Locals seek change in plans for wind power plant to save wild birds
TOKYO — Local officials and a bird conservation group requested Monday that an electric power company and the government alter plans to build a wind power plant in Fukui Prefecture in order to prevent birds being killed.
Officials of the Kaga municipal government in Ishikawa Prefecture and of the Wild Bird Society of Japan visited Electric Power Development Co., the plant’s builder, and the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy in Tokyo to plead their case.
They argue that as many as 1,000 white-fronted geese could get caught up in the windmills each winter should the plant be built at the currently planned site, which is roughly midway between a wetland in Kaga listed under an international conservation treaty and a feeding site.
‘‘From the standpoint of protecting the geese, we can’t ignore the negative impact that could occur,’’ said an official of the bird society.
Kaga Mayor Jin Osaka said at a news conference, ‘‘We approve of wind power generation if it doesn’t affect wild birds. We hope they implement it in an area that doesn’t affect the precious ecosystem.’’
Electric Power Development, known commonly as J-Power, plans to build the wind power plant in Awara, Fukui. The Katano duck pond, a designated wetland under the Ramsar Convention, lies about 10 kilometers from the plant’s planned site. The pond provides refuge to about 3,000 white-fronted geese and about 600 bean geese at peak times in winter.
19 August 2008
Tags: Wind power, Wind energy
Some possibly related stories:
The copyright of this article is owned by the author or publisher indicated. Its availability here constitutes a "fair use" as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law as well as in similar "fair dealing" exceptions of the copyright laws of other nations, as part of National Wind Watch's effort to advance understanding of the environmental, social, scientific, and economic issues of large-scale wind power development. For more information, click here.
