Collision

Direct contact between an animal and a device component.

Any part of a renewable energy device that moves has the potential to have a deleterious effect on both resident and migratory organisms. Collisions between animals and tidal or wind turbine blades could result in injury or death, either by direct contact with the device or by pressure changes created around the moving parts. The probability of a collision with a blade may vary based on the rotational or mechanical speed of the moving parts, the presence and density of animals in the area, the time of day, weather conditions, and the ability of animals to sense and evade the device. Carcasses found around land-based wind turbines provide an estimate of bird and bat fatalities, while it is much more difficult to estimate the effect of collisions with offshore wind turbines. To date there have been no observed collisions of marine mammals or diving seabirds with tidal turbines. Wave energy devices also have moving parts such as heave plates, flaps, and other large heavy components that could potentially cause harm, although the likelihood is thought to be extremely small. Collisions resulting in injury and death of individual animals with moving parts of devices become particularly important if the loss of those individuals affect the stability and sustainability of the population in the area.

For more information relevant to marine energy, check out the Collision Risk Short Science Summary produced by OES-Environmental.

For more information relevant to offshore wind energy, check out the Bat and Bird Interactions with Offshore Wind Energy research brief produced by SEER.

Marine and Wind Energy Environmental Documents

Tethys is a knowledge hub that contains documents on the environmental effects of wind and marine energy. The table below contains all of the documents in the Tethys Knowledge Base associated with Collision.

