A wind farm in Zeeland has become the second in the province to use a smart camera system to prevent birds from flying into the turbine blades, local broadcaster Omroep Flevoland reported.

The cameras, which were activated on Wednesday, can spot big birds such as the sea eagle at a distance of 1100 metres, and this will automatically slow the blades down.

“We cannot stop the blades from turning from one moment to the next but they will turn a lot slower and will be much more visible to the birds,” wind farm owner Sjoerd Sieburgh Sjoerdsma said.

Fast-turning blades have killed numerous large birds amid calls for all wind farms to invest in bird protection systems.

A similar, smaller-scale camera system is already in use at the Krammer wind farm to protect the local osprey population. Project manager Gijs van Hout said that the loss of electricity caused by shutdowns amounts to €120,000 to €180,000 a year.

The system at the Zeewolde wind farm, which has 83 turbines, some of which measure an unprecedented 220 metres, is reported to have cost “several million euros’, including the costs of shutdowns.

“We built this wind farm together and we wanted to look after the area,”  Sieburgh Sjoerdsma said at the time. “The sea eagle is part of that and it’s a wonderful bird. We want to keep it safe.”

Sea eagles, which can reach have a wing span of 2.5 metres, are doing well in the Netherlands. Last year some 28 pairs produced chicks.