Utility Week

Community University of Vienna. "I have no idea whatsoever where he got the numbers." While Gavreau's research did show some of the harmful e ects of sound, it appears what he did was simply turn up the volume until his sub- jects started feeling ill. Donald Trump, of course, is famously and vehemently anti- wind, and in a wide-ranging – and bizarre – speech earlier this month he claimed again that noise from wind farms makes you sick. Although in true Trump fashion, he instinc- tively turned up the dial and claimed the noise from wind turbines "gives you cancer", a claim not even supported by internet conspiracy theorists. At least, not yet. Dame shame Of course, when it comes to science, Donald has form. When Notre Dame went up in … ames earlier this month, the president tweeted: "So horrible to watch the massive ˆ re at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. Perhaps … ying water tankers could be used to put it out. Must act quickly!" Fortunately for the French, they didn't act "quickly" but analysed the disaster before realising that dumping water on the blazing cathedral from the air would likely cause the whole structure to collapse. Disconnector Publishing director, Utilities: Ellen Bennett, t: 01342 332084, e: ellenbennett@fav-house.com; Content director: Jane Gray, janegray@fav-house.com, t: 01342 333004; Acting editor: Suzanne Heneghan, t: 01342 332106, e: suzanneheneghan@fav-house.com Acting content director: Denise Chevin, 01342 332087, denisechevin@fav-house.com; News editor: Katey Pigden, t: 01342 332082, e: kateypigden@fav-house.com; Energy correspondent: Tom Grimwood, t: 01342 332061, e: tomgrimwood@fav-house.com; Policy correspondent: David Blackman, e: davidblackman@fav-house.com; Reporter: Adam John, t: 01342 332069, e: adamjohn@fav-house.com; Editorial assistant: Greg Jones, t: 01342 332102, e: gregjones@fav-house.com; Production editor: Paul Newton, t: 01342 332085, e: paulnewton@fav-house. com; Business development manager: Ben Hammond, e: benhammond@fav-house.com. t: 01342 332116; Business development executive: Sarah Wood, e: sarahwood@fav-house.com. t: 01342 332117 Conference sponsorship manager: Sophie Abbott, t: 01342 332062, e: sophieabbott@fav-house.com; General enquiries: 01342 332000; Membership enquiries: Peter Bissell, t: 01342 332057, e: peterbissell@fav-house.com. 2,500 Average circulation Jan–Dec 2018 Membership subscriptions: UK £769+VAT per year. Overseas £781 per year. Contact Peter Bissell on: 01342 332057 Utility Week is a member of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), the regulator of the UK's magazine and newspaper industry. We abide by the Editors' Code of Practice and are committed to upholding the highest standards of journalism. If you think we have not met those standards and want to make a complaint, please contact the Editor. If we are unable to resolve your complaint, or if you want more information about IPSO or the Editors' Code, contact IPSO on 0300 123 2220 or visit www.ipso.co.uk. Extinction Rebellion @ExtinctionR Our demands 1 #TellTheTruth - Declare a climate and ecologi- cal emergency. 2 #ActNow - Halt biodiversity loss and go net #ZeroCarbon2025. 3 #Beyond- Politics - A #CitizensAssembly for climate and ecological justice. Dept for BEIS @beisgovuk "The UK is amongst the absolute leaders in cutting our carbon emissions over the last 30 years, which hasn't compromised our energy supply and hasn't put bills up." @claireperrymp discussing how government is tackling #climatechange on @bbcworldservice this morning Caroline Lucas @CarolineLucas 2015 - Banned onshore wind projects. 2015 - Scrapped warm homes standards. 2016 - Sha• ed solar energy. 2017 - Flogged o˜ Green Investment Bank. 2018 - Forced fracking on local communities. 2019 - Refused to meet the climate strikers. That is this Government's true record on climate. Richard Howard @UKenergywonk As @ExtinctionR continues to rage in London - it's worth noting that March 2019 saw the highest ever monthly renewable power output in Britain at 40%! Wind hit a new monthly high of 28%, whilst coal languished at <2%. Hard to argue that government is doing nothing about carbon. Duncan Burt @DBBurt It's a coal-free Easter weekend for GB power... and the no coal record smashed.. Top Tweets trick there; he should have stood for o" ce. Disconnector looks forward to a future when G8 summits become literal as well as meta- phorical clowns' conventions. The great man bets Fukuyama didn't see that one coming. Can anyone hearthat? Hand in glove with political demagoguery is a profound mis- trust of science, chie… y because science can't be bent to the popular will. But if you think it's a particu- lar sign of our troubled times, you'd be wrong. Take the practically sub- audible noise emitted by wind farms, blamed by anti-wind campaigners as responsible for causing all manner of ailments and feelings of sickness in inhabitants living nearby. The harmful e ects of low- frequency noise were discovered by Russian-born French scientist Vladimir Gavreau in the 1960s, and published in a paper titled "Infrasound". Modern researchers looking into Gavreau's "experiments", however, have uncovered a few … aws, not least of which is that he didn't actually have a device capable of measuring low-frequency noise. "Gavreau had no device to measure infra- sound," said Jörg Mühlhans, a psychoacoustic researcher at the Send in the clowns It was only in 1989 that the US political scientist Francis Fuku- yama proclaimed it was "The End of History". His thesis was that the defeat of the Soviet Union meant the triumph of liberal democracy and game over for any more interesting stu to happen. It turns out Mr Fukuyama needn't have worried. Fast-forward to 2019 and the most powerful and in… uential nation in the world is run by an ex-reality TV personality with a string of dubious (and failed) business ventures behind him. Meanwhile in central Europe last week, war-torn Ukraine elected a TV comedian as its new president. Volodymyr Zelensky won by a landslide despite – or perhaps because of – having no plat- form of any kind. His USP was simply "none of the above". What is it with comedians, ponders Disconnector? Zelen- sky joins a world stage already occupied by ex-TV comic Beppe Grillo, who founded the anti-establishment Five Star Movement in Italy, which is now a major political force in the country. It's a pity our own Russell Brand has called on young people to show their disdain for the political class by not bothering to vote. He missed a UTILITY WEEK | 26TH APRIL - 2ND MAY 2019 | 31

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