Environmental Impacts Associated with Routine Transmission Line Maintenance

John M. Bridges, Mary Barger, Nick Chevance, Ted Anderson, John Holt, Rodney Jones, and Earl Nelson

The Western Area Power Administration (Western) operates and maintains more than 17,000 miles of transmission lines in its service area of 16 western states. As an agency of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), each action associated with the maintenance of this system is subject to review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and other Federal, state and local environmental laws, regulations, guidance. Routine maintenance activities range from helicopter patrols to herbicide spraying, and pole change-outs to cross-arm replacements. Each of these activities has the potential to impact sensitive resources, such as unique farmlands and soils, sensitive cultural resources, endangered or threatened species, migratory birds, or important wildlife use areas and sensitive habitats. Western has developed routine compliance methods to meet our statutory requirements and to protect the resources. In addition, Western is developing ways to identify and remove from further consultation those tasks that can be done with little or no effect to sensitive resources. A main goal of the environmental program is to reduce impacts to sensitive resources. This can be accomplished by avoiding resources, develop means of modifying the activity or the normal ways of doing maintenance, and by providing sensitivity training to craft and trade workers. Working with maintenance crews in the early planning stage is the key to reducing impacts. Understanding maintenance work is the key to getting their help.

Keywords: Transmission lines, maintenance, environmental impacts, sensitive resources, impacts, cultural resources, biological resources, minimizing impacts