Table Of ContentPreface
The Eighth International Symposium on Environmental Concerns in Rights-of-Way
Management, ROW8, was held September 12-16, 2004 at the Prime Hotel and Confer-
ence Center in Saratoga Springs, New York. ROW8 follows a series of symposia begun
at Mississippi State University, Mississippi in 1976. Since then, it has been held in six
other cities in Canada and the United States. The symposia are organized by a steer-
ing committee composed of representatives from industries, agencies, and universities
concerned with research and management of electric, pipeline, railroad, and highway
rights-of-way.
The purpose of this symposium was to achieve a better understanding of the current
and emerging environmental issues related to rights-of-way management by sharing
environmental research and practical experience throughout the world. ROW8 attracted
349 participants from 15 countries.
ROW8 was opened by the Sons and Daughters of Liberty Ancient Fifes and Drums
Corps, followed by a walk through the rich history of Saratoga Springs by Sean Kelleher
of the Center for Heritage Education and Tourism.
The keynote speaker was Peter A.A. Berle, host of "The Environment Show," a pub-
lic radio and ABC Radio Network program. His many other credits include his work
as an environmental lawyer, state legislator, president of the National Audubon Society
and involvement in almost every environmental issue that has engaged the nation over
the past three decades. Mr. Berle's address focused us on a simple concept, "There are
certain basic human values that prevail. Our task in solving problems is to come back to
those and achieve success." Following Mr. Berle's address, a panel discussion was held
on "When the Lights Go Out: Environmental Choices and Consequences." This discus-
sion focused on the 2003 blackout that left approximately 50 million people without
power in Midwestern and Northeastern United States and Ontario, Canada.
During the course of three days, eight concurrent sessions were held on topics such
as vegetation management, cultural planning, endangered and threatened species, ma-
rine and aquatic environments, pipelines and pipeline management, avian power line
interactions, wildlife, invasive species, technology, and siting and routing. A total of 128
papers were presented. Eighty-two peer-reviewed papers appear in this book. The ap-
pendix contains a bibliography of presentations not incorporated into the chapters as
individual papers.
At this time, the Ninth International Symposium on Environmental Concerns in
Rights-of-Way Management has not found a home. Please visit the symposia Web site
at www.rights-of-way-env.com for updates.
vii
Acknowledgements
ROW8 would not have been possible without the hard work and dedication of many
individuals. First and foremost, we would like to thank the national and local steering
committees for their commitment and enthusiasm. Without all of their planning, none
of this would be possible. National steering committee members are: Larry Abraham-
son (co-chair), Dale Arner, Mike Boyle, Allen Crabtree, Jean Doucet, Jim Evans, John
Goodrich-Mahoney, Kevin McLoughlin (co-chair), Dean Mutrie, Chris Nowak, Peter
Prier, Richard Skarie, Tom Sullivan, and Gus Tillman. Along with the co-chairs, the lo-
cal steering committee members are: Craig Allen, Ben Ballard, Jen Ballard, Tami Evans,
Ken Finch, Ed Neuhauser, David Frazier, Jim Kooser, Dave Morrell, and Maureen Wake-
field.
We would like to recognize the authors of the papers and posters for their efforts
and the quality of their contributions, as well as the individuals who served as technical
reviewers of the papers. Also, without the determination of Resource Strategies, Inc.
this book would never have come to fruition.
We acknowledge the major sponsors: Niagara Mohawk: A National Grid Company,
New York Power Authority, Electric Power Research Institute, and SUNY College of En-
vironmental Science and Forestry; the co-sponsors: Avian Power Line Interaction Com-
mittee, Ecology and Environment, Inc., Environmental Energy Alliance of New York,
Hydro One, Lewis Tree Service, Inc., New York Search/New York Gas Group, Stantec,
TRC/Essex Environmental, and URS Corp; and the contributors and supporters: Envi-
ronmental Consulting, Inc., Hydro-Quebec, and Asplundh.
ix
In Memoriam
This book of proceedings is dedicated to Dr. Robert E. "Gus" Tillman, a fine gentleman
and great friend to the Rights-of-Way Symposia. Sadly, Dr. Tillman was unable to attend
ROW8, and passed away May 31, 2005 after a year-long battle with cancer.
Gus Tillman was raised in Hammondsport in upstate New York. He received a Mas-
ter's degree from Albany Teachers College, and earned a Ph.D. in Environmental Ed-
ucation and Wildlife Management from Cornell University. Throughout his long and
successful career, Gus worked for several organizations as a champion of the environ-
ment and for humanity. Through the United Nations Center for Human Settlement and
the World Bank, he was able to assist many societies in bettering their ecosystems and
environments.
