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Posts Tagged ‘noise’

Noise Matters

Posted in Norway, tagged , , , , on February 8, 2011| Leave a Comment »

In addition to managing the catastrophic risks associated with fires, explosions, and structural failures, chronic health and safety risks must also be effectively managed.  Hearing loss is one such risk, and PSA Norway has challenged industry to minimize the effects of noise on the health of offshore workers.

The risk level in the Norwegian petroleum activities (RNNP) shows a relatively high number of noise injuries. These are chronic injuries that will worsen with age. The RNNP questionnaire survey shows that 37 per cent state that they quite often/very often/always suffer from a high noise level. Five per cent state that they suffer some or quite a lot from impaired hearing, and 45 per cent of them believe noise in the working environment is the reason for their impaired hearing.

Click here to view the article, presentation, and recorded seminar.

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There are always tradeoffs

Posted in gas, natural gas, Offshore Wind, Wind Energy, tagged , , , , on October 12, 2010| Leave a Comment »

This New York Times article and video discuss the dispute on the island of Vinalhaven, Maine, about the noise associated with the island’s three wind turbines.

Comments:

-Locating wind projects offshore minimizes noise and visual issues, but increases costs and operational complexity.  There are always trade-offs.

-When all environmental impacts are considered, offshore natural gas is tough to beat: minimal visual impacts, none of the freshwater issues that are complicating shale gas development, few land use issues, little or no spill risk (depending how dry the gas is).  The trade-off is CO2 emissions. While combustion of natural gas emits 30% and 45% less CO2 than oil and coal respectively, the CO2 emissions are still significant.

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