''Windfall'' is a 2010

documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

directed by

Laura Israel Laura may refer to: People and fictional characters * Laura (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters with the name * Laura, muse of Petrarch's poetry * Laura, the British code name for the World War I Belgian spy Marthe Cno ...

about the reaction of residents in rural

Meredith, New York Meredith is a town in Delaware County, New York, United States. The population was 1,484 at the 2020 census.United States Census Bureau, 2020 U.S. Census Results, Meredith town, Delaware County, New York https://www.census.gov/search-results.html ...

(in

Delaware County, New York Delaware County is a county located in the US state of New York. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 44,308. The county seat is Delhi. The county is named after the Delaware River, which was named in honor of Thomas Wes ...

) to a proposal to place numerous

wind turbine A wind turbine is a device that wind power, converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. , hundreds of thousands of list of most powerful wind turbines, large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, were generating over ...

s in their community to harness

wind power Wind power is the use of wind energy to generate useful work. Historically, wind power was used by sails, windmills and windpumps, but today it is mostly used to generate electricity. This article deals only with wind power for electricity ge ...

. It is notable that the film was made by an interested local citizen rather than an organization.

Summary

The film begins in 2004, when energy companies approached several property owners in Meredith, offering cash payments to allow the long-term placement of wind turbines standing over 400 feet tall on their land. The documentary portrays Meredith residents as deeply divided over the idea. Some believe the economic and energy benefits are worth investigating. Others are concerned about the towers being an eyesore, loss of property values, or posing a variety of hazards such as collapse, accumulation of ice which is then flung from the turbines in large chunks, or health problems attributed to

low frequency Low frequency (LF) is the ITU designation for radio frequencies (RF) in the range of 30–300 kHz. Since its wavelengths range from 10–1 km, respectively, it is also known as the kilometre band or kilometre waves. LF radio waves ...

noise. Residents of

Lowville, New York Lowville is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Lewis County, New York, United States. The population was 4,888 at the 2020 census,

are also interviewed, expressing regret at installing wind turbines in their community. After an often rancorous debate, the citizens vote out the current officials who were promoting wind energy, and were not amenable to enacting a protective wind ordinance. The newly elected officials in Meredith subsequently passed a citizen-friendly wind law, and the developer decided to leave the community. The film is composed mostly of interviews with Meredith residents. Also included are excerpts of news broadcasts, films of town council meetings, and computer-animated segments.

Reactions

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

gave the film 3 out of 4 stars, writing that the film "left me disheartened. I thought wind energy was something I could believe in. This film suggests it's just another corporate flim-flam game." He notes that there is doubtless a legion of wind-power activists and lobbyists who would counter-argue the points made in ''Windfall'', but asks "How many of them live on wind farms?" In a review for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', Andy Webster writes that Israel's film tends to "overheat" but raises important questions: "The quest for energy independence comes with caveats. Developers’ motives must be weighed, as should the risks Americans are willing to take in their own backyard."Turbines in the Backyard: The Sound and the Strobes
New York Times, February 2, 2012

References

External links

Official Website
*{{IMDb title, 1581829, Windfall American documentary films Documentary films about alternative energy 2010 documentary films Wind power in the United States Delaware County, New York Films shot in New York (state) 2010 films 2010 in the environment Documentary films about New York (state) 2010s English-language films 2010s American films English-language documentary films

Summary

Reactions

See also

References

External links