02-01-2018 Parks & Rec Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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44 ELECTRIC PERSPECTIVES | www.electricperspectives.com management practices in its high-voltage rights-of-way corri- dors to minimize clear-cut mow- ing and to encourage native plant communities that are compatible with safe and reliable operation of the electric system. The “ground-up approach” that Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) is taking in the West begins with partnering with researchers and non-profits focused on pollinator conservation to understand how the utility’s use of integrated vegetation man- agement (IVM) techniques may benefit pollinators. The flagship research project in this collabora- tion is the American River Park- way Pollinator Project—the first long-term comparative monitoring field study in the western region to examine pollinator communi- ties on actively managed electric utility rights-of-way. Research Sand County Partnership The Sand County Foundation is a non-profit conservation organization dedicated to working with private landowners across North America to advance ethical and scientifically sound land management practices that benefit the environment. The foundation has strong relationships with all aspects of the agricultural sector and extensive experience with voluntary efforts on species conservation. While rail, utility, and highway infrastructure is sometimes criticized for fragmenting forests and other natural habitats, the foundation believes that utility and transportation rights-of-way eventually could serve as a network of effective and efficient conservation reserves. Those rights- of-way currently total approximately 9 million acres of electric power transmission lines, 12 million miles of pipeline, and 14 0,000 miles of railroad—or nearly one-third the area of the National Park system. The foundation assembles partnerships that bring together easement holders, private agricultural landowners, science and conservation groups, and state and federal agencies. The intent is to build a network of habitat patches that, taken together, can help to reinforce the globally unique eastern monarch butterfly migration corridor. For more information, visit www.sandcounty.net. environmental stewardship shows that rights-of-way managed using IVM techniques designed to control non-native invasive plants and to favor creation of low-growing native plant com- munities resulted in an almost threefold increase in bee abun- dance and a twofold increase in bee species richness. PG&E also has provided research funding to Sonoma State University to understand the potential benefits of implementing IVM in an oak woodland plant community. “While this research does not specifically focus on monarchs, it is providing valuable infor- mation about the potential pol- linator habitat benefits created by following utility vegetation management best practices,” said Peter Beesley, vegetation pro- gram manager for PG&E. “The low-growing, stable native plant communities that rights-of-way managers desire to support public safety and reliability goals are also proving to benefit pollinators. Accordingly, we’ve established a target of 50,000 acres being managed in a pollinator-friendly management regime by 2020.” “We have a huge agricultural customer base in California. Our research results are showing that PG&E can help connect agricultural depend on insect pollinators for reproduction of native vegetation 70% of our food crops 30% “There is a lot of national focus on utility rights-of-way as being ideal for restoring habitat for monarchs and other pollina- tors,” said Sage Tauber, senior siting and land rights agent for Xcel, who is spearheading the initiative. “Habitat restoration is compatible with our priorities of safety and reliability, and can even result in cost savings due to reduced maintenance asso- ciated with native plant spe- cies that attract pollinators.” The National Wildlife Federation recently recognized Baltimore Gas & Electric (BGE) for six Certified Wildlife Habitats® within company- managed rights-of-way. Those hab- itats are part of the Million Polli- nator Garden Challenge, a national effort to restore critical habitat for pollinators, including the monarch. The sites are part of BGE’s efforts to implement integrated vegetation