>
> ----- Forwarded Message -----
> From: Kim Kaufman <kimkaufman...>
> To: <OHIO-BIRDS...>
> Sent: Saturday, October 6, 2012 10:48 AM
> Subject: [Ohio-birds] Responsible Wind Energy: a call to action
>
> CITIZEN CALL TO ACTION: Help BSBO's efforts to stop a wind turbine proposed
> for a Globally Important Bird Area in Ottawa County
>
> We hope you will email your Name, City, State, Zip, (with "RWE" in the
> subject line) to: <ResponsibleWindEnergy...> to support our efforts on
> the troubling issue outlined below. Your name will then be included along
> with an official letter that BSBO, along with other conservation
> organizations, will be submitting to local, state, and federal officials.
>
> Black Swamp Bird Observatory (BSBO) has learned of proposal to place a large
> wind turbine at the Camp Perry National Guard facility on the Lake Erie
> shoreline, just a few miles east of the world-famous birding hotspot of
> Magee Marsh. The Camp Perry facility itself includes wooded areas near the
> Lakeshore that provide important stopover habitat for migratory songbirds.
> The site also lies directly between the Darby Unit of Ottawa National
> Wildlife Refuge and the Navarre Marsh, site of BSBO's primary songbird
> banding research station, where we have banded more than 500,000 songbirds
> over the last 20+ years. In other words, the site lies deep within one of
> the most sensitive migration stopover habitats in the Midwest. Many
> birders are familiar with the Camp Perry site since the public access beach
> on the facility provides important habitat for migratory shorebirds. Local
> bird enthusiasts are also likely to recognize the facility as home to an
> active Bald Eagle nest visible from State Route 2.
>
> BSBO filed for all relevant documents from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
> under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), and from the Ohio Department of
> Natural Resources under the Sunshine Law. The documents show that both our
> federal and state wildlife agencies have listed multiple reasons why this
> site is not suitable for wind turbines. Reasons cited in these documents
> include, but are not limited to:
> - The site's proximity to an active Bald Eagle nest
> - The high number of Bald Eagles that have been documented using the area
> - The site lies deep within a highly sensitive area for migrating
> passerines, waterfowl, shorebirds, and raptors
> - The site poses high potential for impact on the Federally Endangered
> Kirtland's Warbler and Piping Plovers
> - The site is part of a National Audubon designated Important Bird Area
> - The site is part of a Partners In Flight designated Globally Important
> Bird Area
> - The site is part of a Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network
> designated area of Regional significance for shorebirds
>
> * And most recently, in their comments evaluating the final Environmental
> Assessment (EA), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Ohio Department of
> Resources basically shred the EA, collectively calling out close to 50
> erroneous and misleading statements in the document.
>
> Based on this information, and the amount of data that BSBO's research has
> gathered to demonstrate the volume of migratory birds that rely on the
> stopover habitat in this region, BSBO's position is that this site presents
> high risk for migratory birds and it is irresponsible for the federal
> government to allow its installation on this site.
>
> I want to be absolutely clear: BSBO is not simply saying no to wind energy;
> rather, we have expressed a sincere willingness to work with any and all
> stakeholder groups to develop alternate sites and alternate technologies
> that will allow us to support Responsible Wind Energy. We are asking for
> your support of our position. Since the facility is part of the Department
> of Defense, there are some issues that we fear could allow them to proceed
> with this project in spite of the overwhelming comments against it expressed
> by the state and federal wildlife agencies.
>
> Citizen action can have an enormous impact, and I encourage you to sign on
> to our efforts. We met with National Audubon this week and their Chief
> Scientist has agreed to write a letter of support for our efforts, stressing
> the importance of responsible placement of wind turbines in Important Bird
> Areas. We've issued this call to action to every conservation organization
> in Ohio (and a few in neighboring states). Adding the names of concerned
> citizens will put those in charge of administering this project on notice
> that Ohio's very active birding community is watching, and that we hold them
> up to the highest possible standards as a federal facility. Here, in this
> area that is of global significance to migratory birds, we must ensure that
> the habitat these birds depend on is given the utmost consideration.
>
> If you are willing to include your name in support of our position, please
> email the following information to: <ResponsibleWindEnergy...> and
> please put RWE in the subject line.
>
> Name
> City, State, Zip
> eMail address
>
> Sincerely,
> Kimberly Kaufman
> Executive Director
> Black Swamp Bird Observatory
> Oak Harbor, Ohio 43449
> 419-898-4070
>
> 2011 League of Ohio Sportsmen Conservation Organization of the Year Award
> 2012 Eastern Maumee Bay Chamber of Commerce Prism Award for Community
> Improvement
>
> www.bsbobird.org <http://www.bsbobird.org/>
> www.ohioyoungbirders.org <http://www.ohioyoungbirders.org/>
> www.biggestweekinamericanbirding.com
> <http://www.biggestweekinamericanbirding.com/>
>
> BSBO on Facebook <http://www.facebook.com/BSBOBIRD> and Twitter
> <http://www.twitter.com/BSBOBIRD>
> OYBC on Facebook <http://www.facebook.com/ohioyoungbirders>
> BIRDING OHIO <http://www.facebook.com/groups/BirdingOhio/> on Facebook
>
>
>
> ______________________________________________________________________
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