Windmills Judged No Threat to Condor

A proposed windmill farm in Gorman would lie outside traditional flight patterns of the endangered California condor and would not threaten the giant birds if scientists reintroduce them into the region, an environmental impact report on the project said.

The report, released Monday, also maintained that the 350-turbine wind farm, the first such enterprise proposed in Los Angeles County, would not erode soils or harm the environment.

But opponents, including residents and environmentalists, said Tuesday that they had not seen the report and they still believed the towering windmills would prove fatal to birds and destroy the rustic character of the region.

The report, prepared for Tehachapi-based Zond Systems, the largest producer of wind energy in California, will be reviewed by the Los Angeles County Regional Planning Commission.

The commission must decide whether to allow Zond to build the wind farm east of Gorman.