Kingston Wind Turbine Acoustical Study Released

08.17.2015 |

HMMH is pleased to announce the release of the Kingston Wind Independence (KWI) Turbine Acoustical Monitoring Study report prepared for the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP). HMMH conducted the study in response to a request from the KWI operator and the Town of Kingston (MA) Board of Health to MassCEC and MassDEP to address questions and concerns voiced by local residents regarding noise from the wind turbine.

The study represents one of the most comprehensive programs of field measurements and data analysis of wind turbine sound conducted in the U.S. It is based on two separate acoustical monitoring campaigns – attended monitoring of turbine on and turbine off sound levels at the quietest times of night between December 2013 and April 2014, and continuous unattended monitoring of background ambient sound levels with the KWI turbine off for a five day period in September 2014. Field data collection of ambient and wind turbine sound levels represent a multitude of different conditions – seasons, weather, wind speed and direction, time of day, background noise levels – from a diversity of receptor sites around the wind turbine. The data and analysis was provided to MassCEC and MassDEP to assess potential wind turbine noise impacts, as defined by the MassDEP’s noise policy.

HMMH is pleased to have contributed scientific data and analysis on ambient and wind turbine produced sound to inform policy and impact assessment. HMMH provided all of the raw acoustical monitoring data as part of the report which is now available for public review.