Wind farms generate electricity without burning fossil fuels, emitting harmful air emissions or consuming massive quantities of water. But what about impacts to birds? A major renewable energy project proposed for the Southeast has completed a comprehensive environmental study and found wind farms are likely to have a net positive impact on the environment.
Coal, oil, and other fossil fuel energy sources have major individual impacts on bird populations, but together these carbon-emitting fuels are the major driver of climate change–one of the greatest threats to bird populations according to a study by the National Wildlife Federation.
In fact, the Plains and Eastern Clean Line project will reduce harmful air emissions. As noted in the EIS, the project would displace other forms of energy usage, like coal or natural gas powered generation. Over the lifespan of the project, it is estimated that Clean Line will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than 13 million tons. That’s equivalent to removing 2.7 million cars from the road annually. (As an aside, studies show cars kill up to 340 million birds per year – or about 1,000x more than wind farms).
NARUC's statement about FERC Order 1920 did not paint a rosy picture. SACE Board Chair Ennis Leon Jacobs Jr., former Chair of the Florida PSC, decided to weigh in.
Today the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued a rule through Order 1920 that will bring regional transmission planning into the modern era. This rule is a particularly big deal for the…