Feds to Let Wind Farms Kill Bald Eagles

[Lucille]

As long as they have a federal permit. That was this company's mistake.

Feds to Let Wind Farms Kill Bald Eagles
http://www.newser.com/story/178786/feds-to-let-wind-farms-kill-bald-eagles.html

The Obama administration said today it will allow some companies to kill or injure bald and golden eagles for up to 30 years without penalty, in an effort to spur development and investment in green energy while balancing its environmental consequences. The change, requested by the wind energy industry, will provide legal protection for wind energy companies that obtain a permit and make efforts to avoid killing the birds. Companies would have to commit to take additional measures if they kill or injure more eagles than they have estimated they would, or if new information suggests that eagle populations are being affected. The permits would be reviewed every five years, and companies would have to submit reports of how many eagles they kill.

An investigation by the AP earlier this year documented the illegal killing of eagles around wind farms, the Obama administration's reluctance to prosecute such cases, and its willingness to help keep the scope of the eagle deaths secret. The White House has championed wind power, a pollution-free energy intended to ease global warming, as a cornerstone of President Barack Obama's energy plan. Wind farms are clusters of turbines as tall as 30-story buildings, with spinning rotors as wide as a passenger jet's wingspan. Though the blades appear to move slowly, they can reach speeds of up to 170mph at the tips, creating tornado-like vortexes. Flying eagles don't look up; as they scan below for food, they don't notice the industrial turbine blades until it's too late. Click for more.

SMH. All over a fake climate "crisis." And hemp is still illegal.

 

[Dr.3D]

Shouldn't that be a decision congress has to make?

What gives the White House the authority to change legislation?

 

[Lucille]

Shouldn't that be a decision congress has to make?

What gives the White House the authority to change legislation?

Congress themselves! They bluster about the imperial president, but they never actually DO anything about it.

 

[jllundqu]

 

[jmdrake]

Okay. All of the geniuses who think "Who cares if global warming's real or not? Let's go along with the charade because we need to save the planet" need to read this thread.

 

[Acala]

Try this little experiment: find yourself a giant wind turbine and remove some feathers from a dead eagle to put on your hat. I'll write to you in prison.

 

[cjm]

government-protected green energy projects can kill bald eagles? does the word 'metaphor' occur to anyone else?

 

[tangent4ronpaul]

Try this little experiment: find yourself a giant wind turbine and remove some feathers from a dead eagle to put on your hat. I'll write to you in prison.

You beat me to that point...

Exactly!

-t

 

[Zippyjuan]

Curious how many bald eagles are killed by wind turbines each year. I found this article with some figures:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/sep/11/eagle-slaughter-wind-farms-kill-67-eagles-5-years/

WASHINGTON (AP) — Wind energy facilities have killed at least 67 golden and bald eagles in the last five years, but the figure could be much higher, according to a new scientific study by government biologists.

The research represents one of the first tallies of eagle deaths attributed to the nation’s growing wind energy industry, which has been a pillar of President Barack Obama’s plans to reduce the pollution blamed for global warming. Wind power releases no air pollution.

But at a minimum, the scientists wrote, wind farms in 10 states have killed at least 85 eagles since 1997, with most deaths occurring between 2008 and 2012, as the industry was greatly expanding. Most deaths — 79 — were golden eagles that struck wind turbines. One of the eagles counted in the study was electrocuted by a power line.

So according to the higher figure of 85 eagles killed since 1997 (16 years), 79 were golden eagles which leaves six bald eagles killed in 16 years. US Fish and Wildlife services estimated nearly 10,000 breeding pairs of bald eagles in the lower 48 states as of 2006. http://www.fws.gov/Midwest/eagle/population/chtofprs.html

 

[Lucille]

Suffer the President Who Slaughters the Eagles
http://www.absoluterights.com/the-un-american-american-president/

After five years of his occupation of the Oval Office, it is abundantly clear that wherever Obama's true sympathies happen to be, they are most certainly not with America or America's national symbols.

As reported by Salon:

In an attempt to encourage the growth of wind power, the Obama administration announced Friday that it is offering wind farms 30 years of leeway to kill and harm bald and golden eagles. The new regulations, which were requested by the wind industry, will provide companies that seek a permit with legal protection, preventing them from having to pay penalties for eagle deaths.

Now, Obama isn't responsible for the words of his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, but few things shout “God Damn America” more than legalizing the slaughter of its national bird. Granted, Obama did not personally construct the wind farms, nor, to the best of my knowledge, is killing eagles the primary purpose of the farms. It's not as if he's been spotted roaming river banks around the country, shotgun in hand, looking to shoot as many eagles as he can.

But by permitting his administration to go out its way to circumvent the law and allow the wind industry to avoid the legal consequences of killing an endangered species that is of particular concern to Americans, Obama is showing the same tone deafness to normal American sensitivities as when he blithely wrote about eating dogs in “Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance”. And he is showing the same indifference to what regular Americans think as when he advocates amnesty for illegal immigrants who have reduced American wages, driven up American health care costs, and contributed to destroying the American economy.

