvious. A perfect example is the Whooping Crane that travels 2500 miles only to be chopped up in the thousands of spinning blades along their migration route. The critically endangered Egyptian Vulture is another migratory victim of these turbines.
Posted by wiegand, 28/07/2010 4:52:13 AM, on The Warrnambool Standard
FRAUD...Paid off experts fraudulently cite collisions with power lines as being the primary reason. This same fraudulent excuse was given for missing Condors in California. Now the condor is regularly fed at feeding stations far away from the turbines to keep them alive. Remember this.........when the propeller style wind turbine is introduced into their habitats, it becomes the number one cause of death for rare and endangered bird species. Despite what the industry states, cats, cars, windows, buildings, etc. are not the problem. These mortality factors did not kill off the Red Kite populations that have disappeared from Germany and Italy. The prop wind turbines have killed them off. At the current rate of wind farm development, dozens of bird species will soon face extinction from this diabolical source of energy. The truth is no bird or bat is safe around a propeller-style wind turbine.
Posted by wiegand, 28/07/2010 4:54:37 AM, on The Warrnambool Standard
The silen majority known wind energy is uesless and a health hazard Mr Fielding you have my vote
Posted by Beth, 28/07/2010 7:58:16 AM, on The Warrnambool Standard
toss wind turbines go solar, onl a vote killer for the ALP
Posted by Ben Mcgann, 28/07/2010 12:05:36 PM, on The Warrnambool Standard
Anyone that has watched birds of all types fly at high speed through trees and bushes will know that wind farms pose little or no real threat to wildlife, and as to being detrimental to health as long as one does not try to climb them there is no problem, they make little noise and are too high to provide any electrical side effects, and Fielding would know this if he is an electrical engineer.
Posted by cinico, 28/07/2010 1:55:53 PM, on The Warrnambool Standard
honestly? I dont get these greenie activist types, you want sustainable energy, but on your terms, you dont want coal, you dont want nuclea, you dont want wind, all you want is solar. It's time to pull your heads in and either come up with a better solution or make the like red kite and disappear. You cant stop progress, sorry if i'm not being symPATHETIC toward you and your little causes, but just use your heads a bit.
Posted by joke, 28/07/2010 4:32:28 PM, on The Warrnambool Standard
Cinico should google waubra wind farm health issues to see the stories done on this very issue. Stop peddling the wind companies spin, wind farms no different to the good old tobacco companies
Posted by Francis, 28/07/2010 4:41:00 PM, on The Warrnambool Standard
I live near Cape Bridgewater and Im not complaining! Don't see any one at Codrington or Yambuck or Cape Nelson complaining either and they live closer than people at Bridgy! Toughen up!
Posted by Local, 28/07/2010 5:47:19 PM, on The Warrnambool Standard
funny how the landholders with the turbine never say anything publicly, but behind closed doors complain. These same dills have signed contracts that leave them in a legal mess and have to decommission these things! google waubra wind farm contract or stockyard hill wind farm contract to see Origin's and Acciona's contracts. Only a dill would sign, by the way people with the turbines never seem any better off once they have them?
Posted by Brian, 28/07/2010 6:19:21 PM, on The Warrnambool Standard
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