Abstract
This document is Appendix K from the Final Environmental Assessment LEEDCo Project Icebreaker Lake Erie, City of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio. Tetra Tech, Inc. (Tetra Tech) was contracted by the Cuyahoga County Department of Development (CCDD) to conduct avian and bat studies for the Lake Erie Wind Power Project (the Project). The Project will consist of up to eight turbines to be located off the coast of Ohio, approximately 4 to 7 miles (mi) into Lake Erie, north of the City of Cleveland. The avian and bat Study Area consisted of habitat within 4 nautical mile (nm) radius circle centered on the City of Cleveland Water Intake Crib (Crib), as well as the adjacent shoreline south and east of the Crib. This report provides the results of the baseline ecological surveys conducted in the Study Area in 2010.
The goal of the 2010 survey effort was to document the species composition, overall occurrence patterns, phenology, and flight behavior of birds and bats within the Study Area. The results of the 2010 field survey provide baseline data that may be used for the preparation of a formal risk assessment and for comparison with post-construction surveys. Surveys completed as part of the 2010 biological survey program included a MERLIN avian radar survey, boat-based surveys, avian acoustic monitoring, and bat acoustic monitoring.
For the purposes of this study, the turbine used to determine the rotor swept zone (RSZ) was the largest offshore wind turbine currently in production, which is the Siemens SWT 6.0, 6 megawatt (MW) with a rotor diameter of up to 165 meters (m) (541 feet [ft]) and a hub height of up to 120 m (394 ft). The size of the turbines used for the Lake Erie Wind project has yet to be determined, since the project is in its inception. The RSZ used for this report assumed the largest possible turbine that could be deployed at the time of the reporting, which would presumably present the greatest risk to birds and bats, and presumably any smaller turbine would present less risk. The RSZ used was defined as 27 m (89 ft) to 202.5 m (664 ft) above mean low water level (AMWL). The use of the largest turbine dimensions enables a conservative approach to risk assessment and it is possible that smaller turbines will be used, thereby reducing potential risk to birds and bats.