Inspirational Story of the Week:

Wind Turbines Are Using Cameras and AI to See Birds - And Shut Down When they Approach

An inspiring article from the

Good News Network...

Wind power is a powerful tool for reducing carbon emissions that cause climate change. The turbines, however, can be a threat to birds and bats, which is why experts are looking for—and finding—ways to eliminate the danger.

The US government has allocated $13.5 million to look for solutions. But, already a Boulder, Colorado company has produced a camera- and AI-based technology that can recognize eagles, hawks and other raptors as they approach in enough time to pause turbines in their flight path.

Their tool, called IdentiFlight, can detect 5.62 times more bird flights than human observers alone, and with an accuracy rate of 94 percent. https://www.identiflight.com/

Using high-precision optical sensors, the system calculates a bird’s speed and flight trajectory, and if it is on a collision path with a turbine, a signal is sent to shut that turbine down.

Winning an award for its performance in Australia, the tracking system was installed in 2018 at a Tasmanian facility and was found to cut eagle deaths at the Cattle Hill Wind Farm by more than four-fifths.