Too-Close Wind Turbine Noise May Be Unhealthful

"'People who say the noise makes them ill are exaggerating, says Rudy Jaeger, 67, who has a turbine on his farm. "It's no worse than traffic driving by.' Francis Ferguson, chairman of the Byron Town Board, which voted to approve the project here, has heard talk that the sound makes people sick, but says, 'I haven't seen any documentation.'"

"Eric Rosenbloom of National Wind Watch, an information clearinghouse, says noise and health concerns are the top issues in communities considering them. The group recommends 1-mile setbacks from homes.

Rick James, an acoustical engineer from Okemos, Mich., suggests keeping turbines 1¼ miles from homes.

That makes sense to Larry Wunch, a firefighter who lives a few miles from the Meyers. Turbines encircle his property, and when the wind tops 15 mph, he says, they 'just scream.' The closest is 1,100 feet from his house."