[4 |, The South Marysburgh Mirror | _Letterto the Editor | Birds and Turbines: Not So? For several years now we in the County have lis- tened to and read statements in local papers about the dangers that wind turbines present to birds. Now it seems that those claims were wrong. According to researcher Dr. Lyle Friesen from the Canadian Wildlife Service (CWS) and specialist in the conservation of landbirds and their habitats in Ontario, “the damage is minimal”; the numbers are so low that the CWS considered abandoning study of the impacts of wind turbines. We should not be surprised - the evidence has been around for years. A comprehensive review of the effects of turbines on bird populations was published by Environment Canada in 2007, based on more than 200 peer reviewed references and other sources from around the world. In the report “Wind Turbines and Birds: A Background Review for Environmental Assessment”, the authors concluded that “... studies that have been under- taken around the world suggest that, despite a few im- portant exceptions, very low numbers of bird fatalities occur at wind energy facilities” and “the observed mor- tality cause by wind energy facilities is also very low compared to other existing sources of human-caused avi- an mortality”. In the past, mortality to raptors has often been cited as the big danger; in fact, “In almost all areas, however, raptors are able to avoid wind turbines, result- ing in very few or no collisions.” The authors also note the importance of appropriate site selection in preventing negative impacts on birds. Installation of wind turbines can generate much emotion and negative as well as positive reactions. How- ever, for any dialogue to be meaningful - and persuasive - it must be rooted not in passion but in the full range o known facts, presented in an objective and unbiased man- ner. Windpower has received another endorsement from a Civil Engineering professor and Director of the Atmosphere/Energy Program at Stanford in California, Mark Z. Jacobson. This is a must read for anyone connected to the Hydro grid as we ultimately must take responsibility for the effects of the emissions produced from energy we consume. As Prof. Jacobson notes, pollu- tion causes over 2.4 million premature deaths worldwide as well as increasing asthma, respiratory illness, cardio- vascular disease, cancer, hospitalizations, emergency room visits and work days lost. Nations require bold ac- tion to combat this epidemic and must “act” to save lives. His attached report states: § Wind power is by far the most promising source of en- ergy for electricity and vehicles, performing the best in 7 out of 10 criteria (see Table 4 in section 8.). § Jacobson evaluated nine electric power sources and two liquid/fuel options, based on 10 weighted criteria including CO2 emissions, s human mortality, environmen- tal footprint, resource lance, water consumption, op- erating reliability, offects 0 on wildlife and 4 other meas- urements. § Wind has the lowest lifecycle CO2e among the tech- nologies considered. § He describes in detail the advantages and disad- vantages, and huge indirect costs, of each technology. § He describes at length five methods/solutions for deal- ing with the intermittency of renewable energy sources (section 10.). Iv. sa long, technical/analytcal read, but this excellent, yy Renewa- ork is ble Die Energy World i in this article: http: HH id54292 Or download full report: http://www stanford EnergyEnvRev0908.pdf Tom Lewis, Manager, Environment & Planning IPC Energy - Josef Cihlar 2550 Argentia Rd, Suite 105 Mississauga, OntarioL5N 5R1 905-607-1016 Knowlton Continued from page 1 local papers and he asked that I pass on this email to any some point (perhaps as soon as late April) featuring a Fogeys out there who might be persuaded to participate!!! cross section of these performers—although no one should Contact: Knowlton Hunter (warhunter@sympatico.ca) let fear of performance dampen their will, he will provide backup and help with arrangements or the songwriters can arrange to have someone else perform their tunes as well if that is necessary for any reason. He has already had help with this project, in its initial stages, from Steve Campbell, Paul Johnson and the