So Wind Farms Really are Health Hazards? (World Health Organisation Report, 10 October 2018)

A Big Surprise to the Wind Commissioner and the Wind Industry Cabal?

For an expenditure of some $1 million or more of taxpayers’ funds over the last three years the Wind Commissioner has been able to keep those country Australians with serious complaints about adjacent wind farms under “control,” whilst allowing the industry to siphon an additional $5 billion or thereabouts in subsidies (the WETax) from power consumers.

DeFrock believes the Commissioner, should be replaced immediately before the industry wreaks more harm on country Australians and to the Australian economy.

Meantime DeFrock will be publishing correspondence, discussions and notes of direct experience country Australians have had with the Commissioner.

The wind industry has denied there is a health and safety problem for at least 10 years; as have other major deniers, being Fairfax, the ABC and the Greens, none known for their technical expertise in these matters, yet have displayed neglect, even scorn, for country Australians’ problems with wind projects.

The Commissioner, despite being an engineer with the additional acoustic experience of being a serious musician, after three years in the position and despite being counselled by Stop These Things, the Waubra Foundation and several very knowledgeable and independent acousticians and engineers has, up until last week, lent his support to the “no damage” cabal of developers, State politicians and planning authorities.  He has now adroitly shifted ground after the publication by The World Health Organisation (WHO) Report of 10 October, 2018 which was reported in The Australian (11 October, 18) thus:

The WHO yesterday confirmed excessive wind turbine noise could be linked to health problems and for the first time included the renewable energy source in regulations covering road noise, aeroplanes and loud music.

A WHO investigation highlighted a lack of quality research into wind farm noise and health and said because of its special characteristics, existing measurements might not be adequate.

This was immediately followed up by our quick–footed Commissioner thus:

Mr Dyer said he would prefer to see a uniform noise level set in all states.

“The important thing is to ensure that the WHO guidelines were not exceeded at any premises,” Mr Dyer said. “The tricky thing in this business is who has authority to set standards, implement them and police them.”

The Commissioner is apparently not too well respected in country Australia, the only place where these monstrous machines are planted, nor by those who have, in good faith, engaged with him but have made zero progress in getting him to:

• acknowledge that the industry is harming country Australians;
• force the industry to accept their product is unsafe and that something needs to be done to correct this;
• shamed or manoeuvred any of the major wind power producers to offer to pay adequate compensation to those they have been harmed or forced to abandon their homes, and in some cases, their livelihoods.

The CEO of the Waubra Foundation, in a submission to the Climate Change Authority’s Review of the position of the Commissioner, gave her views regarding the performance of the Commissioner (see https://waubrafoundation.org.au/resources/review-national-wind-farm-commissioner/ ).

The Waubra Foundation is unique in that its only purpose is to research the health impacts of industrial machinery, including wind turbine projects. DeFrock wonders how diligent the Commissioner has been in researching the Waubra Foundation’s website, or keeping up to date with the Foundation’s world acclaimed CEO?

Defrock’s Perception

It is not hard to conclude that the real objective behind the Commissioner’s appointment (did then Environment Minister Hunt play a part in this?) was to make a show of attending to country families’ ongoing problems. More colloquially it probably was “shut the whingers up and do not get the industry offside”.

So for the industry and the government the Wind Commissioner has done an excellent job.

The urgent need now is for the current Minister to move the Commissioner to a more appropriate post, or just bite the bullet and payout his contract. What we really need is to replace or override the Commissioner with a tough operator with a wider and balanced objective.

What is absolutely necessary is that the present incumbent does not have a say in the redrafting for his (now discovered) need for tighter rules, (see the Australian 11 October, 2018). No one wants to see a torrent of legal cases exploring the darker corners of this industry

Lloyd, The Australian 11-11-18, WHO statement on wind turbine noise