Wind Turbines Increase Risks to Human Health - 8 April 2025

MEDIA RELEASE

Date: 8 April 2025

Media contact: admin@wmeap.com

WIND TURBINES INCREASE RISKS TO HUMAN HEALTH

At the meeting of the Wimmera Mallee Environmental and Agricultural Protection Association Inc. on Monday, April 28th, the audience listened to Barrister Mr Raymond Broomhall discuss the very serious adverse health effects that wind turbines may potentially cause to humans and livestock.

The 140 people present, who came from as far as Charlton, Horsham, Woomelang, Birchip, were told of potential health risks of exposure to non-ionising electromagnetic radiation that wind turbines and high voltage powerlines emit, particularly children.

The group was told the radiation may travel many kilometres from the source and that certain levels of radiation may cause serious illness in adults and children.

Mr Broomhall discussed widely accepted and known symptoms that people exposed to electromagnetic radiation may experience, ranging from tinnitus, headaches, brain fog and heart palpitations.

He explained that the Australian Specialist Medical Review Council declared that there is sound scientific and medical evidence to include exposure to non-ionising electromagnetic radiation as factors in leukaemia and also deaths attributable to Alzheimer’s.

He said the World Health Organisation warns there is a consistent association between exposure to non-ionising electromagnetic radiation and leukaemia, in particular children at levels above .3 of a microtesla. He said that each wind turbine has the potential to emit a magnetic field of 1.4 million microtesla.

He discussed known Australian and Italian leukaemia cancer clusters associated with exposure to non-ionising electromagnetic radiation at a distance of 10kms or less from the source. He outlined successful court cases compensating victims with such exposure.

Of note he said that the radiation has the potential to cause the reactivation of the Epstein-Barr virus and the leukaemia causing Human T-cell lymphotropic virus HTVL-1 virus that many people already have dormant in their bodies.

He said that there is a risk that sheep and cattle infected with dormant bovine leukemia virus (BLV) could have the dormant virus reactivated. Reactivated livestock could be infectious and spread to the whole herd.

Mr Broomhall also discussed his concerns that implanted life support devices such as pacemakers and insulin pumps are designed to withstand an electric field up to 3 volts per metre as per Australian Standards. He said nearby sources could expose residents nearby to an electric field in excess of 3 volts potentially causing such devices to malfunction. As an example, he pointed to evidence that the telecommunications tower on Woolcock Street in Warracknabeal may expose people to between 3 and 9.08 volts within a 500m radius from the tower.

He explained that the cumulative effect of 230 wind turbines at the proposed Warracknabeal Energy Park situated within 5 to 8kms from the township and the Park’s associated high-voltage powerlines has the potential to expose residents to much higher levels of radiation than a single telecommunications tower.

He outlined occupational health and safety concerns for workers, performing their work directly underneath or in close proximity to wind turbines and high voltage powerlines.

Mr Broomhall commented that wind turbines, transmission lines, substations, telecommunications towers, smart meters and even battery inverters all emit this type of radiation and people should be very careful living near these facilities.

Chair of WMEAP, Ross Johns thanked Mr Broomhall for providing the people of the Wimmera Mallee with this vital information as they face numerous wind facilities planned to be built very close to towns and rural residences over the next few years.

Ross commented that the roll out of renewable energy projects throughout the agricultural regions is not in the best interest of Australia.

The next meeting of Wimmera Mallee Environmental & Agricultural Protection Association will be held on May 26th at the Warracknabeal Community Centre, 7pm.

-ENDS-