Resources for Landowners, Neighbours & Communities

To assist landowners and community members in accessing balanced, factual information about renewable energy technologies, the Shire provides links to a limited number of external resources. These documents are produced by recognised government or industry bodies and are offered for information only.

The Shire of Narrogin does not endorse the positions, conclusions, or policy views contained within these publications. Community members should rely on their own enquiries, seek independent professional advice, and consider local circumstances when assessing renewable energy proposals.

📝 Information Sheet – Landowner Negotiations
Helps landholders navigate agreements with proponents and access independent advice.
Free independent assessment of farmland viability for renewable energy projects.
*Please note that the Shire of Narrogin does not necessarily endorse RELA Assess, and landowners should make their own due diligence enquires including utilising trusted local legal advice.
What are the options when wind, solar and battery projects reach retirement? Who’s responsible, and what rights and protections exist for landholders? How recyclable are renewable energy materials? Find answers to all these questions and more in RE-Alliance's New Toolkit, ‘Refurbishment, repowering or retirement. What happens when renewables approach end of life’
Clean Energy Council – Wind Energy: The Facts – Wind Farms and Health
A consolidated summary of national and international health reviews, including findings from the NHMRC, Health Canada, the Australian Medical Association, and several university research programs. The fact sheet concludes there is no demonstrated causal link between regulated wind farms and adverse health effects.
NSW Department of Environment, Climate Change & Water – Wind Energy Fact Sheet
An overview of how wind energy works, environmental considerations, noise standards, grid integration, economic impacts, and land-use compatibility, based on technical information reviewed by the University of New South Wales. The fact sheet also addresses common concerns such as shadow flicker, infrasound, safety, and decommissioning.
AFAC Guideline – Wind Farms and Bushfire Operations (Version 3, 2018).
Outlines bushfire-related risks, emergency access, turbine shutdown protocols, and learnings from real incidents (e.g., Waterloo Fire Case Study on page 8). Includes guidance for developers and operators on preparedness, communications, mapping, vegetation management and safe aerial firefighting practices.
CASA Advisory Circular AC 139.E-05 — Obstacles (including wind farms) outside the vicinity of a CASA-certified aerodrome.
Provides national guidance on aviation risk factors such as obstacle lighting, navigable airspace, low-flying operations, and reporting requirements for tall structures. Includes diagrams (pages 8–10) illustrating obstacle limitation surfaces (OLS) and circuit patterns relevant to assessing wind turbine siting.

Further useful links for landowners:

Topic

Source

Link

Health - including sound

Sleep

(Peer-reviewed journal)

Noise-induced sleep disruption from wind turbines: scientific updates and acoustical standards (2024)

This study concludes that modern wind turbines do not pose a risk to sleep when developed with reasonable restrictions. Noise from wind turbines measured outside the residence, up to 46 dBA) or modelled up to 49 dBA using the new standard), poses no risk to human sleep. Not at this audible range, nor its associated infrasound or low-frequency noise levels.

Environmental Health Perspectives

(Peer-reviewed journal)

The Health Effects of 72 Hours of Simulated Wind Turbine Infrasound: A Double-Blind Randomized Crossover Study in Noise-Sensitive, Healthy Adults (2023)

Australian researchers placed participants in a room with speakers for a 72-hour-long period, sometimes activating the speakers to play wind turbine-like infrasound. The researchers investigated the participants’ sleep quality when exposed to infrasound.

The Journal of Acoustical Society of America

(Peer-reviewed journal)

Annoyance, perception, and physiological effects of wind turbine infrasound (2021)

Finnish researchers recruited people who lived near wind turbines and placed them in a loudspeaker-walled chamber. Inside, the participants were exposed to infrasound noise simulating what one might experience standing 200 metres (650 feet) or 1,500 metres (4,900 feet) away from a wind turbine. Participants could not discern whether or not infrasound was playing, and the researchers couldn’t find any evidence that infrasound elicited responses in participants’ heart rates or nervous systems.

Scientific Reports

(Peer-reviewed journal)

A longitudinal, randomized experimental pilot study to investigate the effects of airborne infrasound on human mental health, cognition, and brain structure (2021)

This study asked participants to keep a speaker in their bedroom for 28 nights, during which researchers would play infrasound to half the participants. The researchers investigated whether there were changes in that infrasound-exposed group’s behaviour, including their self-reported health, their sleep, and their cognitive abilities.

Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

(Peer-reviewed journal)

Wind Turbines and Health: A Critical Review of the Scientific Literature (2014)

The literature review found that components of wind turbine sound, including infrasound and low frequency sound, have not been shown to present unique health risks to people living near wind turbines.

Environmental Health

(Peer-reviewed journal)

Health effects and wind turbines: A review of the literature (2011)

Conclusions of the peer reviewed literature found that to date, no peer reviewed articles demonstrate a direct causal link between people living in proximity to modern wind turbines, the noise they emit and resulting physiological health effects.

Front. Public Health

(Peer-reviewed journal)

Wind turbines and human health (2014)

The study found that when sited properly, EMF, shadow flicker, low-frequency noise, and infrasound from wind turbines are not related to adverse health.

Eurelectric

(Independent not-for-profit)

Griffin Wind Farm – SSE Renewables (Case Study)

Case Study on SSER Griffin Wind Farm (68 turbines, 2,500 ha) of successful biodiversity integration approach which resulted in A 66% uplift in biodiversity units when compared to pre-construction levels.

Environmental Research

(Peer-reviewed journal)

Greater than 99% consensus on human caused climate change in the peer-reviewed scientific literature (2021)

From a dataset of 88125 climate-related papers published since 2012, this study concludes with high statistical confidence that the scientific consensus on human-caused contemporary climate change exceeds 99% in the peer reviewed scientific literature.

Wind farms and agriculture

RE-Alliance

(Independent not-for-profit)

Wind turbines and farming – Lindsay Marriott

Lindsay Marriott, Gippsland sheep and cattle farmer, on his experience farming with wind turbines.

Farmers for Climate Action

(Independent not-for-profit)

Farmers for Climate Action - Farm powered: Opportunities for regional communities in the renewable energy boom (2022)

The report outlines the opportunities for renewable energy adoption on farms. For example: Wind turbines take up only around 3% of leased land allowing farmers to derive additional income as they continue their core business of producing food and fibre.

Land value

Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics

(Peer-reviewed journal)

The On-Farm and Near-Farm Effects of Wind Turbines on Agricultural Land Values (2020)

This study found that wind turbines have no statistically significant effect on agricultural land values in Kansas, either on-farm or nearby.

Energy Policy

(Peer-reviewed journal)

Commercial wind turbines and residential home values: New evidence from the universe of land-based wind projects in the United States (2014)

This study found that residential home values in the United States within 1 mile of a new wind turbine project lose about 11% in value after announcement, but impacts shrink to ~2% and statistically insignificant 9 years or more after project announcement (roughly 5 years after operation began). Homes located within 1–2 miles of a commercial wind turbine experience much smaller impacts and homes located farther than 2 miles away are unaffected.

Environmental and Resource Economics

(Peer-reviewed journal)

Wind Turbines and Property Values: A Meta-Regression Analysis (2023)

This meta-analysis of 25 studies finds that proximity to wind turbines reduces property values by about -0.68% at 1.9 miles, with no effect beyond 2.8 miles