Infrasound and horses

[Emilieu]

Bit of a weird one. I'm just reading an essay on Wind Farms and it mentions the possible negative effects of infrasound emitted by the turbines on human health (depression and nausea?). Apparently infrasound is also the way in which animals predict storms etc. I'm just pondering - could the arrival of a wind turbine in the nearby area make horses spooky? Anyone had any experience of this? Or it is an old wives' tale?

 

[weesophz]

i have no clue but i do know they are pretty scary to look at

 

[Emilieu]

Ha ha, i think they are kind of pretty...

 

[weesophz]

theyre dead alien looking i think! we went a drive up to the wind farm and it was so eerie, the only thing we could hear was the whooshing noise they make

 

[Emilieu]

I run there and think the noise is quite comforting! Probably all the evidence I need that they don't have a negative effct on human health... hope it is nonsense, the things are everywhere, they seem to put a new one up every day!

 

[Molasses]

I keep my horses beside a turbine and they graze happily, I also work in the renewables industry so I practise what I preach

there are lots of equestrian business near turbines
heres a good case study if you want evidence
http://www.tribepr.com/news-views/news/march-2013/winning-horses-have-the-wind-behind-them

It mustn't be forgotten that infrasound is produced in nature, the most everyday example is weather, or waves on the beach. All it simply is, is sound in the frequency range below 20Hz. (An average young healthy adult has an audible range from 20Hz to 20,000Hz). Wind turbines do produce low frequency sounds, but our threshold of hearing at such low frequencies is relatively high and they therefore go unnoticed. Infrasound from wind turbines is often at levels below that of noise generated by wind around buildings and other obstacles.

In 2004 the former DTI commissioned a report on claims that infrasound or low frequency noise emitted by wind turbine generators were causing health effects. Of the 126 wind farms operating in the UK in 2004, five had reported low frequency noise problems, therefore, such complaints are the exception rather than a general problem which exists for all wind farms. They investigated the effects of infrasound and Low frequency sound at three wind farms for which complaints had been received, the results were reported in May 2006. The report concluded that:
• infrasound associated with modern wind turbines is not a source which will result in noise levels which may be injurious to the health of a wind farm neighbour;

If you want to know more just PM me, its a topic I know too much about

 

[Emilieu]

Molasses this is exactly what I wanted to know. Thank you!