Hot air over bird deaths to stall windmills?

WorldNetDaily.com ^ | Tuesday, December 9, 2003

[JohnHuang2]

ENVIRONETDAILY
Hot air over bird deaths
to stall windmills?
Activist likens turbines to 'terrestrial Exxon Valdez'

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Posted: December 8, 2003
6:16 p.m. Eastern

© 2003 WorldNetDaily.com

They were touted by environmentalists as an alternative source of pollution-free electric power that was good for the planet, but 20 years and countless dollars later environmentalists are now crying foul over the Altamont wind farm east of San Francisco Bay.

Windmills generate electric power at Altamont Pass, Calif. (EPA Photo: Christy Shake.)

Two organizations seek to block the renewal of permits for nearly 1,400 wind towers – for the sake of birds. An estimated 22,000 have died due to run-ins with the structures' blades, including golden eagles, red-tailed hawks and other raptors.

"Renewing these permits without addressing the cumulative impacts of wind energy on migratory birds, especially raptor species, will give a black eye to wind power," the Los Angeles Times quotes Michael Boyd, president of Californians for Renewable Energy, as saying.

Boyd's group and the Center for Biological Diversity seek to reverse a recent decision by an Alameda County zoning board that granted permit renewals in November to some of the wind power operators in the area, accounting for nearly 1,400 windmills.

Alameda County planners estimate there are about 4,000 operational wind turbines in the county, reports the Alameda Times-Star. Most were approved between 1983 and 1988, before the hazard wind turbines in the Altamont Pass pose to birds was fully understood.

Activists claim the county is obligated to conduct an environmental review of the windmills before it renews permits.

"The county did everyone a disservice by choosing to ignore the true impacts of these turbines, which are the equivalent of a terrestrial Exxon Valdez every year," Jeff Miller, spokesman for the Center for Biological Diversity, told the Times in reference to the oil spill that killed an estimated 250,000 seabirds and 250 bald eagles.

Miller vows legal action unless the county reviews the impact of the turbines on birds and considers implementing changes in the 50,000-acre wind farm to deter avian fatalities.

Among the changes recommended by the California Energy Commission, according to the Times, is painting the turbine blades a different color to make them more visible to birds.

The California Energy Commission and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have been working with the wind-farm operators to find ways of reducing the deaths.

Industry officials told the Times they felt blindsided by the flip-flop of environmentalists on the issue and were angered by the Exxon Valdez bird-kill comparison.

"It would take 400 years to reach [the Exxon Valdez] number here, " Steven Steinhour, vice president of Seawest, a San Diego wind power company with holdings in Altamont, told the Times.

The flap over bird deaths has hampered the growth of the industry, according to an industry-funded advocacy group, the National Wind Coordinating Committee.

Its 2001 report concludes the controversy has "delayed and even significantly contributed to blocking the development of some wind plants in the U.S."

Although many wind farms around the world co-exist well with birds, avian biologists say the Altamont Pass wind farm deserves extra attention because it's home to one of the largest nesting populations of golden eagles in the world.

But the wind-farm industry report puts the bird deaths into perspective, contending more birds get killed every year in collisions with vehicles (60 million) and window panes (98 million) than windmills.

"When you turn on your lights you kill something, no matter what the source of electricity," maintains Paul Kerlinger, a New Jersey biologist who works as an industry consultant.

Defending the zoning board's renewal of permits, member Larry Gosselin told the Alameda Times-Star the bird deaths must be weighed against the benefits of producing electricity without producing greenhouse gases and other pollutants.

[GladesGuru]

Actually, Pol Pot's killers often forced their victims to kneel alongside a blood spattered tree where the "Pottie" would then grab their hair and slam their head against the tree - then a hammer was used to deliver the killing blow to the temple with a hammer.

Just to keep the record straight, you know.

They really do eat their own, too. Africa regularly proves that on an ongoing basis.

But don't worry about freezing or starving, as the liberals are usually unarmed. Historically, the unarmed are rarely a significant risk to the armed.

[GladesGuru]

Bird visual acuity is the same on either coast. Let's not forget that the article said "seabirds" - - - translation = seagulls. As in reincarnated lawyers.

How do I know that? They squawk a lot, sh*t every thing up, and steal anything not too heavy for them to move.

As for the vultures killed,in Miami, the vultures roost on the courthouse. This has resulted in an ongoing debate as to whether they are merely reincarnated lawyers or more than likely, reincarnated divorce lawyers.

As many lawyers are divorced, they seem to favor the reincarnated divorce lawyer thesis.

In any case, the impact of bird with blade is the result of inattention, not inability.

Summary: Evolution is using the blades as a bit of chlorine in the gene pool.

[clamper1797]

An estimated 22,000 have died

What a crock of crap ... I am looking at some of those windmills on Altamont as I type this post. My friend owns a ranch right next to the windmills and there are NO bird bodies near them. The bird bodies can be found on Hiway 580 and Vasco Road which both run through the windmill farm.

1. Any birds killed in the area are being killed by the cars and trucks on the road ... should we ban them.
2. The windmill blades rotate very slowly. In high wind even the small faster moving blades take a full second to complete just one rotation ... the bigger ones take over two seconds. Any bird slow enough or dumb enough to be hit by the blades would have been picked off LONG AGO by the MANY hawks in the area.
3. The blades are NOT moving fast enough to hurt much less kill the birds even if they did hit the blade even in a wind storm. Many many more birds fly into windows than into these windmills (should we ban windows) ... BTW the generators are governed so that they can only spin so fast no matter how much wind there is.

