Wyoming Group Sues Feds For Hiding Wind Turbine Eagle Deaths

A lawsuit has been filed by the Albany Wyoming County Conservancy to force the U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to release all information regarding bald and golden eagle deaths and injuries at the Seven Mile Hill, Ekola Flats, and Dunlap wind farms.

Using the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA or the Act) request, which was assigned “DOI-2025-000638” as its Department tracking number (Request).

The Department’s failure to disclose the requested information—regarding the number of eagle fatalities and injuries that have occurred at three different renewable energy projects in Carbon County, Wyoming—further shrouds the Department’s administration of wind-energy permits in secrecy. (Press Release).

 

Although the Department’s first and only production of responsive documents includes
Some very limited data that respond to the Conservancy’s Request, there are many notable omissions according to the Conservancy.

The agency admitted to having 1,166 pages but would only release 256 redacted pages. No reason was given for the redaction.

For example, despite the Conservancy specifically requesting data concerning eagle mortality at the Ekola Flats Wind Project, the Department did not disclose any data from that site.

The response from the Fish & Wildlife Services reads as follows.

In response to your request, 256 pages are being released to you. Based on this office’s review, we reasonably foresee that disclosure of certain information in documents that fall under this Mr. Matthew R. Arnold 2 request would harm an interest protected by one or more of the nine exemptions to the FOIA’s general rule of disclosure. Accordingly, from the responsive records, 910 pages are withheld in full pursuant to FOIA Exemption (b)(4), as described below.

There is, at this point, no reason given for the 910 pages that are withheld.

A new and troubling report has just been released about the impact that wind turbines have on golden eagles.

CFACT senior advisor David Wojick warned that these and other bird species may not survive much longer if we continue to add wind power to our landscape.

Wind turbines, the report says, substantially increase eagle deaths in states like Wyoming.

Nearly 15 years ago, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) determined that the golden eagle population could not withstand an increase in human-caused mortality. However, a large queue of proposed wind projects sought FWS permits exempting them from harm they may cause eagles under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act—permits that would inevitably increase the kill rate. (CFACT REPORT).

 

Federal government action tried to protect the eagles from turbine strikes by “offsetting their deaths by reducing electrocutions from power poles.

In other words, don't stop deaths by wind turbines but find a way to have fewer deaths somewhere else.

But even if that was done, the math does not add up.

They underestimated the number of power poles that would need to be made “safe” by a factor of as much as 241 and failed to save any meaningful number of eagles.

Back in 2015, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) determined that the golden eagle population could not withstand an increase in human-caused mortality.

Many more wind projects sought FWS permits exempting them from harm they may cause eagles under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.

These permits would inevitably increase the kill rate.

Many more wind projects were proposed under the Biden administration in states across the West.

Those government subsidies are already in the pipeline. The Trump administration has been trying to claw them back.

You can read the entire CFACT report at this link.