Double standards in Buddhist commune’s sale of Tharpaland to Scottish Power for wind farm?

Argyll News, June 26, 2012

Argyll, Scotland (UK) -- A Buddhist group running a retreat at Tharpaland in Dumfries and Galloway, has conducted its own primary research into the impact on human health and function of infrasound generated by wind turbines.

It reports that the ability to concentrate in meditation dropped by 70% within a mile of wind turbines and that head and chest pains were experienced during prayer.

Quite why it was the occasion of prayer in which head and chest pains were manifest has not been explained. Raised blood pressure, head and chest pains are almost routinely reported in what studies of infrasound have taken place – along with insomnia and nightmares.

However, while we can understand that low frequency 'noise' might well impact on body and mind as decribed, quite how the specific circumstances of prayer marry with infrasound to be conducive to the appearance of these symptoms is not immediately explicable.

It is, though, easy to see how meditation is a particularly useful test of concentration in the face of the presence of infrasound; and entirely plausible that this sort of constant low level disruption would mess with brain function.

However, having presented their findings and expressed their reasonable consequent view that they could not continue to run the very specific facility of a retreat beside a wind farm, the Buddhists are selling their estate to Scottish Power and moving away.

The move has a defensible pragmatism – but it comes oddly from a spiritual group to be prepared to save their own operation while bequeathing a potentially enhanced problem to their erstwhile neighbours.

Scottish Power will now own more land in an area where they may wish to extend the 71-turbine farm they are already to build nearby.
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