Wind Farm May Impact Endangered Macaw

A wind farm under construction in Brazil's Bahia state by a French company, Volitalia, may impact the endangered Lear's macaw. The project is in its first phase of erecting 28 turbines with 53 planned for the second stage plus a thirty mile transmission network. Conservationists are concerned that the 1500 macaws who live in the area may collide with the turbine blades or transmission lines during their twice daily flights at dawn and dusk in search of food. The beautiful cobalt blue birds regularly fly between 40 to 50 miles to eat the coconuts of the licuri palm. Studies have shown that birds and bats are killed in the thousands by wind farm installations.

Voitalia insists that it is taking steps to mitigate the impact of its project. One of the conditions of the permitting process was the creation of a conservation program for the macaws. The company hired a prominent Brazilian biologist Erica Pacifico, who is a recognized expert on the species. She says the company is committed to preserving the population of macaws, and there is no evidence that the project is interferes with known flight paths of the birds. At her suggestion, the company buried some medium voltage power lines, and is considering painting the turbine blades black to make them more visible to birds in flight. It also plans to monitor the birds' activities using GPS tags. Pacifico maintains that any claims macaws will die from collisions is speculative at this point since there is no scientific evidence about macaw interactions with wind farms. There is, however, ample evidence of bird-turbine collisions in developed countries. Conservationists are critical of the process used by Volitalia to obtain government clearance of the development, saying it was unjustifiably truncated. Brazil’s National Environmental Council (CONAMA) requires an environmental impact assessment (EIA) and an environmental impact report, in addition to public hearings, for wind projects in areas inhabited by protected species. Impact studies will only be done after the project goes into operation. [artist impression courtesy Volitalia]

Lear's macaw already faces threats from habitat loss and the pet trade. It was first described in 1856, but its range was unknown for a century. In 1978 reseachers located the range to a region known as Raso da Catarina in the Caatinga scrubland biome. The first census in 2001 counted only 228 individuals. For thirty years NGO Biodiversitas has maintained a private reserve, Canudos Biological Station, which has conducted a conservation program for the macaws that protects its feeding and roosting areas. In 2019 the population was estimated at 1500, taking them from critically endangered to endagered listing. “We see the operation of a wind farm in the area where Lear’s macaws occur as risky,” says Gláucia Drummond, who heads the Biodiversitas Foundation. Wind power is needed to replace fossil fuel burning, but not every location is appropriate for wind farms. Siting needs to be done carefully with consideration for the impact on species and habitat. Parrots (Psittaciformes) have a relatively high risk of collisions in general. Parrots are long-lived, monogomous with a low reproductive rate. The loss of even one mature macaw is significant. The macaws' habit of flying in flocks at times of low light make them susceptible to collisions with the 100 meter towers and whirling blades. Companies interested in developing wind power in the habitat of endangered species should be willing to also invest resources in conservation especially. [photo credit: JM Rosa]