10/1/2018 Managing bird and bat turbine strikes using weather radar Robb Diehl & Todd Preston US Geological Survey Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center Bozeman, MT Bethany Straw, Simon Thao, & Elise DeGeorge National Renewable Energy Lab National Wind Technology Center Golden, CO Background • Growth in wind energy production • Mortality via…. • Attraction, turbines likely become so‐called ‘ecological or evolutionary traps’ • Incidental contact • Options • Alter the environmental cue, i.e., change how turbines are perceived ….or…. • Alter the environment, i.e., curtailment 1
10/1/2018 Background Habitat quality High Low <<< Alter perception <<< High Perception Low <<< Curtailment, siting <<< Background • Best solutions • Effective at minimizing impacts to wildlife • Simple to deploy • Inexpensive to operate • Highly reliable, require little maintenance • Minimize operational energy loss 2
10/1/2018 Can NEXRAD be used as a real‐time platform for informing curtailment? TDWR NEXRAD NEXt generation weather RADar Terminal Doppler Weather Radar KLOT, Romeoville, IL Las Vegas, NV (credit Simpson) e.g., Van Doren and Horton 2018 3
10/1/2018 NEXRAD metrics • >140 stations in continental US • Six measures • Reflectivity, radial velocity, spectrum width, differential reflectivity, correlation coefficient, differential phase • Updates nationally every 6‐10 minutes • Range limited by altitude of birds and bats, not sensitivity Forecasting v. Real‐time • What is the time horizon for a potential NEXRAD‐based curtailment scheme? • Forecasting • Van Doren and Horton (2018) Science • Weather‐based model that can forecast a day in advance with 80% accuracy • Real‐time • More accurate, requires constant vigilance • Hybrid scheme • Shifting accuracy as the movement event approaches • Integrates planning (forecasting) with realization (real‐time) 4
10/1/2018 Advantages and disadvantages of using NEXRAD Advantages • Existing embedded radar network requires no support • Highly reliable • Data is free and centrally archived • Considerable advances in data processing in recent years Disadvantages • Discriminating among target types • Measuring low‐height targets at range • Radars do not co‐occur with turbines • Manage by strategic curtailment Goals • Are NEXRAD target identities corroborated by those on portable radar? • Do vertebrate target densities identified by NEXRAD index bat activity? • Are NEXRAD vertical profiles corroborated by those measured by portable radar? • At what range are NEXRAD profiles still operational? • What proportion of turbines fall within this range? 5
10/1/2018 Six weather radar parameters Reflectivity Radial Velocity Spectrum Width Insects? Purple Martin roost ring Precipitation Differential Reflectivity Differential Phase Correlation Coefficient Biological v. non‐biological discrimination Biological Precipitation Probability of Probability of classification ≥50% classification ≥95% 6
10/1/2018 Reflectivity (Z) Classified (p>0.5) Insects? Purple Martin roost ring Precipitation Insects Vertebrates Weather Corroborate via portable radar, thermal imaging Parabolic antenna • Good data on speed and direction • Good data on height • Longer range • Less comprehensive 7
10/1/2018 Goals • Are NEXRAD target identities corroborated by those on portable radar? • Do vertebrate target densities identified by NEXRAD index bat activity? • Are NEXRAD vertical profiles corroborated by those measured by portable radar? • At what range are NEXRAD profiles still operational? • What proportion of turbines fall within this range? NEXRAD density profile see Buler and Diehl 2009 8
10/1/2018 Portable radar density profile Goals • Are NEXRAD target identities corroborated by those on portable radar? • Do vertebrate target densities identified by NEXRAD index bat activity? • Are NEXRAD vertical profiles corroborated by those measured by portable radar? • At what range are NEXRAD profiles still operational? • What proportion of turbines fall within this range? 9
10/1/2018 Limited range of overlap Region of overlap • NEXRAD installed base offers limited potential to directly monitor airspace at the height of rotor swept areas 10
10/1/2018 e.g., Denver radar 11
10/1/2018 12
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