Despite opposition from Audubon California and other conservation groups, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors yesterday approved an extension for a wind company to continue using older generation wind turbines at Altamont Pass that are predicted to kill a number of protected bird species, including Golden Eagles. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the California Attorney General's Office also opposed the extension.

"For decades, wind turbines at Altamont killed thousands of Golden Eagles, Red-tailed Hawks and other raptors," said Audubon California Policy Director Mike Lynes. "This company should be required to play by the same rules as the other wind companies at Altamont Pass."

Thanks to the efforts of Bay Area Audubon chapters, most Altamont wind companies are now replacing their old, deadly turbines with newer models that are less harmful to birds. But one company, Altamont Winds Inc., requested this delay until 2018, even though it already received an extension in 2013. Scientists estimate that an additional eleven to sixteen Golden Eagles will die over the next three years, along with countless other raptors.