The avian-impact offset method (AIOM) quantifies the amount of habitat needed to provide equivalent biological value for birds displaced by energy and transportation infrastructure. The AIOM can be applied in situations where avian displacement (i.e., behavioral avoidance) requires compensatory mitigation. The AIOM is based on the ability to define five metrics: impact distance, impact area, pre-impact density, percent displacement, and offset density. Our work provides four products: 1) displacement rates from wind-energy facilities for waterfowl and grassland birds, 2) an explanation and demonstration of the AIOM using examples for wind and oil infrastructure, including cases in which the biological value of offset habitat (i.e., habitat acquired to fulfill mitigation requirements) is similar to the impacted habitat and when biological value is dissimilar, 3) a worksheet for AIOM users to apply to their own projects, and 4) a geospatial AIOM Decision Support Tool that automates Geographic Information System processes for identifying biologically equivalent habitats for mitigation fulfillment, as well as for forecasting mitigation costs of proposed developments.
10-year (2003-2012) bird and vegetation data collected at wind facilities in North Dakota and South Dakota
Effects of wind-energy facilities on breeding grassland bird distributions - data release
Understanding the Avian-Impact Offset Method—A tutorial
Estimating offsets for avian displacement effects of anthropogenic impacts
Effects of wind-energy facilities on grassland bird distributions
- Overview
The avian-impact offset method (AIOM) quantifies the amount of habitat needed to provide equivalent biological value for birds displaced by energy and transportation infrastructure. The AIOM can be applied in situations where avian displacement (i.e., behavioral avoidance) requires compensatory mitigation. The AIOM is based on the ability to define five metrics: impact distance, impact area, pre-impact density, percent displacement, and offset density. Our work provides four products: 1) displacement rates from wind-energy facilities for waterfowl and grassland birds, 2) an explanation and demonstration of the AIOM using examples for wind and oil infrastructure, including cases in which the biological value of offset habitat (i.e., habitat acquired to fulfill mitigation requirements) is similar to the impacted habitat and when biological value is dissimilar, 3) a worksheet for AIOM users to apply to their own projects, and 4) a geospatial AIOM Decision Support Tool that automates Geographic Information System processes for identifying biologically equivalent habitats for mitigation fulfillment, as well as for forecasting mitigation costs of proposed developments.
- Data
10-year (2003-2012) bird and vegetation data collected at wind facilities in North Dakota and South Dakota
This data release contains eight datasets that represent the entirety of the data collected for a study that examined breeding-bird densities in native mixed-grass prairie from 2003 to 2012 at and adjacent to wind facilities in North Dakota and South Dakota, USA. Data were collected to determine breeding-bird density per 100 hectares (ha) by distance bands from turbines and by excluding habitat thEffects of wind-energy facilities on breeding grassland bird distributions - data release
This data release contains breeding-bird densities in native mixed-grass prairie collected from 2003 to 2012 at and adjacent to wind farms in North and South Dakota, USA, for one year prior to turbine construction and several years post-construction. One dataset contains breeding-bird densities per 100 ha by distance from turbines for categories of 0-100 m, 100-200 m, 200-300 m, and greater than 3 - Publications
Understanding the Avian-Impact Offset Method—A tutorial
Biodiversity offsetting, or compensatory mitigation, is increasingly being used in temperate grassland and wetland ecosystems to compensate for unavoidable environmental damage from anthropogenic disturbances such as energy development and road construction. Energy-extraction and -generation facilities continue to proliferate across the natural landscapes of the United States, yet mitigation toolsAuthorsJill A. Shaffer, Charles R. Loesch, Deborah A. BuhlEstimating offsets for avian displacement effects of anthropogenic impacts
Biodiversity offsetting, or compensatory mitigation, is increasingly being used in temperate grassland ecosystems to compensate for unavoidable environmental damage from anthropogenic developments such as transportation infrastructure, urbanization, and energy development. Pursuit of energy independence in the United States will expand domestic energy production. Concurrent with this increased grAuthorsJill A. Shaffer, Charles R. Loesch, Deborah A. BuhlEffects of wind-energy facilities on grassland bird distributions
The contribution of renewable energy to meet worldwide demand continues to grow. Wind energy is one of the fastest growing renewable sectors, but new wind facilities are often placed in prime wildlife habitat. Long-term studies that incorporate a rigorous statistical design to evaluate the effects of wind facilities on wildlife are rare. We conducted a before-after-control-impact (BACI) assessmentAuthorsJill A. Shaffer, Deborah A. Buhl