Jill Shephard

Electricity production contributes 40% of world’s greenhouse gas emissions. Conversion to renewable energy production is therefore critical for mitigating climate change. Australia’s commitment to meeting emission targets has seen rapid growth in the renewable energy sector. Wind energy met 13.4% of Australia’s total energy demands over the last 12 months, but the rapid increase in wind energy developments will see this proportion increase. In 2023, there were 121 Australian wind farms operating or under construction, but an additional 188 have been proposed. Markedly, there is a projected 12-fold increase over current wind energy generation, with more, much larger turbines, proposed. As the number of wind energy projects increases, so has the scrutiny of their environmental impact. Wind energy, in particular, has a pronounced ecological impact on bird and bat species due to collisions with turbine blades and towers. Understanding the potential impact of the growth of wind farms on threatened wildlife species requires species-specific collision risk data. However, reported turbine strike data is lacking for most Australian species, especially scarce, threatened species, and those whose geographic range does not overlap with existing wind farms. Without actual strike data, conservation management decisions are currently being made on the basis of theoretical predictions. To fully assess and address potential environmental impacts of wind turbine developments We have reviewed the biological traits of bird and bat species, available collision mortality monitoring, and compiled direct activity observations to identify a list of Western Australian species that are potentially at risk of wind turbine collision. We have also identified knowledge gaps that require additional research. This work is building research and industry collaboration towards managing and mitigating the balance between green energy development and the conservation challenges that it represents.

Since 2015, the Murdoch University research team has successfully deployed 128 tags and generated over 270,000 GPS location fixes and 5.3M accelerometer data points for 87,000 km of tracked movement to understand habitat used by black cockatoos and inform land management to help secure the future of these beloved Australian birds.

Western Australia is home to three species of black cockatoos; the Carnaby’s cockatoo, Baudin’s cockatoo and the forest red-tailed black cockatoo. Populations of all three are in decline.

Land clearing for agricultural, urban and industrial development is reducing critical habitats for black cockatoos. Meanwhile, climate change, competition with other species and human impacts, such as vehicle strikes, illegal shooting and poaching, are also contributing to theirdecline. Despite major efforts to date, all three species of black cockatoo are continuing to decline. The main impediment to facilitating population recovery in these species is a lack of information about flock movement patterns and key habitat use.

Previous work has not offered an effective way to track these species at a landscape scale. However, the telemetry method in this study offers a proven solution and a prime opportunity to address these knowledge gaps. This research has been using GPS and ARGOS PTT tags to track wild black cockatoos throughout the Perth metropolitan area and southwest region.

As Perth continues its rapid and extensive urban development, there is a significant need and opportunity to model how development and conservation of this important species can be managed together.

Outcomes from this research will benefit State and Federal conservation agencies considerably by directing their recovery efforts and informing their legislative responsibilities relating to the protection and management of threatened black cockatoo species and their habitat.

To date this project has delivered major new black cockatoo flock movement and habitat use information that has been used by proponents in guiding development planning on the Swan Coastal Plain and to assist State and Federal agencies in assessing development applications.

These data are also used to directly address priority actions in the Carnaby’s Cockatoo Recovery Plan and the Forest Black Cockatoo Recovery Plan. While the primary focus of the project is on the conservation of black cockatoos in modified landscapes, future work will use predictive modelling of threatening processes to provide greater understanding of key threats and how to mitigate them.

Funding received

Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions

Forest Products Commission

Linc Property Pty Ltd

Iluka Resources Ltd

Public Transport Authority of Western Australia – Metronet

Main Roads Western Australia