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World's Largest Solar Thermal Plant Accused of Scorching Birds in the Area

Environmental groups say the facility constitutes a threat to local wildlife

Feb 17, 2014 23:21 GMT  ·  By
Solar thermal plant operating in the US said to be a major threat to birds flying over it
   Solar thermal plant operating in the US said to be a major threat to birds flying over it

It would appear that a new way to cook chicken is in the making in the Mojave Desert, in the United States. One that involves tying the bird one wants to roast to a kite and having it fly over the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System, to be more precise.

Long story short, environmentalists say that this facility, which is currently the world's largest solar thermal plant, constitutes a major threat to wildlife living in the region.

More precisely, they argue that the 350,000 garage-door sized mirrors that are part and parcel of the facility foster temperatures amounting to some 1,000 degrees Celsius (almost 538 degrees Fahrenheit).

Should they come a tad too close to this so-called hot thermal flux while flying about, birds have very high chances to get scorched, conservationists claim.

While some are lucky enough to escape with just a few minor injuries, others are killed by the extremely hot temperatures, they add.

According to Daily Mail, several dozen of birds were found injured in the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System's proximity, while the facility was still undergoing construction.

Now that the solar thermal plant is up and running, it is likely that the number of birds killed by its mirrors and the thermal flux they generate will increase.

The way environmentalists see things, green energy is simply not worth it if harvesting it involves harming wildlife.

Presently, state and federal regulators are carrying out a two-year study into how this solar thermal plant affects birds living in the region. Hopefully, they will soon share at least some of their findings with the public.

As reported last week, the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System boasts an energy generating capacity of 392 megawatts. Its output is estimated to meet the demand of roughly 140,000 homes in the state of California.

The facility is the result of a collaboration between NRG Energy, Inc., Google, and BrightSource Energy, and covers an area of about 5 square miles (almost 13 square kilometers).

This means that, if environmentalists are right, it is one seriously oversized grill.