Letters

As a longtime opponent of the wind turbine project offshore of Montauk, I appreciated the letter from R. George Arnold on April 4 [“Scary Things”]. I’m happy to join his “merry little band of citizens with common sense.”

Building a major wind farm along the spectacular migratory freeway, the Atlantic Flyway, where we are blessed to live, is heartbreaking, shortsighted and disastrous for birds.

We not only depend on pollinators for our global food supply but on birds, which consume massive numbers of insects that eat our crops. The 3 billion bird decline since 1970 documented in the journal Science back in 2019 only continues to increase, from pesticide poisoning, habitat loss, building strikes and other causes. We cannot afford another massive loss of birds.

Research is sorely lacking: Data regarding risks not only to birds but to undersea life from turbines is woefully behind. We do know that 500 species of birds use the Atlantic Flyway, according to the Audubon Society. It is a federal offense to harm a single migratory bird, but we turn away from thousands killed by turbines. On land-based wind farms, scientists can count the number of dead birds with reasonable accuracy, but at sea they cannot.

What responsibility do the corporate titans have to monitor and report bird mortality? What mitigation strategies are in place to prevent avian death? Sensors to alter turbine speed or to initiate temporary shutdowns? The painting of turbines or towers? Do they emit audible warnings to deter nearby birds? Are they halted at night during migratory season, when most birds are flying? Who tracks oil leaks, the risk of which Mr. Arnold rightly pointed out, due to the lubricating oil stored onsite? We expect transparency regarding both prevention and wildlife casualty statistics.

The biggest threat to all species is climate change. The solution must be multi-pronged and immediate, but solar should lead our way, supplemented by wind turbines only when appropriately sited, along with other sustainable modalities.

Solar is dramatically underutilized. We must harness this endless source in every way possible, as fast as possible. Every box store and shopping center roof should be utilized for solar panels, which pay for themselves in spades. No local ordinance, in historic districts or not, should be able to limit solar panel installation when we are in an epic emergency. Some people’s aesthetic of a perfect roof appearance will never matter when massive storms rip through and the sea rises.

Yes, we must limit temperature rise now. But we do not have to sacrifice our irreplaceable biodiversity to do so, whether below the waves or above. That’s just common sense.

Mary Ann Mulvihill-Decker

Sag Harbor