Health and well-being related to wind turbine noise exposure: Summary of results

Abstract

This paper summarizes the results of the Health Canada Wind Turbine Noise and Health Study. One participant between the ages of 18–79 years was randomly selected from each household. The final sample included 1238 participates (606 males) living between 0.25 and 11.22 km from wind turbines. The response rate was 78.9% and did not significantly vary across sampling strata or between provinces. Wind turbine noise (WTN) exposure was not found to be related to hair cortisol concentrations, resting blood pressure, resting heart rate, or any of the measured sleep parameters. Self-reported results obtained through an in-person questionnaire do not provide support for an association between increasing WTN levels and self-reported sleep disturbance, use of sleep medication, or diagnosed sleep disorders. Similarly, no significant association was found between WTN levels and self-reported migraines, tinnitus, dizziness, diabetes, asthma, hypertension, perceived stress, or any measure of quality of life. Statistically significant exposure-response relationships were observed between increasing WTN levels and an increase in the prevalence of long term high annoyance towards several wind turbine features, including: noise, shadow-flicker, visual impacts, and vibrations. The influence of background noise on annoyance and the association between WTN annoyance and other reported and measured outcomes is presented.