An Albany County conservation group is accusing federal agencies of concealing eagle deaths caused by wind farms in Carbon County.
Meanwhile a retired U.S. Fish and Wildlife biologist says the number of golden eagles — a protected species — are plummeting in Carbon County. His data suggests wind farms are to blame for nearly half of all human-caused eagle deaths.
The Albany County Conservancy has filed a lawsuit in the District of Columbia to force the U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to release all 1,166 pages of the incident reports about bald and golden eagle deaths and injuries related to the Seven Mile Hill, Ekola Flats, and Dunlap wind farms.
The Conservancy had first sought these records through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) filing submitted late last year to U.S. Fish and Wildlife, after learning from retired U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Mike Lockhart about concerning levels of eagle deaths.
In March, the federal agency acknowledged having 1,166 pages of responsive material but would only release 256 redacted pages.
The agency cited an exemption that’s meant to protect trade secrets and competitive commercial material, according to the Conservancy’s court filing.
“Defendants’ obfuscation and the lack of any coherent justification for withholding this information strongly suggests that defendants have something to hide,” Albany County Conservancy attorney William Eubanks wrote in the lawsuit. “It may well be that eagle mortality stemming from these projects is far outpacing predictions, or FWS may be asleep at the switch.
“Either way, under FOIA (Freedom of Information Act), the public has a right to know,” Eubanks continued. “This is especially true where there may be recurring violations of federal law.”
