American Bird Conservancy v. Disbrow

Two bird conservation groups filed a lawsuit in the federal district court for the District of Columbia seeking to block the installation and operation of a wind turbine at an Ohio Air National Guard (ANG) training facility on the shore of Lake Erie. The plaintiffs alleged that the ANG was aware that the wind turbine would be located in a major bird migration corridor and in proximity to many bald eagle nests and that the turbine would kill birds, including birds protected under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The plaintiffs said that federal officials nonetheless had failed to take required actions under the ESA, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, and the National Environmental Policy Act. The plaintiffs asserted that “bird-smart” wind energy was “an important part of the renewable energy solution to climate change” and that it required “careful site selection, effective operational and compensatory mitigation, and ongoing bird mortality monitoring.”