In 1953, a five-year herbicide research project was initiated that has managed to maintain its relevance for more than five decades. Several partners embarked on this journey, including Pennsylvania Electric Company (now FirstEnergy Corp.), the Pennsylvania Game Commission, Penn State University’s School of Forestry and Conservation, DuPont (no longer involved), Amchem (now Dow AgroSciences) and Asplundh Tree Expert Co.
If this does not seem important, consider that the nation’s electric utilities’ rights-of-way (ROWs) equal an area the size of New England. That’s a great deal of land – and vegetation – to manage. Fifty-five years ago, they were seeking scientific validation of whether herbicides were a safe and effective way to manage vegetation along electric utilities’ power lines, or ROWs. They knew then that encroachment of trees and other vegetation on power lines posed a threat to the reliable delivery of electricity. This partnership wanted to make sure that utilities had every possible tool to manage their ROWs. This still stands true today -- perhaps more so, due to new FERC regulations regarding vegetation management on transmission lines.
Traditional methods in the late 1940s and 50s were labor intensive. Manpower was employed, using brush scythes, hand axes and cross-cut saws. Keeping vegetation away from power lines was expensive, dangerous and arduous work.
Seeking more cost-effective and safer methods, Asplundh began using some of the new herbicides being developed by the post-war chemical industry. While vegetation management using herbicides was appealing in terms of labor and cost, there were many people with concerns about its potential impact on the environment. Hunters and sportsmen, bird-watchers and gardeners, farmers and utility personnel would have to be convinced.
There were concerns about the potential for “drift” and the volatility of the products, as well as harmful effects the chemicals might have on wildlife and livestock. Even some utility companies expressed their concern, forbidding the use of what they referred to as “poisons” in some ROW clearance contracts.
A means to test the environmental effects of ROW maintenance methods was clearly needed. With so much hinging on the results, the testing needed to be scientific with credible results. Dr. William Bramble, then of Penn State’s School of Forestry and Conservation, was approached by Ralph Kaufman and Hyland Johns of Asplundh along with Bob Beatty and Bill Allen of Amchem. He consented to take up the challenge.
Pennsylvania Electric Company offered the use of a one-year old, newly cleared two-mile stretch of 230kV ROW, which crossed the Pennsylvania State Game Lands 33. DuPont and Amchem supplied the herbicides (Dow AgroSciences took up this role in 1986). Asplundh Tree Expert Co. supplied funding, equipment, tools, manpower, and ROW management expertise.
Under the guidance of Dr. Bramble and his then graduate student Dr. Richard Byrnes, multiple methods of vegetation management would be evaluated side by side. Manual (and later, mechanical) brush cutting would be compared to the use of herbicides. Different types of herbicides and various means of application would also be evaluated. The data was expected to yield valuable insight into the efficacy, cost, efficiency and safety of each vegetation management method, as well as the environmental impact.
The data that was — and still is — generated was vital and practical. The Game Lands 33 project continues to produce new and valuable research results, and is still regularly toured by vegetation management professionals, environmentalists, foresters, policy makers and students. On June 25, 2008, the Utility Arborist Association hosted a gathering at the Game Lands.
“The tour of the Game Lands 33 research project was a huge success, bringing together over 140 utility industry peers, as well as state and local land management agencies,” said Rebecca Spach, Director of Vegetation Management for FirstEnergy. “The advantage of doing a tour is seeing and actually experiencing the bio-diversity in plant communities and secondary benefits to wildlife that utility integrated vegetation management practices cultivate, while still meeting the objective of maintaining safe and reliable operation of the bulk transmission system.”
FirstEnergy utilizes the valuable research results this 55-year project has provided and is proud to be one of the many partners.
Intriguing Results
Fifty-five years of this ‘five-year’ project have yielded some fascinating results. The conservationists’ and sportsmen’s concerns about the harmful impact that herbicides might have on the flora and fauna on or near the ROW proved unfounded. In fact, the data showed a positive impact. While meeting the objective of keeping trees away from the power lines on the right-of-way, vegetation management with herbicides actually created a habitat in which plants and animals flourished.
The reason for this is that herbicides applied on the ROW target woody plants like trees. The resulting shrubs, grasses and wildflowers supply food and shelter not found in the dense forests for a wide range of animals. The study found that deer, small mammals, birds, reptiles, and even butterflies – considered a true test of environmental impact – were taking advantage of the cleared ground and were thriving. Furthermore, the plant and animal communities themselves were shown to be unknowing helpers in resisting the invasion of unwanted woody plants — through plant competition and by animal feeding behaviors.
“The area contains an impressive array of species of plants, numbering at least 120, and relatively unknown wildlife, such as about 30 kinds of butterflies, numerous birds, mammals, amphibians, and reptiles,” says Dr. Richard Yahner, Professor of Wildlife Conservation at Penn State University, who carries on the research today.
There was another added benefit to vegetation management with herbicides — safety. With the manual and mechanical methods of clearing ROWs, so many sharp edged tools, even in the hands of a well-trained workforce, were bound to lead to injuries. And they did. Herbicides, applied properly, eliminated many of the personal injuries in ROW clearance.
Additionally, the project has encouraged the evolution of both herbicides and their delivery methods. Compared to the first attempts of the late 40s, herbicide application has become a fine art, its techniques practiced and honed at Game Lands 33. Lower and lower volumes of herbicides have been tested, yielding effective results. Precisely prescribed treatment methods ensure optimal performance with reduced expense and environmental impact.
The project has shown the entire nation a better way to manage vegetation on ROWs. The more than 200 published papers (written by Drs. Bramble, Byrnes and most recently, Richard Yahner) have proven to be a valuable resource to the vegetation management industry. The Game Lands 33 Project has become a successful example for ROW maintenance everywhere.
“Progressive utilities throughout North America and the world are benefiting from applying integrated vegetation management best management practices on their rights-of-way to improve safety and comply with requirements such as the North American Electric Reliability Corporation’s vegetation standard,” says Randall H. Miller, Director of Vegetation Management for PacifiCorp and author of the ISA’s recent Best Management Practices: Integrated Vegetation Management. “Ultimately, they are working with nature rather than against it, effectively reducing risk and saving money, while creating havens for many types of animals, including songbirds, butterflies, reptiles and other creatures. That is the legacy of the 55 years of research at Game Lands 33, with more benefits to come as the study continues.”
As retired Asplundh Senior Vice President Hyland Johns noted, “Things are changing. There are changes in herbicides, equipment, and plant succession. We need to continue to study all our ecosystems. Not only does nature change, but so do the people that deal with vegetation management. There are those who do not know about Game Lands 33 and we need to make sure this knowledge is passed on and used.”
Additionally, the industry acknowledges that similar projects need to be established in different geographical regions and different ecosystems to “fine tune” best practices for specific locations. In doing so, Game Lands 33 will surely serve as a baseline and model for future research.
There are approximately a million miles of electric transmission right-of-way in North America, and that’s in addition to highways, railroads, pipelines and other rights-of-way. With this tremendously valuable resource of open space available for multiple-use, the Game Lands 33 research clearly shows that it can be managed (and not just ‘maintained’) for the benefit of people and wildlife in perpetuity for future generations.
About the Author
James W. Orr is currently the Vice President, Technical Services – Vegetation Management for the Asplundh Tree Expert Co. and is responsible for coordinating technical information on line clearance, trees and vegetation management for Asplundh field personnel and utility customers.
