Bird kills low at Clear Channel tower

By Cherry Sokoloski
North Forty News

Based on the results of a bird kill study in the Livermore area, birds have little to fear from the controversial Clear Channel radio tower located there. Initial results show 11 bird deaths at the tower site from July 2002 until July 1, 2004.

The two-year study was mandated by Larimer County commissioners as a condition of approval for the lighted, 500-foot tower. After hearing heated arguments from nearby neighbors and environmental groups, commissioners gave the project a green light in August 2001, but they stipulated that a bird mortality study would have to be conducted. Bird-related concerns expressed at public hearings included threats to migrating birds and to young eagles in the area as they learn to fly.

The final report has not yet been published, but preliminary results were provided by Lori Nielsen, project manager for EDM International which conducted the study for Colorado State University.

"A lot of folks were concerned about the tower initially," she said. "There were a lot of unknowns, a lot of claims and a lot of emotion associated with this tower. The only way to get a handle on these issues is to do the science."

The Larimer County study has generated considerable interest at the national level, Nielsen said, because it was the first tower/bird death study conducted west of the Mississippi River. While she described the bird deaths as "extraordinarily low," she noted that similar studies need to be done elsewhere in the West. She and other scientists will try to determine why the deaths were so low at the Larimer County site and will correlate the deaths with weather conditions, bird species and proximity to migration flyways.

The birds that died at the tower included a juvenile American coot, Lincoln's sparrow, common grackle, Brewer's sparrow, yellow-headed blackbird, house wren, mourning warbler, three Swainson's thrushes and one bird that could not be identified. Nielsen said the species that have been particularly susceptible to tower kills in the Eastern United States include warblers, vireos and thrushes. The majority of birds killed in the East have been nighttime migrators.

Dr. Ken Wilson, a professor in CSU's Fish and Wildlife Biology Department, designed the local bird study. The tower site was checked weekly for dead birds, and investigators also visited the site after storms during migration periods. In addition, remote control cameras were monitored at the EDM office for any signs of large-scale bird kills. Study controls were set up to adjust for removal of dead birds by scavengers and for deaths unrelated to the tower.

Two years ago, county commissioners said that if the bird study revealed significant problems, Clear Channel could be required to modify its radio tower. Rob Helmick of the planning department said he is waiting to see the final report. "Based on what I've heard, it's very likely we won't ask them to do any modifications," he said.