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Industrial wind not just an eyesore, it’s an issue on many fronts
Credit: The Laconia Daily Sun | 05 October 2013 | www.laconiadailysun.com ~~
Translate: FROM English | TO English
Translate: FROM English | TO English
To any that have an ear, let them hear:
As a resident of the Newfound Region, I am very disgusted by the invasion of industrial wind projects in my community. With the potential of four different foreign-owned projects planned around Newfound Lake, I see the Groton Wind Project as not just an eyesore, but an assault on the environment and the well being of people (taxpayers) who are left dealing with reduced property values, loss of quality of life in their homes and on their property, and strife within their communities.
Residents of the Newfound Region living around the Groton Wind Project now live with red flashing lights at night, loud roaring of industrial engines whenever the blades are spinning (day or night), shadow flicker from the blades for hours at a time during various parts of the day, the whooshing of the blades as they spin, and the low frequency vibrations that are not audible but are felt within the body.
The Newfound watershed is of great concern as this is what provides residents of this area with drinking water. Industrial wind turbine construction will alter the flow of ground water affecting the watershed in ways no human, specialist, or agency can predict.
I have lived in this community for almost a decade and enjoyed the numerous sitings of red-tailed hawks, bald eagles, owls, blue heron, bats, migrating Canadian Geese and other seasonal birds, moose, black bear, coyotes, fox, and yes, even a wolf or two! Raptors rely on the thermal currents of air provided by the Newfound ridge lines in order to feed. A number of birds migrate along the Newfound ridge lines. It is not wise to place 500-ft. industrial turbines with blades larger then a 747 spinning at speeds that can reach well over 100-mph directly in the path of such animals that help to control our mosquito population and our rodent population.
As for economic benefits, I see very few. There may be a handful of temporary local jobs created, but not guaranteed. There will only be a few permanent jobs created and those are not guaranteed to be filled by local residents either. PILOT payments made by Industrial Wind companies to host towns only reduce the “town portion” of your tax by a minimal amount. The rest of the PILOT money can be used to increase town employee’s payroll or benefits, purchase new equipment, upgrade roads, etc. It is not likely that tax payers will see any significant reduction in their property taxes unless they receive an abatement for the reduced value of their property. Those that benefit the most are the landowners leasing their land to the industrial wind company, and of course, the foreign-owned industrial wind companies.
Industrial wind is not just an eyesore issue. This is a quality of life issue, environmental issue, community well being issue, political issue, and an economic issue.
Michelle Sanborn
Alexandria
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