My friend Jeff Heller has had an opinion piece published by the Orange County Register. It has to do with those ugly windmills you see in certain parts of the country, which the environmentalists all think is a great way to provide power without harming the environment. Just one thing they forgot to consider.
Orange County Register, Opinion Section
December 11th, 2013, 5:28 pm ·
The Eagle Has Landed-On a Windmill
IRVINE, Jeff Heller:
"By creating a new rule, the Obama administration is going to ensure the deaths of bald and golden eagles, killed by wind farms [“Wind energy firms get a break,” News, Dec. 7]. If approved, killing eagles will be allowed for 30 years. Although the Endangered Species Act has been put on the shelf, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service continues to monitor the bald eagle, the symbol of our nation, to ensure that the species continues to be protected.
Laws still protects these eagles under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, the Migratory Bird Act and the Lacey Act. The Bald and Golden Eagle Act specifically forbids killing eagles, unless there is a permit. Yet, the Obama administration is going to allow killing of eagles to ensure the success of his sustainable energy policy.
Additionally, thousands of smaller birds are killed annually by wind farms. Most disturbing is the way these birds die. The enormous windmill blades create a 170-mph vortex wind. Birds cannot breath; they fall to the ground and die a painful death.
Due to the administration's pursuit of renewable energy sources, hundreds of eagles will face death by windmill, for the next 30 years. Currently, the Obama administration has failed to prosecute wind facilities and failed to fine the offenders involved with windmill-related raptor deaths.
To take the wind industry off the hook for deaths of the birds, the Department of the Interior proposes this approach for the next 30 years: “We will finalize our proposal to revise the regulations for permits for nonpurposeful take [killing] of eagles – that is, where the take is associated with, but not the purpose of, the activity.” All these proposed changes happen under the reasoning worded in the permit change: “This change will facilitate the development of renewable energy and other projects that are designed to be in operation for many decades.” This change will allow killing these eagles, for 10 percent of the nation's energy production.
So, in order to protect the ideology of this administration and to produce 10 percent of the nation's energy through sustainable sources, the golden eagle, the bald eagle and thousands of smaller birds, will be “taken” for the greater ideological good. America's symbol is expendable."
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Maybe as you tree huggers drive down the highway and feel inspired by all those giant white monsters off in the distance, you might want to pull over, take a walk to the base of those windmills and gaze at all the dead birds laying on the ground. Who knows? If you're lucky, you might even find a few dead eagles.
Wait, am I supposed to actually believe that far-right conservatives suddenly care about endangered species??
ReplyDeleteI guess we both have to pick our poison.
ReplyDelete@ Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteToo bad that you missed the message Anonymous. The needless death of the symbol of American freedom gets killed by windmills is tragic, but there is a bigger point. The Obama Administration has pursued lawless ignoring of the Constitution of the United States. Four laws regarding protection of eagles was enacted by the Congress and signed into law by past Presidents. Obama feels that he does not need Congress to change the law in order to pursue his ideology. Further, The Dream act that was shot down by the Congress, was enacted by Obama, with no law. More to the point, is Obama's declaration that welfare recipients doe not have to work, as directed by law. Obama trashes the Constitution that he took an oath to protect and support. Or was that another Obama lie.
Squid
Good article, Squid.
ReplyDeleteThe left and particularly this administration never considers consequences. They do what they think best (and don't they always know what is best for all of us?)
So now they try to put a band-aide on the problem of killing birds of all kinds to justify their energy generating scheme, which itself may not be as good an idea as when they kicked it around in the teacher's lounge. All of this by fiat and not following the law.
This is like a mini-disaster compared to ObamaCare but still with use of the same stupid and illegal strategies.
While the death toll for eagles from windmills has, for the last several years, averaged only about one (1)per month in 10 states with farms. I do agree that the worship at the altar of alternative energy (and other liberal policies as well) often results in extremism.
ReplyDeleteSheep farmers in the western states are going to be renting out their land for windmills as soon as they get word of this effect. They've been complaining about bald eagle protection programs for years, because the eagles take off with their sheep. A legal way to kill eagles? They'll jump at the chance!
ReplyDelete(Darn unpatriotic sheep farmers).
Ah, I see elwood is offering some common sense and taking this brouhaha down a peg with some cold, sober facts. One bald eagle dead per month in ten states? That's a reason to shut down windmills? Thank for the cold water elwood.