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  • General Overview of The Impacts of Wind On Wildlife: Sarah A. Barnum, Ph.D. Senior Wildlife Ecologist

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    Northeast Wind Resource Center (NWRC)
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    Wind energy development can directly and indirectly impact wildlife through habitat loss, disturbance, and mortality. Direct impacts include habitat alteration and fragmentation as well as bird and bat deaths from collisions. Indirect impacts consist of disturbance from noise and visual cues that can cause avoidance behaviors. Bats, birds, and threatened or endangered species are of primary concern. While wind projects create fragmentation similar to other linear developments, wind is unique in that it fragments airspace and introduces novel sources of disturbance. The overall impacts of wind development depend on the specific context and species, as research has better understood general impacts but lacks knowledge about wind's unique effects and how vulnerable species respond.

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    From the New England Wind Energy Education Project Conference and Workshop

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    Sarah Barnum Slides 6.7.11

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    Wind energy development can directly and indirectly impact wildlife through habitat loss, disturbance, and mortality. Direct impacts include habitat alteration and fragmentation as well as bird and bat deaths from collisions. Indirect impacts consist of disturbance from noise and visual cues that can cause avoidance behaviors. Bats, birds, and threatened or endangered species are of primary concern. While wind projects create fragmentation similar to other linear developments, wind is unique in that it fragments airspace and introduces novel sources of disturbance. The overall impacts of wind development depend on the specific context and species, as research has better understood general impacts but lacks knowledge about wind's unique effects and how vulnerable species respond.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    6 views7 pages

    General Overview of The Impacts of Wind On Wildlife: Sarah A. Barnum, Ph.D. Senior Wildlife Ecologist

    Uploaded by

    Northeast Wind Resource Center (NWRC)
    Wind energy development can directly and indirectly impact wildlife through habitat loss, disturbance, and mortality. Direct impacts include habitat alteration and fragmentation as well as bird and bat deaths from collisions. Indirect impacts consist of disturbance from noise and visual cues that can cause avoidance behaviors. Bats, birds, and threatened or endangered species are of primary concern. While wind projects create fragmentation similar to other linear developments, wind is unique in that it fragments airspace and introduces novel sources of disturbance. The overall impacts of wind development depend on the specific context and species, as research has better understood general impacts but lacks knowledge about wind's unique effects and how vulnerable species respond.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
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    of 7

    General Overview of the

    Impacts of Wind on Wildlife


    Sarah A. Barnum, Ph.D.
    Senior Wildlife Ecologist
    New England Wind Energy Education Project
    Conference and Workshop
    Marlborough, MA
    7 June 2011
    Impacts of (Wind) Development on
    Wildlife
    Direct
    Habitat Loss, Alteration, and Fragmentation
    Mortality
    Indirect
    Disturbance
    Avoidance
    Species of Primary Concern
    Bats
    Birds
    Threatened/Endangered
    Wind is Similar to Other Types of
    Linear Developments
    All linear developments create:
    Fragmentation
    Edge Effects
    Travel corridors for exotics
    Some linear developments have operational
    effects:
    Mortality,
    Disturbance
    Unique Wind Impacts
    Wind is unlike other linear developments
    because it:
    Fragments the airspace
    May create barriers
    May affect behavior
    Introduces novel sources of disturbance
    Visual, noise
    Are Winds Impacts Significant?
    Depends on the Context
    Assessing the Impacts of Wind
    Development on Wildlife
    There is a useful body of knowledge about
    the non-unique impacts of wind.
    We lack knowledge about winds unique
    impacts.
    We lack knowledge about how some
    vulnerable species react to winds unique
    impacts.

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