I still don't get it.
Why would you have a rule that maintained a level of 55dBA L10 at 300m for noise on the assumption that this would be within a tolerable level to allow sleep and then in the same piece of legislation, allow the placement of a frost fan that met that level within 100 metres of a neighbors property.
It beggars the imagination. This MUST be a mistake. There can be no law that allows for a neighbour to produce that much noise that it prevents sleep without some kind of limit.
It doesn't make sense. Whoever drafted that legislation and whoever proof read it and whoever voted to accept it were either incompetent or ignorant. Possibly both.
6 comments:
In California we have 10s of thousands of wind machines. Farmers have an inherent right to farm. Farming communities are aware that this agriculture is very important to their survival. A few nights of lost sleep is a small price to pay to protect jobs and crops. Any real estate sold in a farming community should come with a document alerting the buyer that farming is an important part of this community and farming practices sometimes interupt the normal routines. As for other cost effective alternative, well, there simply are not any better ways to protect crops from frost damage. By the way, I am the General Manager of one of the largest wind machine manufacturers in the USA. We have never had such a controvery, ever, anywhere. It is absurd to here that a few idiots are going to try and run growers out of business. Why is it that when one or two minority complaints arise, someone runs with it and makes a crisis out of it.
Councils, should drop the issue and treat it as to what it is, simply a disgruntled neighbor trying to upset a quiet thriving community.
Sir, Thank you for your comments. As the General Manager of one of the largest wind machine manufacturers in the USA, you have a unique viewpoint that is not afforded to most. As such I agree that farmers have a right to farm. Furthermore frost fans ARE an excellent form of frost protection. Farmers should use them wherever practical. That does not give them the right to pollute their environment and produce as much noise as they want. I'm sure you'll agree that there must be some limit? The problem is the setting of that limit at the rural / residential interface. The Council in Marlborough have (in my humble opinion) made a genuine mistake in allowing such high level and have been too gutless to correct it. The level is literally the equivalent of sleeping in the same room as a lawnmower.
I can also only presume that the standards for grammar that are set for General Managers for large companies are relatively low (that should be 'hear', not 'here'), and controversy is not spelled 'controvery'. You may safely assume that I find it a little difficult to believe that the General Manager of one of the largest wind machine manufacturers in the USA has your level of illiteracy.
Furthermore to describe the operation of 10's of thousands of frost fans as being a 'quiet thriving community' seems ironic in the extreme.
Ahh.. I note that the page view for this particular article was sourced via Selah, Washington. Fruit country and more importantly, Orchard Rite country.
Let's see if I can find out who the General Manager of Orchard rite is up your way...
Hmm.. No General Manager that I can immediately identify.
There is the CEO / Founder Daryl Hill (and wife(?) Margo Hill). Or perhaps the brother-in-law Rod (Robert)? Probably not Doug Riddle the Ex VP (I'm not even sure if he's still around). Anyway, all these people appear to be far more sensible than to make the statements, so I suppose the mystery will remain... Ahh well.
As I was following the noise wars in New Zealand today I came across this bit of absurdity. I want to assure you that this posting did not come from Orchard-Rite. As for Doug Riddle I am still here at Orchard-Rite working as the CFO. We are concerned about the harmony in the neighborhoods that our products are used in and are not ignoring this situation. We have been quietly (pardon the pun) working on this problem. That’s all I can say for now.
Thanks for clearing this up Doug. It appears that we're in total agreement. It's a bit tragic to have someone trying to do right by a company / industry and simply making foolish statements. But I presume that we can both appreciate that whoever they are, at least they're enthusiastic about the topic. As to your slightly guarded comment about working on noise related issues, let me wish you and your company the best of luck and the regards of communities everywhere who appreciate your efforts to improve the situation.
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