Support Wind Farms While Protecting Bats

It's recently been proposed that while wind farms aren't overly dangerous to birds, they may be killing bats.

The problem, while still being studied, seems to occur because of the lower pressure created by wind farms. According to the Scientific American, "If bats have a lungful of air as they fly through the air-pressure change, there's nowhere for the air to go. The small blood vessels around the lungs burst and fill the lungs with fluid and blood."

So what can we do about it?

We can build our wind farms out of the migratory paths of bats?most that are killed seem to be bats migrating between Mexico and Canada. There's also been talk of shutting down the turbines when there's less wind activity—and more bats—but using this as a long term process can lose money for the farms and dampen their effectiveness. Larger turbines with slower moving blades have also been proposed, to help decrease the pressure change.

To support both protecting bats, and forging ahead with wind power (one of the most important alternative energy sources we have) contact the American Wind Energy Association and let them know you support their efforts in consulting with biologists and wind farm owners to help solve the problem.

Also, support the building of offshore wind farms—bats are inland creatures, and thus are safe from sea-planted wind turbines.