Bird deaths down 70 percent after painting wind turbine blades black... Still far fewer than from colliding with electrical power lines (or windows or cats) but Research brings good Improveme

Wind power is surging right now, with more than 60GW of new generating capacity added worldwide in 2019. As long as you put the turbines in the right spot, wind power is reliably cheaper than burning fossil fuels. And most people would prefer to live next to a wind farm than any other kind of power plant — even solar.

Estimates from the US Fish and Wildlife Service calculated that approximately 300,000 birds were killed by wind turbines in 2015 (which is probably two orders of magnitude fewer than die as a result of colliding with electrical power lines each year), and bird deaths from turbines are trending down as the industry moves to larger turbine blades that move more slowly.

It's a good lesson though for two aspects around new technology and innovation: Keep context with the broader picture, and improve rather than ban something better.

See Bird deaths down 70 percent after painting wind turbine blades

#environment #windenergy #birds #renewableenergy

The study ran for nine years at Norway's Smøla wind farm.

source https://gadgeteer.co.za/bird-deaths-down-70-percent-after-painting-wind-turbine-blades-black-still-far-fewer-colliding