A lot of baseless claims get made by those working against clean energy to prop up competitors. Often, they make scientific or medical claims that are fabricated from whole cloth, like the claim that when it comes to wind turbines, “They say the noise causes cancer.”
The New York Times investigated this, and many other claims. Here’s what they said:
The suggestion that turbine noises cause cancer is completely unfounded. “The American Cancer Society is unaware of any credible evidence linking the noise from windmills to cancer,” a spokeswoman for the group said in an email.
Separately, some researchers have been investigating claims that noise from wind turbines might cause other health problems like nausea, headaches or sleeplessness. So far, experts haven’t found strong evidence of links to those conditions, although that debate is likely to persist.
They also noted that coal power plants – an energy source often promoted by those attacking wind and solar power on environmental grounds –
“There is ample evidence linking the particulate pollution from coal plants to heart disease, respiratory problems, and lung cancer. When Mr. Trump moved to relax restrictions on coal plant pollution last year, his own Environmental Protection Agency estimated that the change could lead to as many as 1,400 additional premature deaths each year by 2030.”