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This Solar Power Plant Is Incinerating Birds

    • Dheeraj.Jangra@timesgroup.com
    • Publish Date: Sep 3 2016 7:07PM
      • |
    • Updated Date: Sep 4 2016 1:23PM
This Solar Power Plant Is Incinerating Birds

According to environmentalist, around 3,500 birds are set ablaze by Ivanpah Solar Power Facility— the world’s largest solar farm located in the Mojave Desert in California, US— each year.  Experts believe the birds may have been attracted by the glow of the farm’s tower, but the project’s owners, say they are taking all the necessary precautions to thwart this avian massacre. But the efforts are not showing desired results… 

The plant, which uses some 350,000 garage-door-sized mirrors to focus sunlight on three boiler towers, also acts as a death ray, instantly igniting and killing any wildlife that happen to fly through the intense beam of light— called as flux field. The temperature in this flux field can reach up to 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit (537 Celsius). 

Experts say Ivanpah act as a 'mega-trap' for wildlife. The bright lights of the plant’s tower attracts insects, which in turn attract large numbers of insect-eating birds. Workers at the Ivanpah solar power plant call these birds “streamers,” as they ignite in midair and plummet to the ground trailing smoke. 

To put things in perspective, the solar energy we are talking about here is not like the solar panels that top your roofs. Solar panels don't produce enough heat to cause such accidents.

In April 2015, "biologists working for the state estimated that 3,500 birds died at Ivanpah in the span of a year." But it’s difficult to keep a tab on the numbers as the solar farms appear to be capable of vapourising birds as large as ravens in mid-air. So the full extent of the problem may not come to light in the surveys.

This scorched bird was found at Ivanpah solar plant in California

 
Though the officials at the 392 megawatts plant say they are taking all the required measures to minimise avian deaths. In a bid to attract fewer insects, flood lights have been replaced with LED bulbs. Each tower has been fitted with a machine that emits a non-lethal respiratory irritant to shoo away birds. The additional land around the plant is being cleared to make it less attractive for birds. But it’s can’t be said for sure that these measures are showing results. 

To be fair, birds also fall prey to other renewable-energy projects: Wind turbines kill between 140,000 and 328,000 birds in the U.S. every year, according to a 2013 study by researchers at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute. Let's hope the plant's officials are able to come up with some truly meaningful measures to stop the carnage.

What your take on this carnage? Let’s know in the comments below. 

 

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Comments

Yashaswini nand Army Public School

Every thing has bad as well as good effects... Such solar power plants is an alternative source of energy and on the other hand harm the birds that fly over it. It is a huge matter of concern but if this is not done there will be no life on the earth in the next decade! 🤔 It is time to use our brain and think of an alternative that be be used to save the life of birds as they are also an crucial part of our planet.

Harini MS NAGARJUNA VIDYANIKETAN

This is pure evil. I mean, seriously. Power Plants have to be government approved, and has the Californian government approved a power plant that kills a living species to make way for the luxury of another? The power plant must either be shut down, or some steps must be taken to prevent the birds from getting attracted towards the ''glow''.

Ritvik Baweja Bal Bharati Public School

I will simply say that what is the use of technological development, if it harms our natural heritage.

Hargun Kochhar GYAN BHARTI SCHOOL(SAKET)

Every coin has two sides ,here although the power plant being a very useful resource is leading to wildlife massacre. We should think of some new ideas for protecting birds from getting victimised.

Abhay Chopra BHARTI PUBLIC SCHOOL (SWASTHYA VHR)

As we all know about the condition of earth . We need some alternatives for Power like Solar Panels . We need to think carefully and smartly so that we should have a system through which we can even absorb suns energy and make no harm to the environment.

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