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wind complexes for New England and the Mid-Atlantic on the Outer Continental Shelf. Austin, Texas-based Baryonyx Corp. would like to build 300 offshore wind towers near South Padre Island. The project, set within a migratory bird ß yway and some of the stateÕs best Þ shing and shrimping, has opponents. LouisianaÕs oil and gas industry has the infrastructure to support offshore wind but migratory birds and marine life are a concern in the Pelican State. PROTECTING BIRDS AND SEA LIFETurbines have to be placed with wildlife in mind. ÒNoise from hammering piles in sub-ocean soils has become been a concern,Ó Frongillo said. But he said ÒI doubt Northern Europe would be as successful with wind power as it is if offshore installations were causing extensive harm to wildlife.Ó Regarding hazardous material, Òoffshore wind doesnÕt even belong in the same discussion as offshore oil and gas when considering risk for major environmental incidents,Ó he said. Marine ecologist Martin Attrill, director of Plymouth University Marine Institute in the UK, said in a report released in November that Òpoor location of a wind turbine can have an impact on certain bird speciesÓ so choosing the right site is important. Some species of birds avoid wind turbines but others may be attracted to them, he wrote in a paper titled ÒMarine Renewable Energy: Necessary for Safeguarding the Marine Environment?Ó Evidence suggests that collision rates by birds and bats may be lower with offshore than onshore wind turbines, he said. Attrill cautioned that offshore turbine construction activities can impact species.On the positive side, a wind turbine structure can act as a reef, attracting www.marinelink.com MN 25MN Dec2012 Layout 18-31.indd 25MN Dec2012 Layout 18-31.indd 2512/4/2012 1:45:57 PM12/4/2012 1:45:57 PM
