Compensation for wind turbine noise

Attorney and Partner Søren Stenderup Jensen recently published an article in ILO's newsletter on environmental law. The article concerns a High Court ruling that in effect doubled the compensation granted to wind turbine neighbours.

Those who build wind turbines are obliged to compensate their neighbours for noise pollution, visual interference and other disadvantages of the turbines. The issue of compensation is usually settled before the wind turbines are erected, and the amount does not necessarily reflect the actual noise levels or indeed the reductions in property value that usually accompany the erection of the turbines.

So far, only few wind turbine neighbours have been granted additional compensation after the completion of the turbines. However, Søren Stenderup Jensen's article concerns a case where a Danish High Court decided to double the compensation granted - amongst other things because a court-appointed expert witness considered both the noise levels and property value reductions to be far greater than the assessment authorities had originally estimated.

According to Søren Stenderup Jensen, the judgement is important because it makes it possible to claim compensation after the erection of a wind turbine. Moreover, it gives cause for optimism to those who intend to challenge the decisions made by the assessment authorities.  

Read the article in English: High Court rules on compensation for noise from wind turbines

Read the article in German: Oberstes Gericht gewährt Entschädigung für Lärm von Windenergieanlagen