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

Birding groups score win against proposed turbine project 

Credit:  Plans for Camp Perry windmill dropped; opponents argued it threatened migratory birds | Jon Stinchcomb , Reporter | News Herald | July 7, 2017 | | www.portclintonnewsherald.com ~~

BENTON TOWNSHIP – Bird conservation groups are declaring victory in their fight against a proposed wind turbine project at Camp Perry after being informed that the plans are no longer moving forward.

The wind turbine project was initially revived last year by the Ohio Air National Guard, proposing a taxpayer-funded $1.5 million, 198-foot wind turbine at the Camp Perry Joint Training Center. The plan had been halted several years earlier following similar opposition from organizations such as the American Bird Conservancy and local Black Swamp Bird Observatory.

The groups argued that the turbine would pose a “grave threat” to migrating birds, bald eagles and bats, hurting not only the local ecology but the economy as well.

Camp Perry, located on the Lake Erie shoreline northwest of Port Clinton, is just over 10 miles from one of the country’s most popular birding locations, Magee Marsh, where people from all over the world travel to see rare migrating shore birds and songbirds.

The plans for the turbine would have placed the structure less than a mile from the lakeshore, which the conservancy groups pointed out was in contrast to recommendations made by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that no turbines be built within three miles of the Great Lakes shoreline due to the potential impact on migratory populations.

Following the project’s revival last year, opposition to the project arose once again both vocally and visibly, utilizing platforms ranging from social media to billboards.

Birding groups have long opposed a proposed wind turbine that was to be built along the Lake Erie shore in Camp Perry, saying it will harm birds migrating through northwest Ohio as well as the local economy. Late last week, the groups declared victory after the plans finally appeared halted. (Photo: News Herald fire)

But according to the Black Swamp Bird Observatory, the groups’ final effort was a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court earlier this year with their partners at the American Bird Conservancy.

The lawsuit contended that the project violated the Endangered Species Act and other federal laws.

In June, the National Guard Bureau responded and informed the conservation organizations through legal counsel that the Air National Guard would no longer be pursuing the construction of the turbine at Camp Perry.

Describing that resolution to the case as a “landmark victory,” the Black Swamp Bird Observatory and American Bird Conservancy subsequently agreed to drop the lawsuit, filing for its dismissal late last week.

According to court records, the motion to dismiss the lawsuit specifically references a letter from the National Guard Bureau stating that the Air National Guard has not authorized any final action regarding the turbine’s construction and has no plans to take further action on the project or its review.

It may be the conclusion to a battle the organizations have been fighting for about five years.

In 2012, the plans for the turbine were first proposed and quickly faced opposition from conservationists, which eventually included a letter of intent to sue filed by the birding groups. The project was suspended in January 2014, revived again last year and now appears halted once again.

“We are relieved that after a five-year battle to convince them to do so, the (Air National Guard) made the decision to protect the integrity of this ‘Globally Important Bird Area’ by halting construction of the Camp Perry wind turbine project,” Kimberly Kaufman, executive director of Black Swamp Bird Observatory, said in a news release.

She said the organizations hope the decision sends a strong message to others that may be looking to develop wind energy in the area.

According to the observatory, other wind turbine projects have been popping up around the Great Lakes region, where coastlines are considered some of the most important habitats for migratory birds in the Western Hemisphere.

The American Bird Conservancy recently asked the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to increase its recommendation that no wind turbines be built within five miles of shorelines.

Both groups stated their readiness to take legal action again if the Camp Perry turbine project were to move forward in the future.

“Camp Perry is a cautionary tale about how location does matter,” said Michael Hutchins, of the American Bird Conservancy. “Rules must be followed, and similar projects should not threaten federally protected bird and bat species.”

Source:  Plans for Camp Perry windmill dropped; opponents argued it threatened migratory birds | Jon Stinchcomb , Reporter | News Herald | July 7, 2017 | | www.portclintonnewsherald.com

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