Birders worry about wind turbines near Lake Erie

PORT CLINTON, Ohio - A plan to build a wind turbine along Lake Erie near a well-known spot for migrating birds is worrying environmentalists.

Conservationists say wind turbines are a threat to the birds and the thousands of tourists who come to the area east of Toledo every spring to see the migration.

The News-Herald newspaper in Port Clinton reports that one and possibly two wind turbines are planned in Ottawa County.

Mark Shieldcastle is research director for the Black Swamp Bird Observatory. He calls the area one of the best for migratory birds in the nation.

He says one wind turbine has been in the works for a while, but he just learned another one might be in development.

Tourism officials say bird tourism brings in over $300 million to the county.