Table of contentsSummaryIntroductionAnticipation/ReconnaissanceInstallation problemOperational problemMaintenance problemDiscussionConclusionSummaryThe need for energy from sources with less impact on the environment attracted scientific attention and greater investment interest in the wind farm sector; which is a solution for electricity production based on wind power but these sectors are considered new and carry professional risks. This article will provide a brief historical overview of the development and growth of the wind farm sector and an assessment of the occupational hazards, risks, and safety that wind farm workers may be exposed to during installation, operation and maintenance, which mainly focuses on health risks, risks for the safety of wind farm workers, in addition to measures to control these risks and possible corrective and preventive actions for improvement, are also provided, but this sector still lacks adequate information because the existing wind farm is relatively new. It is therefore essential to conduct studies on the impact of these professional activities on the career and long-term health of all workers entering the wind farm sector. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essayIntroductionWind energy is one of the common renewable energies that has a lower environmental impact. However, windmills have been used for at least 3000 years, for different purposes such as turning grain or pumping water; The use of wind turbines (or wind turbines) to generate electricity began in the late 19th century with the 12 kW direct current wind turbine built by Charles Brush in the United States and research carried out by Poul la Cour in Denmark; Although there was little interest in using wind power for electricity generation, a notable development was the 1,250 kW Smith-Putnam wind turbine built in the United States in 1941, featuring a 53 m diameter steel rotor, full-span pitch control and flapping blades to reduce loads (Wind Energy Manual, 2011). The history of early development of wind turbines began with Golding (1955), Shepherd and Divine in Spera (1994), they record the 100 kW, 30 m diameter Balaclava wind turbine in 1931 and the Andrea Enfield 100 kW design 24 m diameter inflatable built in the United Kingdom in the early 1950s; In this turbine, hollow blades, open at their ends, were used to draw air through the tower where another turbine drove the generator; In Denmark, the 200 kW, 24 m diameter Gedser machine was built in 1956, while Electricité de France built a 1.1 MW, 35 m diameter turbine in 1963. In Germany, Professor Ulrich Hutter created several innovative and lightweight turbines in the 1950s and 1960s; Despite these technological advances, particularly within the UK Electricity Research Association, there was little concern about wind generation until the price of oil increased significantly in 1973 (Wind Energy Handbook, 2011). And energy independence encourages after the global growth of wind capacity (Yue et al., 2001). Furthermore, costs are cheaper than other renewable energies, for example solar energy (IEA, 2019). Additionally, wind energy production is typically regionally decentralized and therefore has the potential to promote developmenteconomical in various local areas. As a result, many industrialized and developing countries are actively supporting renewable energy through legislative and policy initiatives (including China, the United States, European Union countries, and many developing countries) (May and Nilsen, 2015). Despite the benefits of generating electricity from wind, adverse health effects have been associated with wind farm workers. Wind turbines generate noise that can be classified into mechanical noise produced by the rotor or gearbox and aerodynamic noise generated by turbulent wind flow near the wind turbine blades; the adverse health effects of the noise wind turbines can produce physiological effects, for example anxiety, tinnitus or hearing loss (Abbasi et al., 2015). World health organizations have associated noise annoyance with harmful effects on health-related quality of life (Berglund et al., 1999). This document will examine the main health hazards and risks, in addition to the safety hazards and risks that are unobtrusive to wind farm workers. Anticipation/Reconnaissance General hazards and risks: Many problems have been linked to the wind farm. The most common types of potential hazards associated with wind turbines are related to sound/noise, low frequency sounds, infrasound, dust, flickering shadows. Risks: electromagnetic fields, extreme weather conditions; icefall/pier. Occupational Risk Assessment (OSRA) methods are commonly used to discover the causes and characteristics of accidents and work circumstances in different sectors. In order to produce a safe and healthy working environment that guarantees the sustainability of wind turbines, determining the existing and external sources of danger and managing the risks that arise are of great importance (Gul et al., 2018). Installation problem Installing the wind turbine in the building is a very complex and possibly very dangerous step. Because it covers the basic components including the foundation and transition piece, and the construction of the wind turbine contains the majority of the heavy lifting work of the wind turbine components with the completion of various tasks in fast sequence, which presents many problems; This depends on the size of the wind farm despite the number of workers involved in the installation phase; It is therefore essential to consider that installation activities take place in windy areas and that the tops of wind turbines are designed to position the blades where the wind blows strongest; The safety implications of the work must be carefully considered throughout the installation phase due to exposure to high winds and high height; workers may be at risk of falling (Webster et al., 2013). Exposure to strong winds can potentially make working at high altitudes even more harmful. During installation, workers may need to access individual turbine sections to weld or assemble individual sections, run electrical or other lines, and install or test equipment, often at heights greater than 30, 5 m (Webster et al., 2013). For example, one of the construction workers, aged 19, was killed after falling 30 m into a wind turbine shaft; he worked inside the turbine during their installation (BBC, 2007). Wind farm workers must therefore be protected from falls by guardrail systems, safety net systems and personal fall arrest systems (Webster et al., 2013). And one of the most common dangersin this sector is noise