April 22, 2011
England

Wind mast could endanger eagle

Skegness Standard, www.skegnessstandard.co.uk 21 April 2011Skegness Standard, www.skegnessstandard.co.uk 21 April 2011

The towering 80 metre mast which was built near Wainfleet has been found to have breached planning permission and now could endanger birds.

The anemometer, which was built at the end of March, was under investigation after it was found the guide ropes supporting the mast appeared not to include bird deflectors.

The deflectors help birds see the guide ropes and therefore reduce the number being killed or endangering themselves.

An enforcement officer visited the site last week to investigate the issue and confirmed that the ropes did not include the required deflectors.

Developers RWE Npower now have 14 days in which to put deflectors on the mast.

Melvin Grosvenor, Vice Chairman for Wainfleet Windfarm Action Group (WWAG) said: “It has been confirmed that the mast does not have the bird deflectors. Bird watchers have reported sightings of the White Tailed Sea Eagle which has been seen flying backwards and forwards from the Wash and has been spotted near Wainfleet. This is quite a concern as there are plenty of birds coming near to this site. They have 14 days to put deflectors on but this means it would be around a month since the mast went up, which could pose a potential danger. The work should be carried out immediately. Any day is too long.”

The White Tailed Sea Eagle is the largest British bird of prey which has also been spotted flying majestically over the skies of Louth. The bird has a wing span of up to eight feet.

But the one seen, is thought to have been a juvenile bird which may have been wintering in the area.

One of these birds was reported to have been killed near Kerry off the Irish coast after it hit by a wind turbine.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2011/04/22/wind-mast-could-endanger-eagle/