LOCATION/TYPE

NEWS HOME

[ exact phrase in "" • results by date ]

[ Google-powered • results by relevance ]


Archive
RSS

Add NWW headlines to your site (click here)

Get weekly updates

WHAT TO DO
when your community is targeted

RSS

RSS feeds and more

Keep Wind Watch online and independent!

Donate via Paypal

Donate via Stripe

Selected Documents

All Documents

Research Links

Alerts

Press Releases

FAQs

Campaign Material

Photos & Graphics

Videos

Allied Groups

Wind Watch is a registered educational charity, founded in 2005.

News Watch Home

Forest, Bird opposed to Meridian application 

Forest and Bird would look at supporting smaller wind farm projects, such as the one near Gore by TrustPower, but not Project Hayes.

Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society vice-president Janet Ledingham told the commissioners hearing Meridian Energy’s Project Hayes application yesterday the group was not sure whether other places in Central Otago would be suitable for wind farms.

“Central Otago is one of the most difficult areas because of the landscape,” she said.

Otago-Southland field officer Susan Maturin said the wind farm site contained significant areas of threatened species of plants and animals including the New Zealand falcon.

“There are intrinsic values of the site which will be lost and degraded.

There are potential adverse impacts on the habitats of rare plants, wetlands, fish, invertebrates, lizards and falcons,” she said.

The New Zealand falcon is known to nest in the Loganburn Gorge within the northern third of the proposed wind farm site, and in the Taieri Gorge, on the south-western edge.

They also hunt on the site area.

But there were concerns about falcons colliding with the wind turbines as they were unable to process high-speed motion.

Ms Maturin said falcons could also become displaced from their preferred habitat, resulting in reduced breeding and reduced survival.Forest and Bird believed other proposed wind farm sites in Otago and Southland may be preferable, having fewer adverse effects on the landscape and areas of significant indigenous vegetation and fauna.

“It appears there is a wind farm rush in Otago and Southland, akin to the gold rush of the 1800s and the more recent gold rush for aquaculture sites, as companies are racing to all get in first and establish dominance,” she said.

By Aimee Wilson

The Southland Times

1 June 2007

This article is the work of the source indicated. Any opinions expressed in it are not necessarily those of National Wind Watch.

The copyright of this article resides with the author or publisher indicated. As part of its noncommercial educational effort to present the environmental, social, scientific, and economic issues of large-scale wind power development to a global audience seeking such information, National Wind Watch endeavors to observe “fair use” as provided for in section 107 of U.S. Copyright Law and similar “fair dealing” provisions of the copyright laws of other nations. Send requests to excerpt, general inquiries, and comments via e-mail.

Wind Watch relies entirely
on User Funding
   Donate via Paypal
(via Paypal)
Donate via Stripe
(via Stripe)

Share:

e-mail X FB LI TG TG Share


News Watch Home

Get the Facts
CONTACT DONATE PRIVACY ABOUT SEARCH
© National Wind Watch, Inc.
Use of copyrighted material adheres to Fair Use.
"Wind Watch" is a registered trademark.

 Follow:

Wind Watch on X Wind Watch on Facebook

Wind Watch on Linked In Wind Watch on Mastodon