Posts tagged: California Energy Commission

Wind Farms Pose Threat to Rare Eagles

The only requirement for this license to kill is that wind farm operators show they are making some effort to try not to kill eagles. I haven’t heard of anything that can be done to prevent eagle deaths once a wind turbine is built, so the requirement may simply be to donate some money to […]

Sunday December 22nd, 2013 in , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Wind Farms Pose Threat to Rare Eagles

Wind Turbines: New Study Documents High Bird and Bat Kills

In his new study, Smallwood states: I estimated 888,000 bat and 573,000 bird fatalities/year (including 83,000 raptor fatalities) at 51,630 megawatt (MW) of installed wind-energy capacity in the United States in 2012. He explains: Projecting estimates of [bird fatalities per megawatt per year] to the estimated installed capacity of wind energy in the United States […]

Friday April 19th, 2013 in , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Wind Turbines: New Study Documents High Bird and Bat Kills

Wind Farm Faces Fine Over Eagle Death

When a golden eagle was killed at the 66-turbine Spring Valley Wind Farm near Ely, Nevada, in February, wind farm operator Pattern Energy reportedly was prompt in notifying authorities of the death and already had mitigation measures in place to protect birds and bats. Regardless, Pattern now faces a $200,000 fine over the incident because […]

Wednesday April 3rd, 2013 in , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Wind Farm Faces Fine Over Eagle Death

Hiding the Slaughter – Bird Mortality

Since the early 1980s, the industry has known there is no way its propeller-style turbines could ever be safe for raptors. With exposed blade tips spinning in open space at speeds up to 200 mph, it was impossible. Wind developers also knew they would have a public relations nightmare if people ever learned how many […]

Monday March 18th, 2013 in , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Hiding the Slaughter – Bird Mortality

Big Wind & Avian Mortality (Part I: Problem Identification)

In 1984, the California Energy Commission concluded in regard to the state’s wind industry: “[M]any institutional, engineering, environmental and economic issues must be resolved before the industry is secure and its growth can be assured.” Though it was between the lines, the primary environmental issue alluded to was the extreme hazard that wind turbines posed […]

Thursday March 14th, 2013 in , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Big Wind & Avian Mortality (Part I: Problem Identification)

Wind Turbines vs. Wildlife

“Every year in Spain alone — according to research by the conservation group SEO/Birdlife — between 6 and 18 million birds and bats are killed by wind farms. They kill roughly twice as many bats as birds. This breaks down as approximately 110–330 birds per turbine per year and 200–670 bats per year. And these […]

Tuesday January 8th, 2013 in , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Wind Turbines vs. Wildlife

Dead Bats and Wind Farms

Are wind turbines really good for the environment? The economics, as we know, is often deeply dubious. But in this week’s Spectator, Oxford biological lecturer Clive Hambler reveals another drawback: the slaughter inflicted on birds and bats caught in the blades. Hambler argues that despite death tolls from numerous sources in various countries, many environmentalists are […]

Sunday January 6th, 2013 in , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Dead Bats and Wind Farms