Brown pelicans, wood stork and other coastal birds at risk, new study says

Pollution, climate change and energy production are contributing to steep declines in marsh and coastal bird populations, according to a new government report.

The first-of-its-kind report chronicles a four-decade drop in many of the country's bird populations. The report says the drop in numbers has been caused by a variety of factors, including suburban sprawl, the spread of exotic species and global warming.

Hamilton Davis of the South Carolina Coastal Conservation League said most of the zoning in the state encourages sprawl and policies must be created to use land efficiently.

He said progress is being made in Beaufort County, where local leaders have updated comprehensive plans to include progressive land planning tools, such as stormwater controls that can reduce pollution.

"They are still in implementation stages, but they are infinitely better than they were in the past," he said. "And the benefit is preservation of wetlands and open spaces and generally less growing in a way that has fewer negative impacts on our natural resources."

The report also shows that conservation efforts can work. Birds that live in wetlands and the nation's waterfowl have rebounded over the past 40 years, a period marked by increased efforts to protect wetlands.

Across the country, energy production is playing a role in bird populations. Birds collide with wind turbines and oil and gas wells, and studies have shown some species will avoid nesting near those structures. The U.S. State of Birds report, released Tuesday by Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, was requested in October 2007 by President George W. Bush.

Environmentalists and scientists say the report should signal to the Obama administration to proceed cautiously as it seeks to expand renewable energy production and the electricity grid on public lands, and tries to harness wind energy along the nation's coastlines.

In South Carolina, offshore wind is gaining traction as a potential source for energy, said Davis, who sits on a governor-appointed committee to study the resource's potential.

"We need to be wary of where we will put those wind farms," he said, adding that if wind farms are out of birds' migratory patterns, there is less chance of harming them.

Barry Lowes of the Hilton Head Island Audubon Society said harnessing wind is a better option for birds than pollution that can come from coal-fired plants.

Lowes said everyone needs to be aware of what a declining bird population means for the ecosystem.

"We've got to understand we are right in the middle of it, and whatever happens to them will happen to us too," he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

BIRDS IN TROUBLE

•Wood stork

• Clapper rail

• Whooping crane

• Seaside sparrow

• Piping plover

• Brown pelican