Making Turbines Bird Friendly
Birds colliding with turbine blades is one of the main negative effects of onshore wind farms. But a nineyear study at a wind farm in Smøla, Norway, has found that bird strikes can be cut by more than 70 percent simply by painting one blade of a wind turbine black. Scientists believe this reduces what they call motion smear, allowing birds to see the three rotating blades. Trondheim-based researcher Roel May says further tests at other wind farms are needed to confirm the findings.