NBWL to deliberate on making power lines wildlife friendly
17 January 2022
Published by https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
INDIA – Nagpur: The standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife (SCNBWL) is planning to come up with a policy decision on the management of lands in protected areas and forests under transmission lines.
Considering it as a policy matter following the Supreme Court order in May 2021 regarding laying of underground power transmission line in Great Indian Bustard (GIB) habitats of Rajasthan and Gujarat, a proposal was put forth by former principal chief conservator of forest and committee member HS Singh in SCNBWL’s 66th meeting held on December 31. The Nagpur bench of Bombay high court too has asked to formulate such a strategy for sarus cranes in Gondia.
The proposal includes the restoration of land along the transmission lines as a wildlife habitat. It has been observed that light-demanding unwanted weeds such as lantana camara grow in the cleared forests along the transmission lines. This results in an aggressive invasion of such unwanted species.
Singh says, “In the interest of wildlife, this strip of land under transmission lines should be managed by eradicating unwanted growth along the strip of these lines, and food availability for herbivores should be improved.”
The said land should be managed as suitable habitat for wildlife by restoring it under fodder species such as grasses and small to medium-sized trees such as Acacia, Ziziphus, Emblica etc, depending on the climatic condition and requirement.
Singh adds, “In some cases, the strip can be managed as a forest fire-line and the said land should be covered by evergreen shrubs such as species of Agave, Alove, Salvadora, Euphorbia etc, depending on climatic conditions.”
The proposal states that disadvantages to wildlife due to transmission lines should be transformed into advantages, especially for reptiles, birds and minor mammals by managing land so that it is suited to their requirement.
Bird casualties due to collision or electrocution with power lines above the ground can happen to any species of bird capable of flight. Particularly at risk are birds migrating at night, birds flying in flocks, and large and heavy birds of limited manoeuvrability. Deaths of many heavy birds such as the GIBs and Indian saras are on record.
Casualties due to electrocution occur almost exclusively on badly designed medium-voltage power poles. Species of birds that visit power poles to perch, roost or rest are affected. For some of the species, continuing losses endanger their populations.
“During transmission line planning, it is important to identify ecologically sensitive areas such as staging areas for waterfowl so they can be inventoried to establish the degree of sensitivity, and if necessary, avoided. Bird diverters and devices are increasingly being shown to reduce collisions,” the proposal states.
Electric wires need insulation on the critical path of birds’ migration. While designing the guideline document for protecting birds from the transmission line, an expert on electricity should be engaged in the committee to cover all technical aspects so that it becomes implementable and acceptable.
