Noise? What noise?

PRATTSBURGH — The noise you can hear may be a problem for some individuals living near wind farms, according to Rochester- based acoustician Seth Waltz.

But the noise you can't hear may be more troublesome and difficult to predict, Waltz, of avi designs, inc., told the Prattsburgh town board recently.

"There is no way to guarantee you won't have a problem," Waltz told board members.

Prattsburgh board members hope to craft a wind law using information from sound consultants to protect residents from the severe noise problems at the First Wind project reported by residents in the neighboring town of Cohocton last February. The First Wind project in Cohocton became operational in January and has 50 turbines.

Wind farm-generated noise has become a concern at other sites in Steuben County, with the Town of Hartsville enacting a year-long moratorium last February on industrial wind development to study noise and other issues.

Town of Bath board members recently proposed a sixmonth moratorium in order to set regulations, including noise, in the event a wind farm is ever proposed there.

Prattsburgh is the site of two proposed wind farms, with developers First Wind and Ecogen planning projects in the town.

While First Wind is on hiatus because of the economy, Ecogen officials said earlier this year the firm was ready to break ground for 16 turbines in Prattsburgh. Ecogen maintains its Siemens turbines will not produce the same noise generated by the GE turbines in Cohocton.

So far, the Prattsburgh board has heard widely differing views on noise from experts.

Ecogen's sound consultant, Peter H. Guldberg, of Waltham, Mass., told residents in April the firm's turbine will make less noise, adding the project falls within guidelines set by the state Department of Environmental Conservation. Ecogen is now looking at technology to muffle noise caused by exhaust fans at the base of the towers.

Guldberg promised Prattsburgh residents they would not have "sleepless nights."

But acoustical engineer Rick James, of Michigan, hired by some town residents, told the board in May the development will turn the town into an industrial zone, with intrusive noise on a constant basis.James warned the board about the detrimental effects of both high and low frequency sounds, and recommended setbacks of 0.5 miles to .75 miles depending on the surroundings.

During his initial meeting with the Prattsburgh board two weeks ago, Waltz warned the board any wind facilities law based only on decibel levels would likely outlaw other sounds falling in the same range.DEC guidelines are based on averages recorded during set periods of time and don't account for peaks and valleys in noise levels, Waltz said.

"(DEC) guidelines give more allowance to be noisy," Waltz told the board.

But while the DEC is concerned with high frequencies measured in decibels, low frequency sounds are more likely to be disruptive and are more difficult to predict, Waltz told the board.

He said the lower sound ranges can't be heard but are responsible for rattling windows in homes or in some cases, physical problems including vomiting.

Predicting the effect of the undetected sounds is extremely difficult, and depends on bedrock and water near a turbine site, Waltz said. Both are extremely good conductors of low frequency noise which builds up intensity until it strikes another object.

The tall, hollow turbines with their shifting blades are likely to cause problems, he said.

"There's going to be bad units," he said. "There's got to be bad units."

Waltz is expected to report to the Prattsburgh board Tuesday on his firm's sound studies in the area and propose a fee for continued services.

Prattsburgh Town Supervisor Harold McConnell said Friday the board contacted Waltz to help them design a wind law and provide some specifications.

"Noise is only one of the issues," he said. "And, to tell you the truth, I don't know where we'll get the money from. We don't have the money."

McConnell said he supposed there is always a possibility of low level noise occurring as a result of any wind farm.

"I don't know that it's a special concern," McConnell said.