Wind-farming daydream becomes a nightmare
Environment protection groups and Greens politicians have no interest in the environment or biodiversity preservation (“The ill winds of hypocrisy”, 26/7). Their encouragement of wind farms in western Victoria has led to the killing of the peregrine falcon, other raptors, brolgas and bats, as well as the destruction of local wetlands.
To discourage birds from the area farmers are being encouraged to clear wetlands and vegetation before wind farms are constructed. Green groups have condoned this despite local protestations. All this destruction for an energy source that provides unreliable power for a mere 25 per cent of the time. I hope the Andrews government still has those diesel generators on stand-by. With the increasing international concerns over species and biodiversity protection, gigantic wind and solar farms certainly aren’t the answer for our energy needs.
Wind farms don’t just kill birds — as Graham Lloyd outlines. They have also killed fact and reason by those who now think we can power a country with irregular and inadequate wind and solar power and batteries that don’t exist, and who seem oblivious to the associated degradation of the power system that has doubled costs and reduced reliability. And all this for no proven benefit as CO2 is now considered a minor factor in climate and attempts to curb CO2 production with renewables have failed.
This should never have become an ideological issue. It is time the government returned the subject to the realms of science and engineering where it belongs. Eagles could then soar more freely, power prices drop and integrity return to science and decision making. An independent inquiry into the whole mess is overdue.
Wind farms do kill birds at the introductory stages, as do many tall man-made structures. Power lines, tall trees, tall buildings, farming practices that include poisoning and destruction of natural habitats also kill birds. But birds are clever creatures; they tend to learn to avoid most of the impediments that kill or harm them, with time.
Bird kills by wind farms should not be taken as a reason for abandoning wind farms. Any development that ameliorates CO2 production should be encouraged, otherwise global warming will kill all those birds and animals we love.
I see Bob Brown is alarmed at the killing of birds by a giant wind farm planned for northwest Tasmania. Wedge-tailed eagles, orange-bellied parrots, the sharp-tailed sandpiper, the double-banded plover are just a few of those waiting to be slaughtered.
Does Brown imagine that this destruction is confined to his own back yard? For years people have documented the damage to wildlife caused by these monsters. But this means nothing to the climate evangelists in the cities. After all, they have targets to meet. But at least some in the green movement are waking up.
You reveal that the construction of two wind farms in Victoria is having disastrous effects on bird life and that it is not clear which agency is responsible for regulation, including the draining of water storages. A similar experience appears to be occurring in California. But the Greens have now accepted that the huge wind farm proposed for Tasmania’s Robbins Island goes too far and should be subject to a proper planning process. Such a process should also take account of the capacity of energy production.
Climate expert Tom Quirk has estimated the capacity of energy production at Woolnorth whih is close to Robbins — that there would be little or no production from wind farms for about 20 per cent of the month. This means that back-up would be required. The federal government should regulate wind farms so that they don’t go too far, and that our productivity is improved.
First they ignored the scientists, then they ignored nature, now they ignore the fossil fuel industry itself — so the real issue isn’t virtue signalling, it’s ignorance signalling, as there is also no doubt left that only the dim-witted believe that their crusade against reality isn’t already over.
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