South Australian EPA says no issue with inaudible wind farm noise

A report released by the South Australian Environment Protection Authority (EPA) has finally put to rest a common myth about wind farms - that they create dangerous levels of infrasound, or sound too low for humans to hear, that can be harmful to people who live near wind turbines.

The EPA’s report found that the level of infrasound from wind turbines is insignificant and no different to any other source of noise, and that the worst contributors to household infrasound are air conditioners, traffic and noise generated by people.

Clean Energy Council Policy Director Russell Marsh said the report provided some much-needed clarity in a debate that has often been clouded by misinformation.

“South Australia’s EPA is the most experienced regulatory authority in Australia when it comes to wind farm noise, and this new report provides hard evidence that wind turbines do not cause increased levels of infrasound in surrounding areas, neither inside people’s homes nor outdoors,” Marsh said.

“The study included houses in rural and urban areas, houses both adjacent to a wind farm and away from turbines, and measured the levels of infrasound with the wind farms operating and also switched off.

“There were no noticeable differences in the levels of infrasound under all these different conditions. In fact, the lowest levels of infrasound were recorded at one of the houses closest to a wind farm, whereas the highest levels were found in an urban office building.”

The EPA’s study concluded that the level of infrasound at houses near wind turbines was no greater than in other urban and rural environments, and stated that “the contribution of wind turbines to the measured infrasound levels is insignificant in comparison with the background level of infrasound in the environment.”

Infrasound is sound that is lower than 20 Hz and cannot be detected by normal human hearing. Some anti-wind farm campaigners have argued that wind turbines generate levels of infrasound that cause health effects in people living close by.

This latest report comes on top of the findings of a South Australian Senate committee on wind farms and excessive noise, which said in a report in November last year that “there is no evidence to suggest that inaudible infrasound (either from wind turbines or other sources) is creating health problems.”

“This is yet another clean bill of health for wind farms, which have been proven time and time again to cause no negative health impacts from noise,” Marsh said.

“The results of the EPA’s report show that the real contributors to infrasound are things like air conditioners, traffic and urban office environments - not wind farms. This is great news for clean and safe renewable wind energy and further reassurance for communities near wind farms.”

The report on infrasound levels in South Australia is available to download at http://www.epa.sa.gov.au/environmental_info/noise/wind_farms.