Gus became involved in the very first ROW symposium, held in Mississippi in 1975,
as a member of the steering committee. Not only did he continue to serve the steer-
ing committees of all eight symposia, he was an editor for two of the proceedings, and
co-chair for the San Diego, California ROW3 symposium. Although he was unable to
attend ROW8, Gus assisted in the technical review of several of the papers presented in
this book. As a dedicated steering committee member, Gus will be missed; as a charis-
matic and dynamic character, he will never be replaced.
A former employer said it best, "Few other people command the degree of respect,
admiration and love that you do. We respect you for your intelligence and wisdom, and
for your ability to use them effectively. We admire you for your dedication to principles,
and for your understanding of the human condition. We love you because you are able
to receive the love of others and return it to them as a professional and with personal
joy."
Dr. Robert E. "Gus" Tillman
1937-2005
Plenary Session Opening Remarks and
Presentations
THE FOLLOWING IS AN EDITED TRANSCRIPT OF THE Because of the interest that we've had in ROW7 and
PLENARY SESSION OPENING REMARKS AND ROW8, we hope that won't happen. Perhaps someone
PRESENTATIONS here today will have an interest in hosting ROW9.
Now, I would like to talk about our sponsors be-
Opening Ceremony by Sons and Daughters of Liberty cause, obviously, without them, we couldn't have done
Ancient Fifes & Drums Corps and Sean Kelleher of the this. I want to mention them here so that you can thank
Center for Heritage Education and Tourism. them personally. We certainly appreciate them. Spon-
sors are the driving force behind these meetings; they
help everything run efficiently, and they help keep the
WELCOME BY CO-HOST LARRY ABRAHAMSON registration fee down.
Our major sponsors provided the majority of the
Larry Abrahamson funds, and some of them also provided a great deal
Welcome! We have enjoyed a wonderful opening cere- of manpower. We would not be here today if it weren't
mony by Sean Kelleher and the drum and fifes corps. for Niagara Mohawk: A National Grid Company. They
Thank you, Sean for a job well done. got this symposium started by contributing the money
I want to personally welcome you to the Eighth In- and manpower to begin moving forward. Next, the
ternational Symposium on Environmental Concerns in New York Power Authority came along as a major co-
Rights-of-Way Management. I'm Larry Abrahamson, sponsor. Another major sponsor is the Electric Power
from the State University of New York College of Envi- Research Institute (EPRI), who will be preparing the
ronmental Science and Forestry. I'm co-host along with proceedings for ROW8. The proceedings are very ex-
Kevin McLoughlin, who until his recent retirement, pensive, and we are very appreciative of that com-
was with the New York Power Authority. Kevin and mitment. John Goodrich-Mahoney from EPRI will be
I hope that you find this symposium to be an excellent speaking later regarding what is involved with the
meeting and well worth your time. proceedings. Finally, SUNY-ESF, the State University
What will make this meeting an excellent meeting of New York College of Environmental Science and
is you, the participant. We have 349 people registered Forestry, came in to supply most of the manpower.
for this event. We haven't beaten the attendance record ESF is providing the infrastructure for organizing and
set at the Calgary Symposium, but we're doing very presiding over this symposium. These are the major
well. We have 15 countries represented: Australia, Bu- sponsors who put up most of the funds and time to
rundi, Canada, Costa Rica, Ecuador, France, Gabon, administer this symposium.
Germany, Japan, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Thai- ROW8 was also very lucky to have a number of co-
land, the United Kingdom, and the United States. sponsors, contributors, and supporters. These compa-
There is an important tradition associated with the nies served on the local steering committee, in addition
ROW symposia. The national steering committee orga- to providing funds to cover our lunches, field trips,
nizes and hosts them, but it's the sponsors that make and other expenses. They are: the Avian Power Line In-
them run. The symposia are staged about every four teraction Committee (APLIC); Hydro One; TRC/Essex
years. The last one, ROW7, was held in Calgary in Environment; Ecology & Environment, Inc.; Environ-
2000. We were very fortunate to have ample interest mental Energy Alliance of New York; New York Gas
and support early on for ROW8. Group; URS Corp; Lewis Tree Service, Inc.; Stantec;
Before I credit all of our sponsors, I want to put in ECI; Hydro-Quebec; and Asplundh. Please be sure to
a plug for ROW9. We had intended to announce the thank these people.
date and location for ROW9 at this symposium; un- In addition to the sponsor contributions, your regis-
fortunately, the interested parties had to back out. Ob- tration fees assist in providing the resources to present
viously we don't want to see the ROW symposia die. and run this symposium. There are 128 presentations
being given this week. Of course, without these contri-
butions, there wouldn't be a ROW8.
