Birdkillers
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https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsos.211558
Renewable energy production can kill individual birds, but little is known about how it affects avian populations. We assessed the vulnerability of populations for 23 priority bird species killed at wind and solar facilities in California, USA. Bayesian hierarchical models suggested that 48% of these species were vulnerable to population-level effects from added fatalities caused by renewables and other sources. Effects of renewables extended far beyond the location of energy production to impact bird populations in distant regions across continental migration networks. Populations of species associated with grasslands where turbines were located were most vulnerable to wind. Populations of nocturnal migrant species were most vulnerable to solar, despite not typically being associated with deserts where the solar facilities we evaluated were located. Our findings indicate that addressing declines of North American bird populations requires consideration of the effects of renewables and other anthropogenic threats on both nearby and distant populations of vulnerable species.
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https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsos.211558
Renewable energy production can kill individual birds, but little is known about how it affects avian populations. We assessed the vulnerability of populations for 23 priority bird species killed at wind and solar facilities in California, USA. Bayesian hierarchical models suggested that 48% of these species were vulnerable to population-level effects from added fatalities caused by renewables and other sources. Effects of renewables extended far beyond the location of energy production to impact bird populations in distant regions across continental migration networks. Populations of species associated with grasslands where turbines were located were most vulnerable to wind. Populations of nocturnal migrant species were most vulnerable to solar, despite not typically being associated with deserts where the solar facilities we evaluated were located. Our findings indicate that addressing declines of North American bird populations requires consideration of the effects of renewables and other anthropogenic threats on both nearby and distant populations of vulnerable species.
@George-K said in Birdkillers:
Renewable energy production can kill individual birds, but little is known about how it affects avian populations.
Way back in the day, when I was working, we had a program to pay people who obtained a patent for the company. I was on the committee that received the applications and decided whether we would submit the application to the Patent Office.
We had a guy submit an application for a system to predict how many birds would be killed by a windmill of a specified type in a specified location. I recollect that this system consisted of hardware and software.
This would have been back around 2001. I believe this guy received a patent, I'm not positive, I might be misremembering.
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Somewhat serious, somewhat not serious question.
But, will some birds live that would otherwise be killed by bird "lung cancer" or something equivalent since wind and solar are not as pollution causing as fossil fuel plants.
