My family now live in Australia as a result of the poor treatment given us by Meridian and the previous Government. I submitted to the West Wind resource consent on the basis of our experience with regard the unacceptable noise created above our house of 14 years in Ashhurst by Meridians Te Apiti wind farm. Our description of the noise made it to the National news in 2005 yet we were discounted as crack pots even though Meridian and other officials were well aware of the truth. Yes residents of Makara were naive and the public mislead with premeditated lies, lies that continue today.

You should have listened to your local "friends of makara group" five years ago. Too late now you will not get it back for years so you'll have to move, put up with them or take matters into your own hands.

Geoff

Believe me, we do not even need leave our house to be able to hear the turbines. But it is wasted breath on the small minds and total lack of knowledge that you have about these power companies and what these wind 'farms' are all about.

I am not a 'noise' expert so I do not know why & can't even begin to explain - but the noise is louder in the house then it is outdoors, so until you experience not being able to sleep in the middle of the night because your hearing what sounds like a jet plane circling over the top of your house constantly then perhaps you need to do some research and see that this not just some community that is bitter.

dear Jill Peters , the Makara Community , when "donations" are spoken about is administered by the organisation that Officially represents us , the Makara - Ohariu Community board " Their meeting minutes are public information .There is no "declining of funding for public walkways " . The reason for this is very simple ! The turbines are on private land so no benefit at all to the makara community even IF walkways were offered to be constructed . The only thing that was done " for the Makara Community " that I know of is a small footbridge by the school as it was now too dangerous for the children to walk around the corner by the school with the turbine construction traffic streaming past .Vehicle accidents " directly attributable " to the Wind Turbines occured , and the footpath bit was a REQUIREMENT of the turbines being built , so technically also not an " offer " . We , the Locals , do not need Walkways to meander around the hills , as a community this is one of the few privileges ( but we ask our neighbors out of courtesey )we have . The Walkways are for your type of person who , on being enclosed in your cage , need to feel as if you are (misguidedly ) communing with nature by wandering around a wind farm to enjoy the scenery . Did you actually look at the scenery before the turbines went up , as there is (and has been for as long as I can remember )a public walkway at Makara .

oh yes dawn it may be the biggest farm in wgtn but what im saying is i dont think it was very proffitable the shareholders will be laughing all the way to the bank now and good on them i take it hans when meridian offer to donate money to the community and put in walkways it will be declined yea right may the wind blow and keep those turbines humming

re TARYN , you poor person ! Please allow me to give you a short lesson in physiology . Noise is percieved aurally , short of wearing earmuffs or leaving the site of noise you cannot avoid it . Sight is perceived visually , close your eyes the problem is gone . We are not in a position to " close our ears " . Water is deemed a harmonic ( and therefore soothing ) sound . Wind turbine generated sound is modulated and therefore classified as a "niusance " element .We live in a valley that is often windless , however the turbines are on the ridges above us , and I assure you the wind blows up there when we have NO wind . JOE3 My name is on this posting and most people in Makara know me .Stump up with your " friends " name and allow us to ask them if they hear it .It is impossible not to hear the sound 1 km downwind of ANY given turbine . Please spend more time at school , your literacy level will improve . Jill Peters Please do not speak about things you obviously are unable to comprehend ! Terawhiti Station is owned by a group of professionals who do not rely on the farm for income ( heard of tax advantages ... hmmm probably not )The acreage can make it viable BUT as insufficient money has been spent in upkeep over the last 20 odd years ( scrub , pest , fencing , trespass fertellizer etc)the sums needed currently made it too daunting for the owners I suspect . Its called maintenance ( and I dont refer to the weightwatchers program )and this has not been carried out . Meridian have "given " NOTHING to our community I assure you .

It's a shame we live in a society of such ignorance. Jill obviously you know absolutely nothing about farming or Makara. The farms these monsters are on were all farmed, and up until recently Terawhiti Station was one of the biggest, if not THE biggest in Wellington, so best you keep your comments about 'not good farming' to yourself. The windmills aren't 'invading our privacy' and the money that MERIDIAN (thats the correct spelling) aren't 'giving the community some money' they're using their windmills as a pathetic excuse to make walkways so 'wallys' like you and the rest of the ignorant townies can come out to Makara (usually driving in the middle of the road) to view these Monstrosities in awe

yep i agree with you jack the land where the turbines are is not good for farmjng any way so may as well be utilised i think the locals are moaning because its invading there privacy what a bunch of wallys they should take advantge of it instead of moaning i here meridiun are going to give the community some money for walkways and other things i bet they wont say no to that another windmill farm up the other side is on the cards next year live with it or move out i rekon

I think the power companys can detune the towers so they dont make so much noise maybe let them go full noise during the day and turn them down at night from maybe 6pm to 6am so the residents can get some sleep you would think that the wind would make more noise than the turbines or maybe the locals sit outside on a still night can hear a noise and complain and blame the towers they are up now and i cant see meridium pulling them down unless honeheke goes up there with his chainsaw

It's very sad that people out there think that we are complaining about nothing or exagerating. So many people are totaly missing the point at what we are trying to get across and what we as families and a community are dealing with.

We live approx 2kms away and don't visualy see any turbines, but we are hearing them very clearly during the day & the night (not all the time, but at night it is very disturbing)- sometimes like a generator sound, sometimes a thumping sound and sometimes like jet engine noise.

Taryn's Comment: "and like only 2 of them were slightly moving", "a tiny little hum or not even that is nothing compared to the nightly and daily noise of my neighbourhood"

17 years ago, my family sold our house in town we used to live near the airport and moved to Makara to escape the city & airport noise. So please don't tell me to come and live where you live as we have been there, and my parents worked their buts off to afford a house in Makara.

O how sad that there are still some neanderthal types out there, that think their right to turn on a switch and suck out power any time they like is supreame, without the ability of vison to see that there is a real cost, to those who have clearly said they are unacceptably effected. Are these ignorant typesthe children of those. earlier generations that cut down the forests, caught all the fish stocks, and polluted the streams ? Seems just like the earlier generations they did not have a future vison of the results of their short sighted actions. Those people who rubbish the People of Makara, and who only enjoy the benifet and who dont suffer have any personal cost, need to understand that the argument has never been about the pros and cons of windfarms ! It has been about the correct placement of them !

A simple life curtosy - respect and have consideration for your neighbour, Wake up a smell the coffee folks ( Those educated types can smell it as far away as the UK and Scotland ! ) - Makara residents at present have a real problem, Shame on those that argu the pain these residents have is for the greater good, They only think of there own selfish energy consumption needs!

Meridian Energy can easily solve the problem by individually adjusting the turbines that cause the discomfort, - that way we all can move forward in harmoniuos way. Meridian caused the problem, they can also easily provide the solution !