Credit: Fiona Mathews
One of the most abundant bats in Europe may be attracted to wind turbines, a new study shows.
The activity of common pipistrelle bats was monitored at 23 British wind farms and similar control locations close by without turbines.
Activity was around a third higher at turbines than at control locations, and two thirds of occasions with high activity were recorded at turbines rather than the controls.
The reasons for this are not clear. Possibilities include attraction to the turbines themselves, or the presence of more of the bats insect prey around turbines. Either way it means the risk of fatality at wind turbines is increased, and probably explains the high fatalities of common pipistrelle bats seen at some wind farms across Europe, said Dr Suzanne Richardson.
BRIGHTON, England, Feb. 11 (TNSJou) The University of Sussex issued the following news release:One of the most abundant bats in Europe may be attracted to wind turbines, according to a new study from the University of Sussex and the University of Exeter.The activity of common pipistrelle bats was monitored at 23 British wind farms and similar "control" locations close by
Civil society representatives in Trinidad and Tobago advocating for their country to sign the Escazú Agreement to guarantee access to information and public participation in environmental matters. Photo courtesy Omar Mohammed, used with permission.
This article was originally published on Cari-Bois News. An edited version is republished here as part of a content-sharing agreement with Global Voices.
Citizens of Trinidad and Tobago now have unhindered access to critical information about the environmental and social impacts of development projects on their communities.
This follows a major win for environmental transparency by the watchdog group Fishermen and Friends of the Sea (FFOS), which successfully mounted a legal challenge against the Environmental Management Authority (EMA) in order to gain full access to the findings of Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs).