Annoyance and sleep disturbance responses in people living in the vicinity of wind turbines in the Netherlands

In order to achieve global and national climate goals, wind energy production in the Netherlands and elsewhere will likely continue to grow, and the size and capacity of new and replaced turbines will increase. Therefore, it is important to understand the impact of wind turbines on people living in their vicinity. Current evidence on health effects of living in the vicinity of wind turbines in The Netherlands is lacking. To fill this knowledge gap we conducted a nationwide survey among 3500 people living within 5 km distance of wind turbines, of whom 662 people (19%) participated. They completed a questionnaire about annoyance and sleep disturbance responses to wind turbine related exposures (e.g., mechanical sound, sound of blades, and visual aspects), as well as questions about general health, perception of risks, and attitudes. Information about local wind turbine features (distance, hub height, capacity, and rotor diameter) was available for each address. This paper presents preliminary descriptive results for annoyance and sleep disturbance responses to wind turbine sound. These findings and their limitations are discussed against the background of the challenges encountered and considerations for future research.