December 2, 2013
 
A wind energy company has pleaded guilty to killing birds in violation of the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act and has agreed to pay $1 million in fines, according to an AgProfessional article available here.
 
The fine is part of a plea agreement submitted to the U.S. District Court of Wyoming between Duke Energy Corporation and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Environmental and Natural Resources Division.  Other parts of the plea deal include a requirement that Duke Energy implement an environmental compliance plan to prevent future bird deaths and five years of probation.
 
The 160 bird deaths, including 14 golden eagles, took place between 2009 and 2013 at two Duke sites in Wyoming that have 176 wind turbines, according to an article by the LA Times available here.
 
“This case represents the first criminal conviction under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act for unlawful avian takings at wind projects,” said Robert G. Dreher, acting assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, in a statement. 
 
The Migratory Bird Treaty Act, 16 U.S.C. §§ 703-712, was enacted in 1918 and makes the killing of over 1,000 species of birds a federal offense. 
 
The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) warned Duke to make all efforts to build the projects in a way that would reduce the risk of bird deaths, but the sites were built before the FWS formalized regulations on turbine construction in 2012.
 
Both sides agreed that Duke had been cooperative and had already begun making changes to cut down on bird deaths.

“Our voluntary monitoring and curtailment of turbines have been effective.  Upon implementing these measures, more than a year passed without any known golden eagle fatalities at these sites,” said Tim Hayes, Duke Energy Renewable’s environmental development director. 

 

For more information on the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, a report from the Congressional Research Service is available here.  For more information on animal welfare, please visit the National Agricultural Law Center’s website here.
 
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