This document includes on-the-ground photos of the Allegheny Ridge wind farm in Pennsylvania which show the extent of land impacted by road development. The degree of clearing shown is typical for ridgeline wind energy development; however, as stated below, the clearing does not reflect pre-approval assertions made by the developer.

Dan Boone, consulting conservation biologist, presented these slides at the "Save Ice Mountain" public forum in Tyrone, PA. Each slide serves as a resource for those seeking answers about the impacts of utility-scale wind development along forested ridgelines in Pennsylvania.

After reviewing data collected during a groundbreaking research effort, the Bats and Wind Energy Cooperative (BWEC), a government-conservationindustry partnership, reported today substantial bat kills at two wind farms in the mid-Atlantic region between August 1 and September 13 of 2004. The report summarizes the first year’s research on potential causes and solutions. The research included the most detailed studies ever performed on bat fatality at wind sites and provides a foundation for further efforts aimed at better understanding why bats are being killed and how to minimize future fatalities.

This report, authored by the Wind Energy and Bats subcommittee to the Pennsylvania Biological Survey's (PaBS) Mammal Technical Committee, documents the PA Game Commission's direct side-stepping of a long-established memorandum of agreement with the PaBS when the Game Commission developed and finalized the Wind Energy Voluntary Cooperation Agreement without the review or input of the Biological Survey. The memorandum of agreement was created over 10 years ago to help ensure that the Game Commission obtained advice from experts about actions affecting the mammals inhabiting the Commonwealth.

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

Capacity Factor by Month: (1) Mountaineer Windplant, WV, (2) Meyersdale Windplant, PA, (3) Mill Run Windplant, PA, and (4) Waymart Windplant, PA.
This information, by month, highlights the issue of whether wind is available when electricity is needed. The charts reflect strong winds in the winter months and considerably lighter winds in the summer when demand for electricity is expected to peak.

Dear Mr. Boone:

I am in receipt of the information you sent regarding the Meyersdale wind project and the risk to bats, specifically Indiana bats in that area and your request for my opinion on this project. I have also done some research on my own concerning wind turbines and its affects on bats, to determine what data are available in the scientific literature in this area. I base this opinion on data and scientific literature, and my 16 years experience studying bat biology and bat ecology.

This important peer-reviewed paper written by bat expert Dr. Thomas H. Kunz et al identifies the significant risk wind turbines pose for migratory and local bat populations in the mid-Atlantic Highlands region of the United States. The projected number of annual fatalities of bats at wind energy facilities in the Highlands in the year 2020 can reach up to 111,000 bats.

Dan Boone takes a close look at the landscape impact of the Mountaineer Wind Energy (WV) and Meyersdale (PA) industrial wind plants.