Residents living within the Golden West Wind Energy Centerís footprint in Calhan, Colorado, have reported negative physical and psychological effects from the turbines since it became fully operational in October 2015. The center consists of 145 453-foot tall industrial wind turbines, connected to an electrical substation in Falcon by 29 miles of overhead transmission lines.Magda Havas, an associated professor of environmental and resource studies at Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada, said those negative effects are related to the quality of the electricity produced by the turbines.ìWhen the turbines operate, as the wind is turning them, it is generating power,î Havas said. ìThat power is stored on a DC current, meaning it (current) does not oscillate back and forth. It must be converted to an AC (alternating) current with a 60-cycle frequency. In order to do that, the current goes through an inverter; and that produces electricity if it is not done properly; and it is very difficult to do it properly. And it is expensive.îAccording to her website, http://magdahavas.com, Havas has studied the effects of wind turbines on human health and is considered an expert in her field. She has provided expert testimony in more than 12 countries on the health effects of electromagnetic pollution.Dave Stetzer, owner of Stetzer Consulting LLC, in Blair, Wisconsin, said he has been in the electrical field for more than 40 years and can definitively point to the dirty electricity from the wind farm project as the cause of the health issues nearby residents have reported.When the electricity is converted from a direct current to an alternating one, the current oscillates at the 60-cycle or 60-hertz frequency but carries an additional 20 kilohertz of dirty electricity on top of it, Stetzer said. ìThat 20 kilohertz is like a fingerprint,î he said. ìIf you are near a wind farm and see 20 kilohertz, you know it is from the wind farm.îHavas said the dirty electricity is not the only problem; the ground current produced is equally harmful.Stetzer agreed about the dangers of ground current, and said he conducted a 572-day study on the correlation between ground current and the daily milk production in more than 30,000 dairy cows. When the ground current was flowing, even as little as 10 millivolts, milk production dropped more than 90 percent of the time, he said.Cows near wind farm projects are often seen lifting their feet to break the circuit and keep the current from running through them, Havas said. They are referred to as ìdancing cows,î she said. ìThe electricity is actually flowing up one leg and across the body, then down the other leg,î Havas said. ìIt flows right across the reproductive organs.îHavas said miscarriages or difficulty conceiving are commonly recognized as issues related to ground current moving through an animalís body. However, she said ground current coupled with dirty electricity creates an even worse problem, resulting in issues like mastitis or foot sores that will not heal ó and swollen joints. Often, there are deformities in the newly-born animals in the area, as well, she said. These complaints are not relegated to just farm animals; often the people living on the farms complain of similar symptoms as well, Havas said.According to the May issue of The New Falcon Herald, a resident living near the Golden West Wind Energy Center had a horse deliver a stillborn, premature foal, and the vet was not able to determine the cause of the foalís death. The same resident noticed that one 6-week-old goat was born with four teats instead of two, the articles states. Havas and Stetzer both said they were not surprised to hear of the incidents. In fact, that electricity dissipates internally to the human body at as little as 2 kilohertz, so the 20 kilohertz from a wind farm project is definitely something to worry about, Stetzer said.ìIt is not psychosomatic; it is measurable,î he said. ìThe courts have said that I am an expert, and that I can offer an expert opinion based on facts and measurements, but it really is not opinions anymore. These are cold, hard facts and the results can be measured.îPart of the problem in proving the dangerous effects of the dirty electricity and ground current is that only part of the human population is sensitive to it, Havas said. It can be likened to a peanut allergy; someone allergic to peanuts will get sick if exposed to them; while someone who is not allergic will not react at all, she said.According to the September 2015 issue of the NFH, the El Paso County Board of County Commissioners approved the Golden West Wind Energy Center project and heard expert testimony from Chris Ollson, on behalf of the projectís owner, NextEra Energy Resources. Ollson, the vice president of strategic development for Intrinsik Inc., is considered an authority in environmental issues related to the energy sector and has provided risk communication support for wind turbine projects, the article states.The NFH attempted to contact Ollson for comment but was informed by Intrinsik that he is no longer employed with them. Other attempts to contact Ollson were unsuccessful.Both Stetzer and Havas said there is a way to fix the dirty electricity and ground current problem and that is to filter it. ìWe know the characteristics of the electricity that we want,î Stetzer said. ìWe want only the 60-hertz frequency, not the 20 kilohertz one. You can filter the frequency so only the 60-hertz frequency can go through.îStetzer said he has never come across a wind farm project that had been constructed or equipped with such a filter. ìCan we fix it (dirty electricity and ground current problem)?î he said. ìYes. Can we use wind energy safely? Yes, but it is going to cost some money.î
