Wind Energy Health Effects

Wind energy is poised to be a major contributor to a sustainable energy future, but there is significantly less research on its possible impacts to human health. EAP students Elizabeth Jurado (Environment and Resources), Samantha Jurvich (Public Affairs), and Kaitryn Olson (Agricultural and Applied Economics) aimed to unearth and analyze the most recent research available in this area for the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin’s Wind Siting Council. To accomplish this, the team performed a literature review, examining papers focusing on positive or negative health impacts related to wind turbines as well as siting policies in the US and abroad.

In reviewing 81 total papers for its final report, the EAP team found that papers addressing negative health effects focused primarily on auditory impacts to health while also considering visual impacts at different setback distances. Conversely, papers discussing positive health effects centered on the health benefits associated with transitioning from current fossil fuel-based energy systems towards wind. The majority of papers in this category discussed indirect health benefits, many of them monetizing the positive health impacts resulting from reductions in air pollution.

The types of health effects discussed fell into categories of either direct or indirect impacts. Direct impacts are effects caused by the mere presence of wind turbines, such as turbine noise (WTN) effects on heart rate. On the other hand, indirect impacts are those which are directly causal to an intermediary effect that may have health consequences, such as visual aesthetics, perceptions of wind energy, and property values. In understanding projected health effects, Jurado, Jurvich, and Olson related these findings to authentic situations, revealing how actual communities surrounding wind turbine infrastructure respond to these installations, with the ultimate goal of designing better siting policies to address potential concerns.