It's not that Obama hates America. Such an angry, passionate emotion would be entirely uncharacteristic of the man. It's more that America, its traditions, its culture, its symbols, are completely irrelevant to him. Regardless of the issue, it appears that it never even occurs to him to take feelings of the American people into account. This is why he lies to them so readily. They don't matter to him. They never did. They were never anything more than a vehicle required to carry him from Point A: the Senate, to Point B: the White House.

I don't pretend to have any idea what Obama's long-term objectives are. At times, I wonder if the man himself knows. He has fulfilled the destiny that was long-predicted for him; he seems to have been far more interested in acquiring the trappings of power than he is in actually using them. But whatever those objectives may be, it is obvious that the protection of the America's national bird, the bald eagle, is not among them.

 

[Zippyjuan]

But by permitting his administration to go out its way to circumvent the law and allow the wind industry to avoid the legal consequences of killing an endangered species that is of particular concern to Americans, Obama is showing the same tone deafness to normal American sensitivities as when he blithely wrote about eating dogs in “Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance”. And he is showing the same indifference to what regular Americans think as when he advocates amnesty for illegal immigrants who have reduced American wages, driven up American health care costs, and contributed to destroying the American economy.

The Bald Eagle is no longer considered an "endangered species".
http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/06/28/bald.eagle.delisting/

Bald eagle soars off endangered list

(CNN) -- The bald eagle, America's national symbol, is flying high after spending three decades in recovery. On Thursday, the government took the eagle off the Endangered Species Act's "threatened" list.

"The eagle has returned," Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne told government officials, wildlife conservationists and journalists at a ceremony held on the steps of the Jefferson Memorial in Washington.

"Today is an opportunity to celebrate and draw inspiration," Kempthorne added.

"We do have 1,300 species that have been listed and our recovery rate is about 1 percent. I would like to see us have more days like this when we can announce success and victory and delisting of species."

Since the 1970s, the government has worked hard to save the bald eagle, which was dying off because of habitat destruction, illegal shooting and contamination of its food source. Watch bald eagles along the Hudson River »

It was first listed as endangered, then threatened, and now is off the list entirely.

More at link.

Far more are killed by automobiles. In Michigan alone over 200 were killed by cars in six years- vs six (according to figures above) killed by wind turbines in 16 years.
http://www.ammoland.com/2010/12/number-of-bald-eagles-killed-by-cars-rising/#axzz2nOEKRpIU

LANSING, Michigan --(Ammoland.com)- The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the Environment caution Michigan drivers on bald eagle mortality due to rising vehicular trauma.

The USFW Service and Michigan DNRE and the Environment (DNRE) urge Michigan drivers to use caution Michigan this travel season as bald eagles may be present on or near roadways.

Bald eagle mortality rates due to vehicular collisions in Michigan have risen in the last six years, accounting for 222 out of 774, or 29 percent, of recorded eagle mortalities between 1987 and 2008.

“Michigan drivers, especially in the northern part of the state, should be aware that eagles are often along our roadsides and can help out by taking necessary steps to help reduce eagle mortality,” said DNRE Wildlife Division Chief Russ Mason. “Slowing your vehicle if you happen to spot an eagle near road kill is a good start.”

“A recent analysis of data from Michigan indicates that collisions with vehicles are a significant cause of eagle mortality,” said Jack Dingledine, Deputy Field Supervisor of the East Lansing Field Office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

“The bald eagle tells one of our nation’s most revered conservation success stories, and although this species has recovered to sustainable levels, we must keep in mind that as numbers rise, so does the risk for mortality due to human interactions.”

In addition to catching and eating fish, eagles commonly feed on dead animals. Road corridors often attract eagles, which will scavenge on large road-kill such as deer, coyote, fox or raccoon. Scavenging behavior tends to increase during the winter months when ice develops on lakes and rivers, making foraging for fish more difficult.

“There is no one solution that will completely eliminate vehicle-caused mortality in Michigan,” said Dingledine. “But efforts from all sides, including help from the driving public, can reduce vehicle-caused eagle mortality.”

Eagles that appear to be outside of a vehicle’s path may feel threatened by the approach of an oncoming vehicle and may attempt to escape, often leading the bird to cross the roadway, in front of oncoming traffic. Drivers who do not anticipate this reaction by the eagle put themselves, the eagle, and their vehicle at risk. If a driver observes an eagle on or near a roadway, and if it is safe to do so, vehicle speed should be reduced immediately to give the driver and the eagle more time to react.

More at link.

Let us ban these murders of our national symbol. Let's include those other major killers such as buildings, powerlines, and housecats.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffmcm...s-to-keep-your-wind-farm-from-killing-eagles/

Any wind farmer will tell you that wind turbines kill far fewer birds than buildings, power lines, cars, pesticides and—those lethal predators—housecats. But Americans love their eagles, and windfarms from Maryland to California have made headlines recently for killing or imposing upon bald and golden eagles.