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Wildlife and renewable energy: German politics cross migratory bats 

Author:  | Germany, Wildlife

[Abstract] The catastrophic nuclear meltdowns at Fukushima triggered a worldwide demand for renewable energy. As one of the few countries, Germany decided on an accelerated shift towards green energy, resulting in substantial conflicts with international conservation goals. Currently, large numbers of wind power facilities are erected in Germany, yet with unforeseen consequences for wildlife, particularly for endangered and protected bats. Presumably, more than 250,000 bats are killed annually due to interactions with German wind turbines, and total losses may account for more than two million killed bats over the past 10 years, if mitigation measures were not practiced. More than 70 % of killed bats are migrants, because major migratory routes cross Germany. Consequently, Germany’s environmental policy is key to the conservation of migratory bats in Europe. Prospective increases in wind power will lead to the installation of larger wind turbines with potentially devastating consequences for bats. The higher net energy production of modern wind turbines at low wind speeds may exacerbate the conflict between green energy and conservation goals since revenue losses for companies increase. We conclude that evidence-based action plans are urgently needed to mitigate the negative effects of the operation of wind energy facilities on wildlife populations in order to reconcile environmental and conservation goals.

Christian C. Voigt
Linn S. Lehnert

Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany

Gunars Petersons
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Latvia University of Agriculture, Jelgava, Latvia

Frank Adorf
Büro für Faunistik und Landschaftsökologie, Bingen am Rhein, Germany

Lothar Bach
Freilandforschung, Bremen, Germany

European Journal of Wildlife Research
February 2015
doi: 10.1007/s10344-015-0903-y

Download original document: “Wildlife and renewable energy: German politics cross migratory bats

This material is the work of the author(s) indicated. Any opinions expressed in it are not necessarily those of National Wind Watch.

The copyright of this material resides with the author(s). 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. Queries e-mail.

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