To the Commissioners of Somerset County: In the past decades, Somerset County has missed innumerable opportunities to promote the county and to better the standard of living of its residents. It is imperative that we do not let another such opportunity pass us by. With this in mind, we feel compelled to publicly voice our support for Pioneer Green Energys Great Bay Wind Energy Center. We are speaking out due to the enormous economic impact that Great Bay has and will have for the community in Somerset County. On a more personal note, having wind turbines on the horizon would make us proud that we live in Somerset County. This is exactly the direction we want to see the county moving. In our experience we’ve found that many of the residents of Somerset County value independence, personal freedom, tradition, and security. We believe wind turbines will help us attain and preserve those values. As it stands currently, our county is at the whim of political pressures from Annapolis and elsewhere. If we were able to export energy, that gives us a bargaining chip to get what we want from the state government. An enhanced tax base would permit us to accept less federal money and support ourselves without resorting to building a bridge or a theme park or accept a huge influx of new residents. That said, it would be possible to make the wind farm a tourism draw as has been done in other locations if this is deemed helpful at a later point. We do not want Somerset County to miss out on a great opportunity to bring in tax money from outside the county. Not only that, but we want to see property owners making money from the leases on whose property the wind turbines are being built. We want to see workers who are paid to maintain the turbines spending money locally. And we want people driving through to have visual proof that Somerset County is a destination with a personality, rather than just a speed bump between points A and B. There are a number of arguments that opponents to the wind farm project are making that need to be addressed. Firstly, problems resulting from shadow flicker are being blown out of proportion. Shadow flicker and blade glint are based on wind direction, cloud cover, whether the turbines are running or not, and time of day. Chances that a neighborhood, road, or other more densely populated area will experience flicker are considerably lower than what those against the project would have you believe. According to various research studies, there are NO adverse health effects other than annoyance. The speed of the flicker is considerably lower than what would affect a person with epilepsy. Driving down a road through the woods on a sunny day is likely more of an annoyance than flicker from a wind turbine. However, having been school teachers for 17 total years between us, it is easy to say that flicker would be quite distracting for a classroom full of children. We do need to make sure that there is no risk of shadows over schools during normal school hours. Despite what opponents of the project say, there are no adverse health effects resulting from the noise from wind turbines. The “research” that we are familiar with (including Nina Pierpont’s study) which assert that the low frequency noise can have harmful effects such as headaches, insomnia, tinnitus, dizziness, nausea, and mood suppression, appear to be highly subjective. We do not find that they have any basis in reality. Period. We believe that those who are touting these unfounded ideas may have other motivations for not wanting the turbines. In addition, we do not want the future of our county based on the unsubstantiated claims of a fringe “scientist”. The safety concerns of wind turbines have also been grossly overstated. Ice throws will not be an issue because the turbines being built have the capability to detect ice and shut down. These new turbines have fire extinguisher systems that can put out any fires that might occur, rare as they may be, and prevent any catastrophe. We do know that there have been fires in the UK and the Netherlands in older turbines, but it looks to me that those risks have been mitigated as technology has progressed. As for property values, study after study has shown that there is no net effect on property values from wind turbines. The claim that our property values will plummet appears to be patently false. We recognize that aficionados of historic houses believe that seeing the wind turbines will be detrimental to the historic experience. However, so are cars, street lights, fast food restaurants, etc. We don’t mean to belittle or understate the importance of the historic buildings to the county, but we think in general this is a moot point. In conclusion, please do not be swayed by those persons who are disseminating false information or exaggerated claims in order to influence public opinion. Proponents of what’s good for this county just need a bigger bullhorn. Please do all you can to support Pioneer Green in the construction of the Great Bay Wind Project. Thank you, Jon & Heather Hurst Owners Print & Ship Princess Anne, MD
Posted on: Fri, 19 Sep 2014 15:20:06 +0000
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