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Avian center official: Windmills could impact migration

2009-02-20T05:09:09Z

Wendy Perrone, executive director of the Three Rivers Avian Center in Brooks, W.Va., said Friday that she had not seen all the details about the project, but there are some concerns. "The mountain range is a migration route used for many decades and centuries....from butterflies to bats up to and including eagles," she said. Windmill projects have a potential for killing bats. Why this happens is not yet clear, Perrone said.

Turbines Must Deal With The Birds And The Bats

2008-01-25T14:33:42Z

The environmental impact of Virginia's first wind farm in Highland County could shed light on how successful such farms will be in the Valley, state officials say. State agencies, led by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, will monitor the Highland New Wind Development LLC's 20 wind turbines to see how federally protected bats and birds are affected. Biologists are concerned that inland wind farms on the East Coast could kill large numbers of common bats, and possibly affect the federally protected Indiana bat and Virginia big-eared bat, according to the State Corporation Commission. The commission approved the Highland County project this week but required the developers to study its impact on the animals. "We still have no experience in Virginia," said Ken Schrad, an SCC spokesman. "The Highland project, with its monitoring and mitigation program, will provide that experience for future projects."

Strings attached to state wind farm

2007-12-21T07:04:39Z

Highland New Wind chose not to seek a federal permit to protect the wind farm from possible immediate shutdown by government order if an endangered or threatened animal is killed or injured. That's a risk that regulators said the company is free to take if it wishes. Another battleground was how much Highland New Wind will pay for wildlife measures. Thursday's ruling initially capped monitoring costs at up to $150,000 a year. It capped shutdown-related expenses to benefit wildlife at either $50,000 a year or 0.85 percent of revenue from the prior year, whichever is higher. Previously released case documents said the project is expected to generate lots of cash long-term. Company financial analysts predicted Highland New Wind could earn an annual profit of $4.2 million after major expenses are paid off in 10 to 15 years. With state approval now in hand, the company said it will begin recruiting investors.

Wind farm may have to monitor bird and bat kills; An SCC officer said wildlife protection outweighs financial concerns

2007-10-18T22:01:00Z

Backers of a proposed wind farm in Highland County would have to search daily for dead birds and bats and curtail turbine operations to limit loss of animal life under a proposed wildlife-protection plan issued Wednesday by a Virginia State Corporation Commission hearing officer. ...Citing "significant risk" to bats, and "a lesser risk" to birds, Skirpan recommended that backers of the 19-turbine project should pay for monitoring and altering their use, including speed, for the life of the wind farm.

SCC official recommends monitoring wind energy project for its lifespan

2007-10-18T08:29:55Z

Following State Corporation Commission's decision in March to remand the case to its hearing examiner for further review on environmental concerns, months of testimony have been submitted and reviewed. This week, the hearing examiner, Alexander J. Skirpan, submitted another report to commissioners, this time recommending "robust" monitoring of the potentially adverse impacts to wildlife, for the expected 20-year life of the project. ...Skirpan had previously concluded HNWD's project be approved by the SCC. But commissioners wanted to know what kind of details a monitoring and mitigation plan would include, rather than leaving those issues up to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, and HNWD.

Developers clear obstacle for Highland County wind farm

2007-10-17T23:21:15Z

Developers have cleared another hurdle for a wind farm in Highland County. A hearing examiner has asked the State Corporation Commission to approve his recommendations to reduce harm to native birds and bats.

SCC orders bird, bat protection near proposed wind farm

2007-04-06T10:07:05Z

The State Corporation Commission on Friday sent a proposal for Virginia's first utility-grade wind farm back to a hearing examiner for development of a plan to mitigate harm to rare birds and bats on Highland County ridges. In recommending approval last month for construction of 19 turbines, SCC hearing examiner Alexander Skirpan found that the Highland New Wind Development proposal posed a risk to birds and bats. Skirpan recommended a monitoring program, developed by the company and the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, to reduce the environmental hazard.

Official recommends Va. wind farm

2007-03-02T13:27:40Z

ROANOKE -- A state hearing examiner has recommended construction of the first utility-grade wind farm in Virginia, provided it meets conditions to minimize harm to the environment. The recommendation announced Thursday goes to the State Corporation Commission, which will decide whether to approve construction of the 19-turbine development on Highland County ridges. SCC hearing examiner Alexander Skirpan found that the project by Highland New Wind Development poses a risk to bats and birds, but said a monitoring program by the company and a state agency following construction would help reduce the hazard.

