New York Wind/Wildlife Dialoque

NYSERDA is convening a new dialogue process about wind power development in New York State. The overarching goals of the dialoque process are:

• to address real or perceived impacts on birds and bats resulting from on-shore wind power development in the State; and
• to develop a strategy for a comparative analysis of the environmental impacts of wind power as compared to conventional forms of power production.

RESOLVE is leading the facilitation team for this process.

Reports

New York Wind/Wildlife Dialoque Steering Committee October 19, 2005 Meeting One Summary (1,097kb.pdf)

NYSERDA Assessment Report - This Report summarizes the results of interviews with a select group of parties interested in working with NYSERDA to address the issue of wind power's potential impacts on birds and bats. NYSERDA contracted with RESOLVE to find out parties' perspectives on two distinct yet inter-related questions:

• How ought we evaluate and mitigate the impacts of wind power on birds and bats; and
• Given an assessment of the impacts of wind power on birds and bats in absolute terms, how ought we compare these impacts to alternative forms of power production and human activities?

Parties Interviewed represented federal and state regulators, conservationists, researchers, the wind industry, and other organizations involved in the development of renewable energy policy or health impacts of traditional energy resources in New York State. (115kb.pdf)

Wind/WildLife Issues

NYSERDA and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) together hosted a Technical Workshop on Wind/Wildlife Issues held in Albany, New York on August 2-3, 2006. The purpose of the workshop was to bring together experts from across the country to explore the state of the knowledge on wind power’s impacts on wildlife and how that knowledge can be applied in New York. An additional goal of the workshop was to identify research needs on the interaction of birds and bats with wind power sites as well as potential impact mitigation strategies.

A series of panels addressed specific questions posed by NYSERDA and the DEC. The panel members collaborated to produce a presentation on the group’s answer to individual questions, which included a characterization of their areas of agreement and disagreement. The panel leaders were responsible for synthesizing the group’s thinking around the assigned questions and presenting the results of that deliberation to the larger workshop.

Meeting Summary

Panel presentations:

What site characteristics site characteristics are relevant to wildlife resource relevant to wildlife resource characterization?

What data exist on bird & bat use of potential wind energy sites in New York & the Eastern US?

B. Post-Construction Monitoring: Birds and Bats

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Priority Issues, Questions, and Concerns for Post Construction Monitoring Panel Discussion1

How Do We Ensure Rigor Of Data In Both Pre And Post-Construction Studies?

What Methods Are Available To Assess Approaches For Evaluating Impact To Wildlife Species? What Is The Effectiveness Of The Methods?

The process that evaluates the likelihood that adverse effects may occur, or are occurring

Mitigating the effects of wind energy development:What we know and where too next…

What is an appropriate Adaptive Management formulation in the wind-energy context?

NEW YORK WIND/WILDLIFE TECHNICAL WORKSHOPPOST-CONSTRUCTION HABITAT MANAGEMENT

Methods for Assessing Presence and Activity of Birds and Bats at Wind Energy Facilities

17 Columbia Circle, Albany, NY 12203-6399    Toll-Free: 1-866-NYSERDA or Local: 518-862-1090    Fax: 518-862-1091
New York City and Buffalo Regional Offices

© 2004 New York State Energy Research and Development Authority