Study Shows Generally Low Ecological Impacts Of Wind Energy

Nov 16: A report by the Great Lakes Wind Collaborative (GLWC), analyzing wind energy impacts on birds, bats, fisheries and wildlife indicates that mortality rates for birds flying into the turbines of Great Lakes wind farms vary, but are generally low. The report reviewed data from a number of wind turbine sites in the Great Lakes region and found mortality rates for songbirds ranging from 2.5 bird deaths per year per turbine at an Ontario, Canada site to 11.8 at a Wisconsin site. Additional research on raptors and waterfowl found them to be less prone to turbine collisions than songbirds, while bat mortality was very similar to songbirds, ranging from two to 11 bat deaths a year per turbine.

 

    The report, State of the Science: An Assessment of Research on the Ecological Impacts of Wind Energy in the Great Lakes Region, was compiled from research presented at a GLWC-sponsored workshop. Wind turbine impacts on wildlife, particularly birds and bats, have figured prominently in the public discussion of wind energy and the siting of wind farms. While the information collected for the new report adds to the science of wind energy impacts, the report also identified several data gaps to be filled. Impacts of offshore wind turbines in the Great Lakes, for instance, can only be theorized as there are no offshore wind farms in the Lakes as yet.

 

    Steve Ugoretz, past co-chair of the GLWC Siting and Planning Workgroup said, "This compilation of the current state of knowledge is intended to give a head start to all parties dealing with these issues, and to help them make well-informed decisions in the real world." Priorities for research going forward, as laid out by the report, include more data on the effects of wind farms on migratory corridors, establishment of ecologically defensible mortality thresholds and setbacks, and research on potential impacts from artificial reef habitat creation for offshore installations.

 

    Access the complete report (click here). Access the GLWC website for more information (click here). [#Energy/Wind]