Environmental Concerns in Rights-of-Way Management: If you look in your abstracts book, you will notice
Eighth International Symposium
there are 14 posters being presented. In addition, there
J.W. Goodrich-Mahoney, L.P. Abrahamson, J.L. Ballard
are 19 exhibitor booths set up in the dining area. Ex-
and S.M. Tikalsky (editors)
�9 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. hibitors are new for the ROW symposia. This is the
4 Plenary session opening remarks and presentations
first year that exhibitors have been invited, and we I want to confirm that EPRI will be here for ROW9.
encourage you to visit the booths, talk to the repre- We plan to help support the proceedings for ROW9, so,
sentatives, and support them. We hope exhibitors will if we can get another major sponsor or two, we'll be on
be part of future symposia. They provide a service to our way. Enjoy the symposium! Thank you very much,
the attendees and help defray the costs of running the Larry.
symposium. After today, the coffee breaks will held be
near the posters and exhibitors to help you view the
posters and visit the exhibitors.
LARRY ABRAHAMSON INTRODUCES KEVIN
I would like also to notify you that a number Con-
MCLOUGHLIN
tinuing Education (CE) credits are available for this
symposium. There are CE credits for Society of Ameri-
Larry Abrahamson
can Foresters, arborists, horticulturists, and others. We
Thank you, John. Remember if you would like previ-
also have pesticide applicator certification for a num-
ber of states, including New York. Please visit the ous editions of the proceedings, please contact John
registration desk to learn more. or for copies of the ROW5, Montreal meeting, contact
Also new this year, are the day-long field trips that Jean Doucet.
have been incorporated into the meeting. There are And with that, I'll introduce Kevin McLoughlin.
four separate, all day field trips. Three are technical: Kevin is going to preside over the rest of the morning
1. the electric power line rights-of-way field trip, session.
2. the reconstruction and restoration of highway and
pipelines field trip, and 3. the wildlife field. The fourth
is a non-technical trip to the Adirondacks.
KEVIN MCLOUGHLIN INTRODUCES SCOTT
After the plenary session this morning, the rest of
LEUTHAUSER
the meeting will be held with concurrent sessions.
There are a total of eight concurrent sessions: one
Kevin McLoughlin
this afternoon, two on Wednesday, and one Thursday
Thank you, Larry. As Larry mentioned earlier, I retired
morning. During each of these concurrent sessions,
three different topic sessions will run simultaneously, last month from the New York Power Authority, so I
with the exception of Wednesday morning when there look at this meeting as one big retirement party. Let's
will be four concurrent sessions. Each of these topic enjoy ourselves.
sessions will be held in a separate room, with any- Also as Larry mentioned, we are pleased that the
where from four to six papers being given in each. We Power Authority was able to step forward and match
encourage attendees to move among the rooms in or- Niagara Mohawk's sponsorship. I'd like to thank Ed
der to hear papers in different sessions. Huber for giving us the opportunity to support this
Now, I'd like to introduce John Goodrich-Mahoney. symposium. This contribution was one of Ed's first big
John, will you come up and tell us about the proceed- decisions.
ings for this symposium?
The Power Authority had only been created in June
of 2000 and that year Ed was named as the new direc-
John Goodrich-Mahoney
tor. I called Ed from the ROW7 symposium in Calgary
Thank you, Larry, and welcome to everyone. Once
to request a matching grant for $35,000. He approved
again, EPRI will be supporting publication of the pro-
it, so I was able to announce at Calgary New York
ceedings for this symposium. And, I'm very pleased
Power Authority's support for ROW8, which put us
that we are able to do this. We will be publishing the
over the top.
proceedings through Elsevier Science as we did last
Today I'm here to introduce a couple of very impor-
time, and EPRI will distribute the proceedings to you
tant people. There is a slight change in the program;
as part of the registration fee.
