Wind Turbines Not That Bad For Birds?
I am so up in the air and ill informed when it comes to wind energy and birds. We need an alternative, renewable fuel source, but is the cost to birds too high? I'd love to go to the National Wind Coordinating Collaborative conference at the end of this month to try and get some answers, but I think I'll be in Cape May.
Well, according to one British study, wind turbines do not drive birds from farm land. According to Reuters:
Wind turbines do not drive birds from surrounding areas, British researchers said on Wednesday, in findings which could make it easier to build more wind farms.
Conservation groups have raised fears that large birds could get caught in the turbines and that the structures could disturb other species.
"This is the first evidence suggesting that the present and future location of large numbers of wind turbines on European farmland is unlikely to have detrimental effects on farmland birds," Mark Whittingham, whose team from Newcastle University carried out the research, said in a statement.
But scientists found only one of the 23 species studied, the pheasant, was affected during their survey of two wind farms in eastern England.
The survey studied the impact of two wind farms on about 3,000 birds in the area, including five species of conservation concern -- the yellowhammer, the Eurasian tree sparrow, the corn bunting, the Eurasian skylark and the common reed bunting.
The researchers recorded the density of birds at different distances from the turbines and found that aside from the pheasant, the structures posed no problems.
The study did not look at the danger of the birds colliding with the turbines, which has been a worry of conservationists, Whittingham said."
Read the full story here.I also found the same story at the BBC News with further comment from Whittingham: He added that previous research had shown that turbines did have a negative impact on larger species, such as waterbirds and raptors, which are primarily found in coastal and upland regions.
"There is increasing conservation concern about the impact of wind farms on these species in these areas, so applications to build new turbines are increasingly focusing on other sites, especially lowland farmland in central and eastern England."
However, the study did reveal that the distribution pattern of common pheasants had altered as a result of the wind farms.
Dr Whittingham told BBC News that the surveys were carried out over the winter months: "We would advocate that [a study] during the breeding season needs to be done as well."
Read the full BBC article here.
So, I am still up in the air on the wind issue. On the surface, this news story seems to say, "Hey, wind energy isn't that bad to birds as long as we avoid migratory flyways and focus on farmland...however, the study was done in the winter--not during the breeding season. We still need to know how this affects nestlings. Will it still be okay? Will the young birds learn how avoid wind turbines when they learn to fly? Or, will fledgling and breeding birds chasing each other have a higher mortality around the turbines? Are the turbines okay in winter, but not something birds want to nest on during the breeding season? I know when we go to Felton Prairie during the Detroit Lakes Festival of birds, there's a wind turbine and there are breeding marbled godwits, chestnut-collared longspurs, upland sandpipers, bobolink, and western meadowlarks just to name a few.
And there's still the raptor and waterfowl issue to deal with. I see this as hopeful news, but we need more study. It would be great if we could avoid migratory flyways with the wind turbines.
posted by birdchick at 9:17 AM
8 Comments:
I know that Vine House Farm in Lincolshire, UK installed several wind turbines, and managed at the same time to establish a very successful conservation program at the farm. I haven't been able to find much information about how their turbines directly affect bird populations in the area; the data they give on their site seems to indicate that bird populations have increased. I get the impression that it's not simply the wind turbines themselves which affect the birds, but how the turbines are placed, and perhaps how many there are in one place, combined with what else has been done with the surrounding habitat-- the types of crops they plant, how much of the land is left to naturalize, and so on.
I did see something once, I think on the BBC site, that seemed to indicate that turbines could be a problem for bats-- that it can interfere with their echo-location and cause them to fly right into them. I wish I could find the article again; I can't say for sure how serious a problem they are for bats. It's just something I remember reading in passing.
There are places where wind farms are totally appropriate and if managed correctly can provide habitat for grassland species. The situation at Altamount Pass in Ca (where 200+ Golden Eagles are killed every year) is fairly unique. It is a migration cooridor and the old design lattice towers provide too many perches for raptors. An offshore wind farm will be difficult to monitor for bird kills....I need to be more convinced about that situation. But it is something we need to look at and address.
I read something recently that said they were going to time the Altamont turbines to turn off during migratory periods (or maybe peak times during the day?). Will have to see if I can find the link.
If wind turbines have a negative affect on birds and/or migration, that is obviously a bad thing. Although I agree we need alternative sources of energy, I'm not convinced wind power is a viable solution. In the U.S., the main areas for erecting wind turbines is the midwest. Once the energy is created, it has to be moved, along wires, through the mountains to the West and East coasts. To generate the amount of electricity needed, we'd need to build millions of turbines. Is that REALLY what we want the U.S. landscape to reflect?
I read something on the loss of bats around the wind turbines too, and I believe it was on Huffington Post. From what I recall, it seemed as if it was a significant loss and they're researching it. Said the bats' deaths were the same type of death humans experience if they're deep sea diving and come up too quickly.
Lynnanne
You have to be a little careful when you get into the research as the older turbines were smaller and thus had to turn faster. The newer, larger turbines move slower and also don't have the open towers birds can perch on so you need to separate any research into different criteria.
The bat death has to do with atmospheric pressure drops at the turbines basically causing their lungs to burst. Here's the article.
These comments are all so useful, I appreciate all the links to articles and food for thought.
It sounds like many of us are on the same page--we want this to work, but it needs more study. Progress has been made, but further research is essential.
I have no problem with the look of windmills, I actually kind of like them, but certainly not at the expense of birds and bats.
Wind power is not a solution.
The whole truth about wind turbines is never told by lobbyists and governments.
How could the very weak and extremely unreliable initial energy source of a wind turbine ever produce a steady power of any significance?
Please think!
And read: “Wind energy- the whole truth” at: http://www.windenergy-the-truth.com/
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