State Wildlife Agency Advises the State Corporation Commission that the Proposed Highland Wind Project Presents Unacceptable Risk to Wildlife

2006-09-25T11:28:52Z

The September 20, 2006 VDGIF letter states: â��We support the use of alternative energy sources, including wind energy. However, based on review of the information provided thus far by the Highland project applicant, in the absence of accountable mitigation conditions . . . we feel this project presents an unacceptable risk to wildlife.â��

Wind turbines' effects on Appalachians' ecology worries scientists

2006-06-18T12:04:49Z

Preliminary research shows wind turbines kill thousands of bats and birds in the Appalachian Mountains, which are a major migratory flyway, scientists say.....Dan Boone, a Maryland-based botanist and wildlife scientist, said laws such as the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act aren't enough to protect against bird and bat kills, deforestation and other damage done by wind turbines.

Wind farm would kill few birds, lawyer says - But state official says effects on birds, bats need to be studied

2006-05-02T11:58:04Z

Tom Smith, director of the state Department of Conservation and Recreation's natural-heritage program, said detailed research is needed on the windmills' potential to kill birds and bats. "It's very hard to say there's not a significant impact [on birds] and not a need for additional studies," Smith said.

Hearing officer's filing on postconstruction mortality & mitigation pertaining to proposed Highland New Wind

2007-10-16T07:51:23Z

The public version of this filing can be downloaded below.

Bird and Bat Studies Conducted at Proposed or Existing Windpower Facilities

2007-03-01T00:00:00Z

This document includes studies in Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia and West Virginia.

Evaluating the Costs and Benefits of Wind Energy Development in the Mountains of Virginia

2006-10-17T14:05:34Z

Rick Webb's presentation on October 17 at the Energy Virginia conference provides a thought provoking analysis of the costs and benefits of industrial wind energy.

Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries' Comments to the State Corporation Commission concerning the proposed industrial wind plant in Highland County

2006-09-20T11:42:08Z

To reiterate, if the SCC chooses to license this project, we request adherence to the monitoring and mitigation recommendations described in this letter and attachments. In the absence of such conditions, we feel this project would pose an unacceptable risk to the Commonwealthâ��s wildlife resources.

A Radar and Visual Study of Nocturnal Bird and Bat Migration at the Proposed Highland New Wind Development Project, Virginia, Fall 2005

2006-01-06T05:00:00Z

This study focused on nocturnal migration patterns and flight behaviors during the peak periods of passerine and bat migration during fall 2005 at the proposed Highland New Wind Development in Highland Count. Virginia. The key results of our study were: (I) the mean overall fall passage rate was 385 targetsikmh; (2)mean nightly passage rates ranged from 9 to 2,762 targetshh, (3) the percentage of targets passing below 125 m agl was 11.5%; (4) the estimated turbine passage rate of nocturnal migrants passing within the airspace occupied by each proposed turbine was 3.4-24.7 migrantslturbineid during the fall study period; (5) fall migrants flying at or below maximal turbine height consisted of 88% birds and 12% bats; and (6) passage rates, flight altitudes, and visual observation rates of birds and bats did not differ between the two survey sites within the project area.

Dan Boone to VA-Bird: ridgeline migration and wind

2003-12-31T14:31:40Z

Unlike in the west, the vast majority of birds likely to be killed at wind turbines in the east are neotropical migrants - which pass through our region mostly at night. Many of these species are already under severe pressure due to loss and fragmentation of breeding and wintering habitat.

Greenwashing a not-so-green wind project proposal

2008-07-29T14:28:03Z

Highland New Wind Development (HNWD), developer of the proposed 20-turbine ridgeline wind project in Highland County, Virginia, has taken its search for investors to extremes, posting a website entitled: "The Greenest Windfarm in the World." ...This greenest-of-all posturing puts a new spin on the permit conditions imposed by the State Corporation Commission (SCC). Although potential investors will want to know why the SCC imposed precedent-setting wildlife monitoring conditions on the project, this critical information is missing from the HNWD website. Most of the extensive record, however, including expert reports and testimony submitted to the SCC, is provided here on the Virginia Wind website.

Getting the math right

2007-10-18T08:55:24Z

Alexander Skirpan, the hearing examiner, made several recommendations most will appreciate, including requiring mitigation and monitoring throughout the life of the project as needed. ...But most still retain hope the project will never come to fruition. Hurdles remain. Investors will be wary of HNWD's decision to ignore strong advice about getting a habitat conservation plan and incidental take permit for endangered species. There are still lawyers waiting in the wings for the first time one of those raptors is found dead at the foot of a wind tower. Without taking the best steps to mitigate its own financial outlook, HNWD may not be able to get backing it needs.

Mitigating avian deaths too expensive?

2007-08-04T11:27:02Z

Bats serve important ecological functions that keep natural systems in balance, especially insect control. Their diminishment could impact humans in ways ranging from decreased crop yields and increased use of pesticides to greater incidence of insect-borne diseases. There is a risk that the public will accept wind energy as an easy solution to global warming without understanding the necessity of monitoring and mitigation requirements. It is important for the public to recognize that while the proposed development could produce up to 39 megawatts of power under ideal conditions, eastern turbines average less than a third of that amount over the course a year, and much less than a third during the summer when electricity demand is highest.