that can be defined as unwanted. her. Wind turbines generate noise which may be mechanical noise produced by the motor or gearbox, but if operating properly this type of noise from modern wind turbines should not be a problem. Another noise that can be produced is aerodynamic noise from passing wind. Additionally, above the wind turbine blade, the wind turbine produces a general audible range of sound emissions, which includes a range of special audible characteristics (SAC) such as low frequency noise and tone, impulsivity, amplitude modulation (Santé et Conseil, 2010). Noise can harm human health and cause hearing loss. (Rogers et al., 2006). Most claims about potential negative noise impacts from wind turbines concern low-frequency noise and infrasound; however, according to (Leventhall, 2006), there is normally little low frequency noise because the infrasound generated by wind turbines is insignificant. Additionally, a review of all known published results on infrasound from wind turbines found that the new wind turbine design, where the rotor blades are in front of the tower, produces a low level of infrasound. But (NRC, 2007) notes that low frequency infrasound (less than 20 Hz) could affect human health, but its harmful effects are not yet well understood. Operation problem The number of workers in the operation phase is less than that in the installation phase. For example, more than 500 people work on site, but an average operational team includes two people for 20 or 30 wind turbines and for small wind farms, they can count on regular visits from regional teams (Webster et al., 2013). One of the important risks faced by operational workers is weather and work strategies must therefore take into account national weather information; the advice that national meteorological services can provide to wind farm operators should be taken into consideration; In Finland, due to its proximity to the Arctic Circle, climatic atmospheres can make it difficult for workers to perform certain tasks, such as operating wind turbines; furthermore, to ensure that workers can take appropriate steps to prepare and protect themselves (Webster et al., 2013). Warnings about anticipated weather conditions, such as ice formation, are constantly issued by the Severe Weather Testing Network in Finland (Harsh Weather Testing Network, 2011). ). Ice fragments fall or are thrown from the rotor when this ice melts or is shaken off the rotor, this poses a serious problem to workers, especially operational personnel when working near the turbines. Therefore, when a significant risk is presumed to occur, the following procedures are recommended. ; stop turbine operation during ice accumulation or apply turbines with special features that prevent ice accumulation or relocate turbines to safer areas; furthermore, operational personnel should be more aware of the conditions that lead to ice accumulation on the turbine (Morgan et al., 1997). Another dangerous element in the operation of the marine wind farm (offshore farm) is the transfer of personnel to the turbines. because the wind turbines are only accessible by boat or helicopter, the range of the wind turbines depending on the state of the sea; if waves increase in magnitude while work is being carried out, workers could become trapped on a turbine structure (Webster et al., 2013). ThereA broadcast platform can accommodate personnel indefinitely and, in extreme conditions, this fact must be kept in mind when designing for human safety. The need for personnel, which must be based on a central transmission platform, will increase if operations are further from the coast and the logistics of moving people on land become more difficult. Possible design requirements for stationary personnel on transmission platforms in bad weather should also be considered (Webster et al., 2013). A report from (CMOH, 2010) in Ontario noted potential health risks related to shadow flicker, which occurs when turbine blades rotate in long shadows and sunny conditions. Nevertheless, CMOH infers this as a potential risk that 3% of people with epilepsy are photosensitive and that most turbines spin at a speed lower than 5–30 Hz, the flickering frequency that typically triggers seizures. CMOH also minimizes the adverse health effects of electromagnetic fields (EMF) generated by wind turbines (Webster et al., 2013). However (Rideout et al., 2010) indicate that the low percentage of EMF from wind turbines does not represent any risk. Maintenance issue Once the tower construction is completed and in operation. Several maintenance actions must take place in the life structure of the tower and the routine maintenance period of a modern wind turbine could take 40 hours per year; however, the problem is linked to the design, especially since the installation may have a nominal lifespan of 20 years and some parts of the installation, such as gearboxes, must be repaired or modified; but nowadays gearboxes need to be changed after 7 and 11 years of service (Webster et al., 2013). The author also discusses the possibility of being exposed to health risks at work. This depends on the time spent working on and maintaining a wind turbine: the more time the worker spends there, the more he or she is exposed to OHS; Additionally, due to lack of technician skills in some EU countries, workers employed by some of the larger companies may have to carry out maintenance work in different countries, often working away from home for long periods of time. periods. Maintenance work contains tasks such as lubrication of parts, cleaning of blades, complete overhaul of the generator, repair of electrical control units and replacement of components. These tasks can be more repetitive, meaning maintenance technicians become familiar with the risks and procedures of working at height, interacting with electricity. The industry tends to focus on gearbox failures, as these result in wind turbines not being operational for a very long period of time. Regarding gearboxes, there have been debates about improving their reliability to reduce the number of workers having to carry out maintenance, and the new turbine designs are opting for direct drive, which completely removes the gearboxes and electrical hazards, it appears that going over the nacelle may pose a risk of injury from sparks and electric shock, or even electrocution, particularly on smaller, commercial-scale turbines. which do not have brakes or stopping mechanisms to prevent accidental switching on of the turbine during maintenance actions; it is therefore necessary to identify, block, detach and release the energy sources present in wind turbines before.