energy
- Renewable Energy
- Energy Efficiency
- BP Oil Spill Disaster
- Energy Development -- more coming soon
National Audubon Society and NRDC have created MAPS of restricted lands and sensitive wildlife areas in the western US, to help plan energy development projects by avoiding key areas. View sensitive areas in Montana - go to Google Earth Outreach >>
Solving global warming means investing in clean renewable energy
We strongly support renewable energy development in Montana and are on the forefront of making sure it's done right. Any development has the potential to significantly impact birds and wildlife if not done right. Certain types of renewables can be developed appropriately in certain locations. We know we need low carbon fuels to prevent catastrophic climate change.
WIND ENERGy
At Montanan Audubon we believe wind power is part of our energy solution, yet proper siting is key. We are working to ensure that wind energy producers do not locate their farms in critical habitat for birds or other wildlife. The problem with wind farms is straightforward: if farms are located in areas heavily used by birds, such as in a migration flyway or on a nesting area for a rare species, lots of birds are unnecessarily killed each year. However, if these areas are avoided, bird deaths are not a problem.
Our goal is to make sure that adequate bird and other wildlife census information is collected and used before wind farms are sited. For this purpose, ‘adequate bird censuses’ means:
- Bird research is conducted during at least one fall season and one spring season of migration (many birds migrate along different routes in different seasons);
- Censuses examine day and night migration (many songbirds migrate at night); &
- Censuses follow accepted research protocol.
Although Montana Audubon recognizes the need for new and creative ways to meet growing energy demands and we support the development of alternative renewable energy sources such as solar and wind energy, we are concerned about the potential impact of power generating facilities on birds and other wildlife. By assisting wind companies up front to avoid critical areas for birds, we are working to be part of the wind energy solution.
Montana Audubon has adopted a Wind Energy Siting Policy Guidance Document. Jan 2008.
To read more about the issues for wildlife and our strategies to have "wind done right" in Montana, read Janet's article from our December 2088 newsletter. Download HERE >>
The Nature Conservancy recently (2009) completed An Ecological Risk Assessment of Wind Energy Development in Montana - an excellent report! Download HERE >> (14.3 MB). A Great Falls Tribune article about the report is HERE >>
Here we highlight some recent press information regarding Judith Gap, Montana's largest wind farm, and other wind stories relevant to Montana. We continue to learn more about the effects this wind development has on wildlife, especially bats and birds and will try to keep up with the news.
- From the Great Falls Tribune July 20, 2008: Judith Gap Wind Farm taking toll on bats, birds.
- The bat mystery has been confounding biologists. Finally some answers as to why bats are particularly susceptible to deaths at wind farms - it's called "barotrauma" - read more here.
- We have a great deal of wind along the Rocky Mountain Front. And companied are prospecting. Here's the latest from the Great Falls Tribune (sept 14, 2008).
Learn More:
- Assessing Impacts of Wind-Energy Development on Nocturnally Active Birds and Bats: A Guidance Document. Journal of Wildlife Management. 2007 (pdf, 1 MB).
- Wind Energy Development and Wildlife Conservation: Challenges and Opportunities. Journal of Wildlife Management. 2007
- Estimating Wind Turbine–Caused Bird Mortality. Journal of Wildlife Management. 2007
SOLAR ENERGY
Summer in Montana has us thinking about all that SUN energy - renewable and plentiful! Solar energy is becoming more and more affordable and technologically feasible every day, both for small scale residential use and large scale "Solar Thermal Electric". Read all about going big with solar from a recent article at solon.com
Nonetheless, there is consensus that the only way for US business to commit to solar now, is for Congress to RENEW TODAY the renewable energy tax credit provisions, including the solar investment tax credit (ITC) extension. 
Learn more from The National Renewable Energy Laboratory or
Learn more from The American Solar Energy Society
bp oil disaster -- from the gulf coast to montana
July 2010. Gut-wrenching photos and dire reports about this environmental disaster are flooding the media this summer. Here we point readers to information on how this oil spill may affect Montana and we point you to a few key websites for the larger picture.
First, many folks are curious about the effects of this spill on "our" birds. In a nutshell, we don't know everything we wish we did on where our migratory birds go when they travel south from Montana. Most of "Montana's birds" migrate and winter to the west of the Gulf Coast. However, some eastern Montana migratory birds are likely part of the "Central Flyway" It is possible that a portion of our white pelican populations, and perhaps some shorebirds use the Gulf Coast during winter months. For more on Montana birds and BP oil, read this short article from the Missoula Independent and this from the Billings Gazette.
Want to help right this wrong? The best thing we can do write now is loudly advocate for the polluters to pay, regulations crafted and enforced, and a quick transition away from dirty fossil fuels. Can you write a letter to the editor of your favorite Montana paper?
Recommendations for more:
National Audubon Society has really stepped up to the plate and been the key organizer of volunteers, working with US Fish and Wildlife Service to steer help where it is needed most. Get first hand accounts of action in the Gulf at Audubon.org.
The Endangered Species Coalition has an amazing photo collection and information on the spill's affects on wildlife. Numbers killed, gallons leaked and more. Oilspillwildlife.org.
Cornell Lab of Ornithology's blog has some great video footage and commentary.