Call for impact of small turbines on wildlife to be examined

Planning measures must be put in place to ensure small wind turbine developments do not cause bat and bird population decline, a study has found.

Research carried out by Stirling University also established that the careful positioning of these turbines is “vital” to ensure rare species are not forced to abandon their homes.

It looked at data, questionnaires from turbine owners and computer modelling to assess the likely levels of bird and bat deaths caused by small wind turbines in the UK.

Results showed that between 1,567 and 5,510 birds and 161 and 3,363 bats may be killed per year.

But Dr Kirsty Park, who led the research team, said: “While our estimates of bird and bat deaths may seem high, it is important to realise that this is across a range of species and across more than 19,000 small wind turbines.”