Renewable energy vs. wildlife conservation - Solar, Wind and Land: Conflicts in Renewable Energy Development - page 81

What species of birds are the most vulnerable to harms from wind farms?
How severely do wind energy projects really harm bird populations? And
what strategies are available to help minimize these impacts? The following
paragraphs respond to these questions and highlight some ways that bird
impact issues have been addressed in the wind energy context.
Bird species commonly implicated in wind energy projects
The list of bird varieties impacted by wind energy development is quite
lengthy and continues to grow. Somewhat surprisingly, the majority of the
avian species killed by most wind energy projects are passerines, better
known as songbirds. 42 As a whole, songbirds are far more prevalent in most
areas of the world than the large, majestic birds that are often the focus of
wind farm opposition groups. Because their collective numbers are so large,
greater quantities of these small birds have had lethal encounters with wind
energy facilities.
Of course, wind farms are better known for their threats to eagles and
other raptors. These stately creatures can be attracted to breezy ridges and
hilly areas where wind resources are particularly favorable for wind energy
development. 43 Sadly, wind turbines can be deadly hazards to these animals.
As one author describes it, “the vortices created by blade tips revolving at
up to 200mph can destabilize such large birds, plunging them into a fatal
collision.” 44 A recent study concluded that at least 67 golden and bald
eagles were killed by wind farms in the United States from 2008 to 2012. 45
In Europe, wind farms have adversely afected populations of white-tailed
eagles, which are that continent's largest birds of prey. 46 According to one
recent study, the birds may actually be attracted to the “rotor-swept zone”
where the turbine blades rotate, making it particularly susceptible to colli-
sions and potentially helping to explain the relatively high number of deaths
to the species in the vicinity of wind farms. 47
In the United States, developers have had to relocate or alter numerous
proposed wind energy projects in eforts to protect eagles. The bald eagle
is the United States' national bird and has long enjoyed strong federal
statutory protections, along with the golden eagle. In addition to the ESA's
generic protections for these birds, two United States statutes ofer further
protection for eagles. The United States' Bald and Golden Eagle Protection
Act (BGEPA) prohibits the “tak[ing]” of bald and golden eagles. 48 As was
similarly mentioned above, to “take” a bird under FWS's Wind Energy
Guideline s 49 includes to “disturb”, which means to “agitate or bother …
to a degree that causes, or is likely to cause … (1) injury to an eagle, (2) a
decrease in its productivity …, or (3) nest abandonment, by substantially
interfering with normal breeding, feeding, or sheltering behavior.” 50 Wind
energy development that harms an eagle or its prey or habitat can certainly
fall within the scope of such language. Convicted violators of the BGEPA
can receive ines of up to $5,000 or sentences of up to one year in prison. 51