Total: 1617

Searches title and abstract.
Title Author Date Content Type Technology Stressor Receptor
GenEst User Guide-Software for a Generalized Estimator of Mortality Simonis, J., Dalthorp, D., Huso, M. Report Wind Energy Collision Bats, Birds
Whooping Crane and Sandhill Crane Monitoring at Five Wind Energy Facilities Derby, C., Welsch, M., Thorn, T. Conference Paper Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Birds, Shorebirds
Scale-dependent habitat selection by wintering geese: implications for landscape management Harrison, A., Petkov, N., Mitev, D. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Waterfowl, Birds
Tracking Migratory Bird Movements in the Gulf of Maine with Automated Telemetry and Stable Hydrogen Isotope Markers Smetzer, J. Thesis Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Collision Birds
Avian Monitoring and Mortality Report at the National Wind Technology Center: January 2010 - February 2011 Tetra Tech Inc. Report Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Displacement Birds
First in situ Passive Acoustic Monitoring for Marine Mammals during Operation of a Tidal Turbine in Ramsey Sound, Wales Malinka, C., Gillespie, D., Macaulay, J. Journal Article Tidal, Marine Energy Collision Marine Mammals
Estimating flight heights of seabirds using optical rangefinders and GPS data loggers: a methodological comparison Borkenhagen, K., Corman, A., Garthe, S. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Avoidance, Collision, Habitat Change Birds, Seabirds
Sensitivity of tidal lagoon and barrage hydrodynamic impacts and energy outputs to operational characteristics Angeloudis, A., Falconer, R. Journal Article Tidal, Marine Energy Collision Ecosystem Processes
The energy landscape predicts flight height and wind turbine collision hazard in three species of large soaring raptor Peron, G., Fleming, C., Duriez, O. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Displacement, Collision, Avoidance, Attraction Raptors, Birds
A Tool for Simulating Collision Probabilities of Animals with Marine Renewable Energy Devices Schmitt, P., Culloch, R., Lieber, L. Journal Article Tidal, Marine Energy Collision
SafeWind Chiro - Evaluation of the activity of chiroptera near wind turbines by video detection Roche, H., Valles, F., Goutorbe, E. Conference Paper Wind Energy Collision Bats, Birds
New York State Offshore Wind Master Plan: Birds and Bats Study Ecology and Environment, Inc. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Collision, Displacement Bats, Birds, Passerines, Raptors, Seabirds, Shorebirds, Waterfowl
Bat flight height monitored from wind masts predicts mortality risk at wind farms Roemer, C., Disca, T., Coulon, A. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision, Attraction Bats
When the Excrement Hits the Fan: Fecal Surveys Reveal Species-Specific Bat Activity at Wind Turbines Bennett, V., Hale, A., Williams, D. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Attraction, Collision Bats
Offshore wind farms and birds: incorporating uncertainty in collision risk models: a test of Masden (2015) Trinder, M. Report Wind Energy Collision Birds
An Overview on Methods to Assess Bird and Bat Collision Risk in Wind Farms Rodrigues, S., Rosa, L., Mascarenhas, M. Book Chapter Wind Energy Collision Birds, Bats
Fine-scale harbour seal usage for informed marine spatial planning Jones, E., Sparling, C., McConnell, B. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal Collision Marine Mammals, Pinnipeds
Bird and Bat Species' Global Vulnerability to Collision Mortality at Wind Farms Revealed Through a Trait-Based Assessment Thaxter, C., Buchanan, G., Carr, J. Journal Article Wind Energy Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Displacement Bats, Birds
Acoustic mirrors as sensory traps for bats Greif, S., Zsebok, S. Journal Article Wind Energy Collision, Avoidance, Attraction Bats
Flight status of seabirds around the Choshi offshore windmill Ueda, M., Shimada, Y., Naga, T. Journal Article Wind Energy Collision Birds, Seabirds
Testing and Validating Metrics of Change Produced by Population Viability Analysis (PVA) Jitlal, M., Burthe, S., Freeman, S. Report Avoidance, Collision, Displacement Birds, Seabirds
Optimising multiple multibeam sonars to assess marine life interactions with an underwater kite Lieber, L., Nilsen, T., Zambrano, C. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Ocean Current Collision Marine Mammals, Pinnipeds
Understanding the Potential Risk to Marine Mammals from Collision with Tidal Turbines Copping, A., Grear, M., Jepsen, R. Journal Article Tidal, Marine Energy Collision Marine Mammals
The intertidal wetlands of southern Jiangsu Province, China – globally important for Spoon-billed Sandpipers and other threatened waterbirds, but facing multiple serious threats Peng, H., Anderson, G., Chang, Q. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision, Displacement Birds, Shorebirds
Turbine Induced Bird and Bat Fatalities at Wind Projects: Statistical Methods for Mortality Estimation Using Road and Pad Carcass Surveys Maurer, J. Thesis Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Birds, Bats
Tidal Turbine-Fish Interaction Pilot Study in the Aquatron Controlled Lab Space MacNeill, A., Mahon-Hodgins, L., Eddington, J. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Tidal Attraction, Avoidance, Collision Fish
Hydroacoustic Assessment of Behavioral Responses by Fish Passing Near an Operating Tidal Turbine in the East River, New York Bevelhimer, M., Scherelis, C., Colby, J. Journal Article Tidal, Marine Energy Collision, Avoidance Fish
Bird Impact Analysis of a Composite Wind Turbine Blade Tejas, K., Prashanth, A. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Birds
Seabird Ecology in High-Energy Environments: Approaches to Assessing Impacts of Marine Renewables Robbins, A. Thesis Marine Energy Collision Seabirds, Birds
Performance test and verification of an off-the-shelf automated avian radar tracking system May, R., Steinheim, Y., Kvaløy, P. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Collision Bats, Birds
Do Terrestrial Animals Avoid Areas Close to Turbines in Functioning Wind Farms in Agricultural Landscapes? Łopucki, R., Klich, D., Gielarek, S. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Collision, Displacement Birds, Ground-Nesting Birds, Terrestrial Mammals
Impact assessment of marine current turbines on fish behavior using an experimental approach based on the similarity law Zhang, J., Kitazawa, D., Taya, S. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal Collision Fish
Bat fatalities at wind farms in Taiwan Chou, C., Hsieh, T., Liu, W. Journal Article Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Bats
Operational Noise from Tidal Turbine Arrays and the Assessment of Collision Risk with Marine Mammals Marmo, B. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal Collision, Noise Marine Mammals
Relationship between the Intensity of Nocturnal Migration Measured by Radar and the Anthropogenic Mortality of Birds Michev, B., Zehtindjiev, P., Marinov, M. Journal Article Wind Energy Collision Birds
Proceedings of the Wind-Wildlife Research Meeting XI Schwartz, S. Conference Paper Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind, Fixed Offshore Wind Collision
Good noise, bad noise: A tricky case of balancing risk of physical injury against acoustic disturbance for marine mammals and tidal energy devices Wilson, B., Marmo, B., Lepper, P. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal Collision, Noise Marine Mammals
Fatalities at Wind Turbines may Threaten Population Viability of a Migratory Bat Frick, W., Baerwald, E., Pollock, J. Journal Article Wind Energy Collision Bats
A Snapshot of Risk for Environmental Effects of Marine Renewable Energy Development Copping, A., Kramer, S. Conference Paper Marine Energy Changes in Flow, Collision, EMF, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise
Wildlife and Wind Farms - Conflicts and Solutions, Volume 2. Onshore: Monitoring and Mitigation Perrow, M. Book Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Collision Bats, Birds
Displaying 841 - 880 of 1617 results