Bottomline ... the environmentalists are again (as usual ... totally full of $hit.

[Libertarianize the GOP]

ping

[dalereed]

I agree, stop all subsidies of "green power" and we won't have to hear about it again, none of it is economically viable.

[farmfriend]

Rights, farms, environment ping.

Let me know if you wish to be added or removed from this list.
I don't get offended if you want to be removed.

[chuckwalla]

Except them. They get to live in multi million dollar high tech air conditioned buildings and drive expensive suv's and eat the most expensive food.
They are here to watch us and need everything to keep us in line. Of course everygthing is donated. They shouldn't have to work.

[ican'tbelieveit]

I get to see the envirowhackos go at each other here. They protect the mighty prairie dog here in Boulder... you should see it. But, as protected animals will do, they overpopulate, and the county doesn't have enough money to gobble up more land to "relocate" them. So the solution is to capture these dogs, freeze them, and feed them to the mighty black-footed ferret in another part of the state.

Always makes for a good laugh.

[N. Theknow]

This little side effect of wind power has been known ever since the things were first put into operation.

Why complain now?

[E.G.C.]

BTTT!!!!!

[G.Mason]

"Summary: Evolution is using the blades as a bit of chlorine in the gene pool."

It's either that or the "birds flying into the windmills is full of hot air.

[gura]

www.nrel.gov/docs/fy03osti/33249.pdf

[biblewonk]

Since these wind generators are not economically viable without taxdollar subsidy, this is a situation of doing the right thing for the wrong reason.

Tax dollars and tax breaks support all forms of energy. Have you ever heard of the black lung fund?

[biblewonk]

I am very happy to hear that you are in favor of wind power. I wish I lived near some windmills.

The thing about the blade speed is that the tip speed is about 200 mph. From way back they seem slow but if you are a bird, with a tiny little brain, you will make mistakes. Kinda like humans and cars.

There are solutions though. Larger windmills on taller towers that are tubular and not lattice helps quite a bit.

[clamper1797]

Well ... I can see the windmills now ... I've actually lived here for ten years and have seen each type that are used here up close. The big ones have blades about ten foot long ... given the equation for circumference C = pi · D that means that the C = 31.4 feet. Though the big ones take over 2 seconds to go around (I can time it from where I sit) for arguments sake I'll say it takes one second per revolution or 60 RPM. 31.4 feet per second or 1884 feet per minute (31.4 FEET X 60) or 113040 feet per hour (31.4 feet x 3600). There are 5280 feet in a mile so that makes or 21.4 mph ... thats a long way from 200mph. Even if my math is flawed ... I can see the blade tips from here ... there is NO WAY that they are moving 200 mph. At 200 MPH the prop would have to spin at a little less than 600 RPM

[clamper1797]

OPPS D= 20 feet so C=62.8 feet ... Though the big ones take over 2 seconds to go around (I can time it from where I sit) for arguments sake I'll say it takes one second per revolution or 120 RPM. 62.8 feet per second or 3768 feet per minute (62.8 FEET X 60) or 226080 feet per hour (62.8 feet x 3600). There are 5280 feet in a mile so that makes or 42.8 mph ... thats a long way from 200mph. Even if my math is flawed ... I can see the blade tips from here ... there is NO WAY that they are moving 200 mph. At 200 MPH the prop would have to spin at a little less than 300 RPM

[biblewonk]

Well ... I can see the windmills now ... I've actually lived here for ten years and have seen each type that are used here up close. The big ones have blades about ten foot long ... given the equation for circumference C = pi · D that means that the C = 31.4 feet. Though the big ones take over 2 seconds to go around (I can time it from where I sit) for arguments sake I'll say it takes one second per revolution or 60 RPM. 31.4 feet per second or 1884 feet per minute (31.4 FEET X 60) or 113040 feet per hour (31.4 feet x 3600). There are 5280 feet in a mile so that makes or 21.4 mph ... thats a long way from 200mph. Even if my math is flawed ... I can see the blade tips from here ... there is NO WAY that they are moving 200 mph. At 200 MPH the prop would have to spin at a little less than 600 RPM

Well, I think you have a math error there. A large windmill today has a diameter of about 2-300 feet not 10 feet. A very popular size is the Vestas V47 and it is not large but medium size. It is 155 feet in diameter. You are right on the rotational speed so lets say 155*pi feet per second for a tip speed. That's about 500 feet per second or 300ish mph.

I envy your nearness to them. I drive 80 miles to Waverly Ia to see a Neg Micon NM52 which is 52 meters in diameter and rated at 900kw.

[clamper1797]

The article was about Altamont Pass ... there are NO ultra large windmills here ... there are some near Benitia though

[clamper1797]

The Neg Micon NM52 has a rotor of 90 Meters ... jow that one I would believe would have a tip speed of 200 mph ... but not one of the windmills here on altamont come anywhere
close to being that big ... not even the eggbeater type

[biblewonk]

Actually, tip speed is kind of a common denominator among windmills of all sizes. It is at that speed that the airfoil is efficient.