Seagulls fly over and around the sea. Do you believe that there are avian impacts (bird fatalities) associated with turbines? Do you think that those impacts vary based upon seasonal bird population in the given area? How about bats, do you think an Indiana Brown Bat could be killed by a wind turbine?
Beyond avian impacts, the visual pollution that results from the installation of wind turbines in a previously undeveloped marine wilderness area is another political hot potato. This facet of the impact has received a tremendous amount of press in recent times especially in the battles to stop turbine installation near Cape Cod.
Environmental / pollution type impacts are real as well. The installation of the engineering superstructure if you will necessary to support the turbine will require the use of significant anchoring and mooring systems. Our lake bottom is comprised primarily of ultra-fine clay particles forming a soupy silt on the bottom. These sediments are known to contain copious quantities of insidious pollutants like PCB's, and mercury. Whats worse, this fine silt clay lake bottom is comprised of such small particles that once they are disturbed or stirred up by say an anchor or pilings associated with the moorings necessary for a marine turbine install job.... we could be unleashing quite the toxic underwater cloud. Next they will tell us that our drinking water intake a few miles away is safe from all of this because your water will "meet the usepa standards'. 0 ppm is safe in my book, and in my glass of koolaid that I am making to feed my kids. We'll save fructose for another time.
