Falmouth Wind Turbines Go Back To Court Again

Wind Turbine Neighbors vs. Town of Falmouth et al --Barnstable Superior Court -Courtroom 2 -04/24/2018 -- 02:15 PM

What is at stake here is how many of the wind turbine documents can the town hide from the courts and the residents of Falmouth.

Between 2010 and 2012 the Town of Falmouth installed two foreign-made Vestas V-82 type 1.65 megawatt wind turbines that each generates a chest pounding 110 decibels of noise. The turbines took the health and property rights of up to 184 residential homes.

Massachusetts state studies in 2005 showed the Vestas type turbines generate two distinct types of noise, regulatory measured in decibels and human annoyance or what today is called low-frequency infrasound. Vestas wind turbine CEO Engel Ditlev In 2011 admitted their turbines generate infra-sound and they do not have the technology to stop it.

In 2005 the Town of Falmouth had a study and noise map done by KEMA Incorporated that showed a General Electric 1.5 megawatt wind turbine would exceed state noise regulations on Black Smith Shop Road. General Electric refused to place a single wind turbine because of residential setbacks and ice throw to a nearby highway.

The Town of Falmouth also had Special Permit requirements to install wind turbines. The permit process required going before the Falmouth Zoning Board and additional notification to the residential homeowners around the town wastewater treatment plant. The town during the Special Permit process would have to produce all the wind turbine documents to the ZBA and residential homeowners who are the abutters.

The bottom line any notifications to the neighbors would end all plans for the installations of megawatt wind turbines something the town had to avoid at all costs. The costs or trade-off are the health and property rights of 184 residential homeowners.

Falmouth assistant town manager and manager of the first town-owned wind turbine installation Heather Harper told a group of Brewster residents: "We took on a huge risk and I think we were successful but we're a large community and I think we can take on that risk." So what was the risk? The Vestas wind turbines installed are twice as loud as the General Electric wind turbine and the town had the KEMA Incorporated map from 2005 that showed the Vestas wind turbines would increase noise levels to near 60 decibels at up to 184 residential homes.

The town officials made a choice to go forward building the wind turbines with no permits as the permit process would require written certified notifications to the neighbors in which case the turbines could not be built. They had to hide all negative documents from the public to build the wind turbines.

The Town of Falmouth had emails from Vestas wind company prior to the installations that the turbines generate 110 decibels of noise twice as loud as a General Electric company wind turbine. The emails were not made public until after the installations of both turbines.

The Town of Falmouth had a warning letter from Vestas in August of 2010 reiterating the email warnings of 110 decibels of noise. The town did not want anyone to see these documents and still has never posted the warning letter on the town wind turbine document web site eight years later!

In June of 2009, the Town of Falmouth held a Special Town Meeting financing the turbines in which a town meeting member asked about blade throw from the turbines that question was never answered. Vestas documents reccomend setbacks of 1640 feet for runaway blade throw. Blade throw accidents over the years have shown debris over 1640 feet from accidents.

The town used 1000 feet as the setbacks despite the 110-decibel noise warnings and 1640 foot blade throw dangers.

The town never conducted a noise study for the second wind turbine Falmouth Wind II or both turbines operating together because the town was well aware the first wind turbine was out of state noise compliance. Select board member Mary Pat Flynn was notified by MassDEP on May 15, 2012 Wind 1 Broke State Regulations 310 CMR 7.10(1).

The Town of Falmouth today still takes the position that despite the town hiding emails, maps, memos, letters and having no noise studies for Falmouth Wind II that the neighbors should have known?

The town claims through a legal loophole the Doctrine of Laches applies to the town. This legal doctrine means that the neighbors of the wind turbines waited too long to appeal the installations of the wind turbines.

The Town of Falmouth has had up to 13 litigation cases over the wind turbines. Embarrassed local officials have convinced Town Meeting to approve hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years to hire Beacon Hill law firms to keep the hidden documents from judges and juries.

Barnstable Superior Court Judge Cornelius Moriarty issued the order to shut down Falmouth's Wind 1 and Wind 2 on June 20, 2017.

It's obvious to the most casual observer that the Town of Falmouth always knew and hid the dangers of the wind turbines.The trade-off was the town would make money and reduce its carbon footprint but in turn, put at risk the health of 184 residential homeowners with noise, shadow flicker, ice, and blade throw.

It's time to stop the insanity but the "Friends of Falmouth Wind" are still filing litigation.

The "Friends of Falmouth Wind" include your elected and officials appointed by your elected officials.

KEMA Inc map 2005 showing one General Electric wind turbine exceeds 40 decibels Black Smith Shop Road.