Ontario's new sound guidelines and wind energy

Sound and vibration are considered to be pollutants. This paper provides an outline of sound guidelines and their relationship to wind energy and Ontario's Environmental Protection Act, which prohibits the discharge of noises that cause or are likely to cause adverse effects. Certificates of approval are needed for wind turbine generators. The approval process is detailed in this paper, referring to existing limits in urban and rural areas, with sound level limits being based on the source producing the same sound level as background ambient sound levels. Background sound levels included traffic and nature as well as wind. For wind turbines, the ambient is related to the wind induced level by adding 7 decibels to the wind induced background sound level in exposed areas. Points of reception are considered to be locations outdoors where a person may be exposed to the sound or the plane of an exterior door or window of a room in which a person may be exposed to the sound, where the door or window is open. Sound limits apply within a distance of 30 m from a dwelling or camping area in a rural area, with the exception being dwellings on the premises of the wind energy facility. Certificate of Approval report requirements are also necessary and must include test results of turbines proposed in terms of sound power at the operating speeds to be used, as well as calculations of sound levels at points of reception, using an ISO 9613 sound propagation model. It is stated that there are no requirements to conduct an acoustic audit after the wind farm is in operation, should no complaints arise. Noise waivers are not supported by the Ontario Ministry of Energy. However, it was noted that the wind power industry are free to pursue this matter on a political level. tabs., figs