By Daniella Hansson for Riks on March 16, 2025
For a long time, wind power has been portrayed as a green and sustainable source of energy, but behind the environmentally friendly facade hides a serious flaw. Supervision of the wind industry is inadequate and the methods used to measure its impact are outdated. One of the foremost experts in the field, Professor Ken Mattsson at Uppsala University, has devoted his career to studying wave propagation and sound simulations. In this interview, he highlights the overlooked problem of infrasound from wind turbines and its potential health risks.
Who is Ken Mattsson?
Professor Ken Mattsson works at Uppsala University and specializes in numerical analysis and computational science. His research focuses on how sounds and waves spread in different environments. During his career, he has studied the spread of infrasound in several different contexts, such as aircraft noise, volcanic eruptions and seismic waves. In recent years, he has focused on wind power and the low-frequency sound waves that these power plants generate.
Ken Mattsson and research on infrasound from wind power
“I’ve been working with sounds and waves for over 25 years, and what interests me the most is how the sound actually moves in the atmosphere. I started with aircraft noise, but the infrasound from wind turbines turned out to be an invisible culprit in the drama. As we started measuring it in place, we quickly realised it was far more extensive than we thought. I have seen how infrasound is used to detect nuclear explosions and volcanic eruptions – it is thus sound waves that travel enormously far and have a powerful impact. But when it comes to wind power, this has been a subject that the industry and the authorities ignored completely.”
Infrasound is sound waves with frequencies below 20 hertz – well below the audible spectrum for most people. The unique thing about infrasound is that it spreads over large distances and can penetrate walls and buildings without being muted.
What is infrasound?
Health risks with infrasound
Ken Mattsson explains:
“The fact that most people don’t hear it doesn’t mean it’s harmless. It is a common misconception that you have to hear a sound in order for it to affect the body. There is research showing that infrasound affects the brain and the autonomic nervous system even at levels well below the limits used today. The problem is that we have an old view of noise, focusing only on what is audible. But the research has shown that even inaudible sound can have physiological effects. Infrasound can create stress reactions in the body, affect sleep and trigger migraines, and this is an area that should have been researched much more than it has been done.”
Several studies suggest that infrasound can cause a range of negative health effects such as insomnia, migraines, high blood pressure and heart problems.
Approximately 30% of the population has an increased sensitivity to infrasound. Says Mattson:
“Approximately 30% of the population has an increased sensitivity to infrasound, and these people can be hit hard. I myself have experienced the effects. After measuring at wind farms, I can’t sleep for several nights and get heavy migraines. It is the same symptoms that many residents close to wind turbines describe. We’ve been out talking to people who live close to these works, and we hear the same stories over and over again – people get headaches, they feel a pressure in their heads, some get palpitations and others can’t sleep. And this is the big problem: there’s no escaping from the infrasound, it goes straight through walls and windows, and no authority has taken this seriously.”
How far does the infrasound spread from the wind turbines?
One of the most worrying aspects of infrasound is its long range. Unlike audible sound, infrasound is not dampened in the same way by the atmosphere, but can travel very long distances without reducing in intensity.
Wind turbines and long-distance dispersion of infrasound
“It spreads immensely far. Infrasound is not dampened by the atmosphere in the same way as audible sound. We can measure infrasound from blasts in the Kiruna mine all the way down to Uppsala. Wind turbines generate huge amounts of infrasound that travel kilometers after kilometers. The larger the wind turbines, the more infrasound is created, and we have seen that the modern turbines produce much higher levels than measured in the 80’s and 90’s. This means that today’s calculations of how much infrasound reaches housing are gravely inaccurate. We have measured infrasound from wind turbines over 50 kilometres away – and it is still clearly present. So when the industry says that the infrasound is only right at the works, then it is simply not true.”
What can be done to protect people who live near wind turbines?
Because infrasound has such a long range and is not dampened by buildings, it is difficult to protect against. Mattsson believes that the only effective measure is to review the distance between wind turbines and housing.
Distance and protective measures
“There is basically no protection against infrasound. It is not possible to build noise planks or windows that dampen it. Infrasound goes straight through walls and buildings. The only way to protect people is not to build wind turbines close to homes. I have proposed a minimal distance of five kilometers from the settlement, but today works are built just 600 meters from homes. This is a huge problem and something that needs to be taken seriously. To be completely honest – we don’t even know how harmful this is in the long run, and it makes it even more absurd that we keep building more works without first investigating the risks properly.”
A fight for the truth
With a growing debate and increased interest from both politicians and the public, Mattsson hopes that change is on the way.
The public debate on infrasound and wind power
“I see that more and more people are starting to question and want to understand. This is a struggle that has only just begun. I have no plans to give up – we need to have an honest and transparent discussion about the effects of wind power, not only the positives but also the negative ones. I’ve met people who feel terribly bad about this, who can’t sleep, who can’t sell their houses, who feel like no one is listening to them. This is an experiment with the health of the Swedish people, and I will not sit quietly while it is going on.”
Wind Concerns is a collaboration of citizens of the Lakeland Alberta region against proposed wind turbine projects.