“Renewable energy yes, but not at any cost”. It is the rallying cry initiated by environmental organizations. They argue that the transition must, in addition to energy, be “necessarily compatible with the Spanish natural heritage”. And it is not to be in every situation. Final example: Suspension of the LIFE project for its reintroduction osprey In El Maestrazgo (Teruel), for the damage done to the species by the massive deployment of wind power.
This is the first time a project to reintroduce an endangered species has been suspended in Spain due to the wind industry. One study calculated that Instances located in the region could affect predicted wind turbines up to 756 times in just one year..
The Bearded Vulture Conservation Foundation (FCQ) was forced to temporarily suspend the execution in El Maestrazgo, in agreement with environmental officials. European LIFE project ‘Iberian runners for the bearded vulture’.
The decision means that the release of samples in the Teruel region will cease, at least for a moment, until the final size of the planned wind cluster is clear.
“The high risk of collision and death that the envisioned deployment will impose on the type makes continuation unaffordable.It regrets the FCQ, as it will violate the criteria for the reintroduction of threatened species set by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), as well as the environmental guarantee criteria set forth in LIFE projects of European funding.
Two experts from the Foundation affiliated with the LIFE project analyzed months of flight patterns and space use at El Maestrazgo of 10 bearded vultures released in Castellón and Aragón and 12 radio-tagged griffon vultures at the epicenter of the predicted wind cluster.
Population in the process of disappearing
Examining the geolocations provided by the satellite beacon that each sample carries delivers results that start all the alarms: in just one year, bearded vultures can collide with predicted wind turbines up to 745 times, meaning the incipient population will be completely wiped out..
The risk is even greater when we confirm that bearded vultures fly 35,137 times within a one kilometer radius of future industrial complexes, while vultures fly about 26,500 times.
In addition to risk simulations, the study also collects and analyzes official data on wildlife deaths in wind complexes. The problem FCQ found is that some autonomous communities have low level of commitment and lack of transparency.
Therefore, they compare complete reports submitted by governments. Aragon (5,264 birds and bats killed in 2017-2022) And Navarra (1,253 deaths in the same period)Despite adding nearly as many wind turbines as Aragon and Navarra in 2021 (4,002 wind turbines in Galicia, 2,804 in Aragon and 1,286 in Navarra) both regions have high wind implantation. ). Other communities did not even provide data.
The LIFE project ‘Iberian runners for bearded vultures’ was presented in 2020. Ensure the long-term conservation of species in Europeby restoring extinct populations in high-quality areas for the species in central and northern Spain.
Based on habitat analysis, historical study and over 20 years of intensive preparatory work, it was revealed that one of the “high suitability” areas for the execution of the project is the El Maestrazgo de Teruel area. .
Bird survival is at stake
“El Maestrazgo stands out for its high potential habitat, abundance of trophic resources, numerous historical designations and low threat to the species.. All this makes the region an important nodal point in the context of the metapopulation of bearded vultures in the Iberian Peninsula”, underlines FCQ.
So in January 2022 the project funded by the LIFE community tool began and the first release of samples to create a stable population core in the region and to meet the project objectives.
Two years after the drafting of this project, on 23 December 2022, El Maestrazgo’s environmental impact statement was published and in the same year, Climate emergency resulting from the war in UkraineA royal decree was issued that “suddenly” triggered, Approval of a wind industry macro project in El Maestrazgo, even in areas in the Natura 2000 Network, that seriously jeopardizes the survival of the bird community in the region in northeastern Spain” alerts FCQ.
13 wind complexes have been projected in the El Maestrazgo area and 62 more projects in adjacent areas (34 in Cuencas Mineras, 19 in Andorra-Sierra de Arcos and 9 in Matarraña).
All this is part of the re-entry field of the genre. high implantation of wind turbines. Elements that will have a 158-metre blade and occupy the hills and hills, corresponding to the same area where one of the best raptor groups in all of Europe flies, so “a a serious and insurmountable threat to reintroduced specimens“, the Foundation estimates.
Hasty deployment of wind complexes
According to FCQ studies and mortality data collected at Aragon and Navarra wind farms, The ability to install 367 wind turbines around the bearded vulture release point makes it impossible to achieve the goal of recovering the species.. Even more so when considering that these installations require long-distance evacuation power lines.
FCQ called for reflection and discussion. “Spain has been the recipient of substantial sums of money for years to save threatened habitats and biodiversity. The hasty and unprecedented deployment of wind farms in Europeone of the greatest threats to biodiversity is located in the same habitats and The model that opposes the goal of recapitalizing the rural environment“, emphasizes the Foundation.
“It is unacceptable to produce another as it is to solve one production and pollution problem. Endangering the survival of the Spanish avifauna. Even more so when there are innovative technological measures and complex management procedures that significantly reduce bird mortality. For now, measures that the Spanish administration has not requested from the developer companies,” FCQ criticizes.
The LIFE project ‘Iberian runners for the bearded vulture’ led by Gerardo Báguena has beneficiaries associated with the Ministry of Ecological Transition and Demographic Struggle and Associação Naturaleza y Hombre Portugal (ANYH).
It will last for five years (until 2027) and have a budget of 2,678,434 euros. The LIFE financial instrument will contribute €1,507,869. The regional governments of Aragon, Asturias, Cantabria, Castilla y León, as well as National Parks and Endesa are co-financers.
LIFE project website ‘Iberian runners for bearded vultures’: https://lifeprobv.quebrantahuesos.org/
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Contact address of the environment department: [email protected]