WIND FARM GETS FED APPROVAL ON EAGLES

Feds Nix Eagle Penalties for California Wind Farm

Scott Smith, June 26, 2014 (AP)

“…The Shiloh IV Wind Project LLC, 60 miles east of San Francisco, will [become the first in the nation to] receive a special permit [from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service] allowing up to five golden eagles to be accidentally killed over five years. Previously, such a violation could potentially draw criminal charges and discourage private investment in wind farms known for catching birds in their rotors…The permit will require the facility to take steps to prevent eagle injuries and deaths from electrocution by retrofitting 133 power poles. The permits are not required of wind farms, and federal prosecutors have only once filed criminal charges against a wind farm, in Wyoming…[T]he permit encourages development of renewable energy while requiring the wind company to take steps to protect eagles from turbines and power lines…Birds on the hunt can become distracted by what's on the ground and fly into the rotors…Federal wildlife officials in California, Nevada and Southern Oregon are working on two more applications for five-year eagle permits and one for 30 years…” click here for more

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