The turbine versus birds debate is still raging on.<\/p>\n
We want to use wind power to fight climate change, yet environmentalists are up in arms about bird strikes. It\u2019s a real threat to birdlife, but climate change is a threat to the whole planet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At one wind farm in Ireland, it\u2019s a whole different story, and it\u2019s not about birds.<\/p>\n
A conservation phenomenon is happening at ground level.<\/p>\n
Which endangered species has decided to make an industrial wind farm its home?<\/p>\n
How an Irish wind farm is delivering extra benefits at ground level<\/p>\n
The issue of bird mortalities linked to spinning turbine blades has been around for as long as the technology has.\u00a0It\u2019s a classic environmental paradox, because how can green energy save the Earth if it harms its creatures?<\/p>\n
Birds are by far the animals most at risk of harm. Massive turbine blades are a major danger to anything in the way of the spinning motion.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s virtually a given that local wildlife will be disturbed by a wind power plant.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s different at the Teiges Mountain Wind Farm in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. This installation is operated by the Energia Group and is actively producing power as planned.<\/p>\n
But another victory emerged that had nothing to do with birds and was all about another threatened winged creature.\u00a0<\/p>\n
While conservationists tend to look to the skies for bird impacts, the breakthrough at this site was on the ground.<\/p>\n
Officers noticed a trend in the ground vegetation, where a fragile resident was quietly settled in. Which endangered species is being saved by the turbine microhabitat?<\/p>\n
A strict plan and a will to make a difference<\/p>\n
Protecting wildlife takes a lot of work, especially species that are threatened from many directions.<\/p>\n
The management of the Teiges farm had wildlife priorities from the early days, and they proved this with a strict habitat management and enhancement plan.<\/p>\n
What turned out to be important in this case was grass height. Cattle grazing strategies were implemented precisely to keep the vegetation at ideal levels.<\/p>\n
It was a delicate arrangement, seeing as either under- or over-grazing could disrupt the ecosystem.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There was another focus in the form of global goals. The project supports 14 of the 17 vital United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.<\/p>\n
The company has also teamed up with the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan and Trinity College. Their focus is rewetting peatlands, planting native hedgerows, and building bird boxes.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a key to the strict grazing rules, with a specific target species that has already lost most of its home<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n In the past, it thrived in 58 regional locations. Now, there are only eight places where it\u2019s found.<\/p>\n Which fragile creature sees this grassland as a sanctuary<\/a>?<\/p>\n Saving Ireland\u2019s only legally protected insect<\/p>\n The strict ground grazing rules on the ground are saving a remarkable resident, says the Energia Group<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Teiges Mountain Wind Farm became a fortress for the marsh fritillary butterfly. This species is officially listed as vulnerable to extinction on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List.<\/p>\n In fact, it is Ireland\u2019s only insect protected by law.<\/p>\n Eye-opening conservation data<\/p>\n