Have impacts on birds and sea life been studied at other offshore wind farms?
Danish Offshore Wind: Key Environmental Issues, a 2006 book by Danish utilities and government agencies, describes impacts on birds, fish, and marine mammals based on observations from 2000 through 2006 at the Horns Rev and Nysted offshore wind farms. Very few negative impacts have been observed at either site. At both sites the hard substrates around turbine bases were rapidly colonized by marine plants and animals such as mussels. Few effects on fish communities were documented: abundance and diversity were comparable within and outside of the wind farms. Seal populations near the Nysted farm decreased during pile-driving operations but rebounded shortly after construction. Porpoises behaved similarly at Horns Rev, while the porpoise population fell at Nysted during construction and is recovering slowly. Birds tend to avoid the area near the turbines and detour around the edges of the wind farms. Click here9 to read or download the book.
