Best management practices for electric utilities in sage-grouse habitat

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Abstract:

In response to sage-grouse/power line concerns, uncertainties related to siting and permitting of new lines, and variability in timing and disturbance distance guidance, APLIC convened a group of utility, federal, and state agency partners to develop best management practices (BMPs) that would aid in addressing siting and ongoing operation and maintenance (O&M) concerns and help conserve sage-grouse and their habitat.The voluntary BMPs presented and discussed here are intended to provide consistent and implementable actions that comply with and enhance sage-grouse-specific conservation measures, recommendations, and requirements contained within federal and state management plans. These BMPs are not intended to replace or conflict with existing agency plans, but rather provide additional detail and benefit, specific to electric transmission and distribution infrastructure and related actions. The BMPs were categorized under various activities conducted by utilities and also aligned with potential threats identified in the 2013 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Conservation Objectives Team (COT) Report. APLIC encourages the use of and reference to these BMPs during permitting and permit renewal of electric facilities in conjunction with state and federal sage-grouse plans. APLIC further encourages utilities that operate in sage-grouse habitat to directly reference or incorporate these BMPs into their internal company procedures during construction and O&M of existing power lines and associated infrastructure (e.g., access roads).

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ELECTRONIC FILE - Zoology

Suggested citation:
Avian Power Line Interaction Committee (APLIC). 2015. Best Management Practices for
Electric Utilities in Sage-Grouse Habitat. Edison Electric Institute and APLIC. Washington, DC.

SWAP (2/19/2016) citation:
[APLIC] Avian Power Line Interaction Committee. 2015. Best management practices for electric utilities in Sage-Gouse habitat. Washington (DC): Edison Electric Institute.