Can We Design a More Efficient Wind Turbine Which Does Not Kill Bats or Birds?

By Lance Winslow

image: depositphotos

Okay so, folks often ask me what think tanks actually do, you see that's what I do, I run one. Generally, I explain to people that think tanks solve problems, but really it is more than that, and merely solving a problem isn't good enough, because inevitably you solve one problem only to create 3-more, so it's a never ending battle. In fact, perhaps this is why the American People have lost trust in our government leaders. Is it really their fault or is this just the nature of problem solving in complex systems such as; our economy, infrastructure, or the government itself?

Yes, could be, still, there are so many problems to solve it's hard to say which one is worthy of one's brain power. Let's take a simple example as a case study sample here. Not long ago, Mark from the UK was explaining that we need more efficient wind-energy designs, which do not kill birds or bats. Yes, that's true, that is something we need isn't it, especially if you are one who believes in global warming or takes it as a new kind of religion. Mark had contemplated using a hollow ring around the turbine blades to collect the wind "covered with netting or a shield so that animal strikes do not happen."

Well, this is a decent idea actually, however, it doesn't solve the bat problem, the bats crash from flying behind the wind turbines due to the low-pressure area they create + the ultrasound confuses them for a few moments. Birds generally crash due to strikes and then cannot catch their fall due to low pressure area + vortices coming off the blades. They just have not yet evolved for such things.