Can wind farms impact birds and bats?

The impact of wind farms on birds and bats is extremely low compared to the impact of climate change and other human activity.

In comparison it is also far lower than the impact of other forms of power generation. Research shows 0.3 bird fatalities occur per gigawatt-hour of wind compared with 5.2 bird fatalities per gigawatt-hour of fossil fuel generation.

Some species of birds and bats are more vulnerable than others, such as birds of prey and sea ducks. At Galetech we work closely with local authorities and bird specialists to prevent the impact of wind farms on all species that currently live around the wind farm sites.

Through good planning and design we take measures to deter birds and bats from wind turbines. For example where appropriate, we use sound or ultrasound or decoy systems. If required we can even equip wind turbines with a special feature that stops the rotor from spinning when birds or bats fly too close.