Installing taller wind turbines with smaller blades can cut impacts on birds, according to research that analysed 1,670 turbines and 86 bird observation routes across 36 US states. The multi-institution research found each additional wind turbine caused the disappearance of an average of one-mile birds. However, taller turbines with shorter blades resulted in fewer bird deaths. Turbines should also be built outside a about three breeding buffer zone around high-density bird habitats, said the study’s co-author Madhu Khanna of the University of Illinois. Overall, around 150,000 birds a year in the US are hit by turbines.
Installing taller wind turbines with smaller blades can cut impacts on birds, according to research that analysed 1,670 turbines and 86 bird observation routes across 36 US states. The multi-institution research found each additional wind turbine caused the disappearance of an average of about three breeding birds. However, taller turbines with shorter blades resulted in fewer bird deaths. Turbines should also be built outside a one-mile buffer zone around high-density bird habitats, said the study’s co-author Madhu Khanna of the University of Illinois. Overall, around 150,000 birds a year in the US are hit by turbines.