Abstract
Mission:
Advancing and disseminating science-based solutions to cost-effectively quantify and mitigate the impact of wind turbines on bats.
History:
As concerns about climate change and long-term environmental impacts from the use of fossil fuels have heightened (McLeish 2002), wind energy has become an increasingly important sector of the low carbon energy industry (Pasqualetti et al. 2004, Global Wind Energy Council 2019). Wind-generated electricity is an important part of our energy future because it is renewable, generates near-zero emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants during operations, displaces energy generated from carbon-based fuels, and consumes no water during production (National Research Council 2007, Ledec et al. 2011, Union of Concerned Scientists 2011). However, wildlife and habitats can be directly or indirectly impacted by development and operation of wind energy projects to varying degrees depending on species, project characteristics, geographic regions, and other factors (Arnett and Baerwald 2013). There are concerns regarding potential cumulative impacts of wind energy development on bat populations, particularly when many species of bats are known or suspected to be in decline from various stressors, including disease and habitat disturbance (Jones et al. 2009, Frick et al. 2010, Frick et al. 2017).
Carcasses searches have documented bat mortality at land-based wind energy facilities worldwide (Arnett et al. 2016). Although bat mortality is observed at most wind energy facilities, results can vary between years at the same site, and within and among regions (Allison et al. 2019). It remains unclear the extent to which bats may interact with offshore wind turbines, and because traditional carcass searches are not possible, technological solutions are needed to model or observe collision risk. Moreover, there is a paucity of data regarding the population status and trends for most species of bats, and how bat populations respond to various stressors. Thus, it is difficult to assess the potential population-level impact of wind turbines on bats or the level of mitigation required to ensure the coexistence between bats and wind energy development.
To address the impact of wind energy development on bats, the Bats and Wind Power Generation Technical Workshop, sponsored by the American Wind Energy Association (now American Clean Power; ACP), Bat Conservation International, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was held on 19–20 February 2004 in Juno Beach, Florida. From the 2004 meeting, the Bats and Wind Energy Cooperative (BWEC) was formed to conduct targeted research, provide technical guidance,
and sponsor research required to accomplish its mission and objectives. Since the inaugural meeting, the BWEC has added representatives from the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Energy and Wildlife Action Committee, U.S. Department of Energy, and the U.S. Geological Survey to the Oversight Committee. Subsequent committee meetings have been held in 2008, 2012, 2015, 2018, and 2022. Proceedings from all BWEC meetings are available at www.batsandwind.org.