Clem Nadeau, who is Senior Vice President of Opera-
There are a few copies of the proceedings from
tions for National Grid, was unable to attend. We have,
the previous symposium, which are available to ed-
in his place, Scott Leuthauser, Vice President of Dis-
ucational organizations and for personal use. If you
tribution Planning and Engineering. Mr. Leuthauser is
contact me at some point during the symposium, I can
responsible for the planning and asset management of
arrange to have copies shipped to you or to your li-
National Grid's electric distribution and natural gas
brary.
delivery facilities. This includes the engineering, plan-
Once again, the proceedings will be a peer-reviewed
publication. Your papers will be reviewed, and you ning, and capital resource allocation prioritization. He
will be contacted by our reviewers to resolve any con- is a licensed engineer in New York State with a mas-
cerns before publishing your paper. We expect to have ter's certificate in power systems management. He
an excellent collection of papers and hope to be able to holds both an M.B.A. and a B.S. degree in mechanical
have the proceedings completed near the end of 2005. engineering. Scott, I welcome you to Saratoga.
Plenary session opening remarks and presentations 5
Scott Leuthauser York transmission systemmthat are primarily owned
Thank you very much. Clem wanted me to express his by Niagara Mohawk and the New York Power Author-
apologizes that he could not be here today, but I am ity.
pleased to have the opportunity to attend in his place. In the early days, the miller, lumberman, spinner
I had a nice drive down from Speculator, an hour and and other users of water power had to come to the
a half north of here, and I was able to view first hand source of the power. In the Great Corridor, a series
the beauty of the Adirondacks. of discoveries and events changed all that: Joseph
On behalf of National Grid, I'd like to welcome Henry's first electric motor in the 1820s and 1830s, the
everyone to the Saratoga Springs Rights-of-Way Sym- war of the currents between AC and DC technical ri-
posium. I hope you enjoy the historical sites around valries, Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison in the 1890s,
the area and enjoy your stay. National Grid is pleased and the work in Schenectady by Charles Steinmetz,
to be a major sponsor of the Eighth ROW Symposium. advancing AC power transmission at the turn of the
This venue brings together expertsmlike youmto 20th Century. The Corridor's entrepreneurial popula-
share ideas, new procedures, and emerging technolo-
tion helped transform our ideas of energy.
gies. It will help us meet the challenges our companies
Some of you will be taking field trips tomorrow.
face every day.
Whether you take the integrated vegetation manage-
As everyone well knows, on August 14, 2003, large
ment, wildlife, or construction/restoration tour, you
portions of the Midwest and Northeast US and On-
will witness firsthand the results of several years of
tario, Canada experienced an electric blackout that
rights-of-way research, restoration and construction
affected nearly 50 million people. We have all learned
projects.
something from that outage. One of those lessons is the
The focus of this symposium is to share environ-
importance of good rights-of-way management.
mental research and practical experience so that we
In 1897, the White-Crosby Company presented a
are all better rights-of-way managers, not only for our
paper to the National Electric Light Association in Nia-
businesses, but for our environment. I encourage you
gara Falls. This company engineered and constructed a
to sit back and enjoy. Today is the beginning of much
large-scale effort to generate and transmit bulk power.
more.
One of the key quotes of that presentation was, "One
I'm going to pass around a book entitled "Niagara
short interruption last winter was due to the dead limb
Mohawk, an Uncommon History." This book is a his-
of a tree blowing across the wires, illustrating the fact
tory of Niagara Mohawk written by Bob Dischner.
that all trees should be cut down for some considerable
Tomorrow some of you will be having lunch with Bob,
distance on both sides of any high voltage line."
one of our former head trainers and also our in-house
Thankfully, today we don't have to cut down all the
historian. Everybody can think of a few questions to
trees. We can use an ecologically-centered approach
see if you can stump Bob tomorrow.
to right-of-way management, minimizing and avoid-
Thank you very much.
ing adverse impacts to adjacent lands, water resources,
right-of-way vegetation, and wildlife.
Turning to Niagara Mohawk history, which we just
KEVIN MCLOUGHLIN INTRODUCES EUGENE
heard a little bit about from the town historian, nature
ZELTMANN
itself sculpted many of the early rights-of-way for our
predecessor companies. Such was the case for Niagara
Kevin McLoughlin
Mohawk, one of the first companies to transmit power
Thank you very much, Scott. My next job is to in-
for any distance. The obvious great Niagara Falls, serv-
troduce Eugene Zeltmann, President and CEO of the
ing as an immense power source, has a lesser-known
New York Power Authority. I'd like to give you a little
wonder that made it successful, and it's called the
background on this gentleman, because he came to the
Great Corridor of Waterways across New York. The
Power Authority with the right background, the right
Hudson River and the Mohawk River served as na-
experience, at the right time, with the right stuff.
tional corridors for the transmission of electricity, and
still do today. The Mohawk River is the only water Gene came to the Public Service Commission (PSC)
route through the Appalachian Mountains. It provided as a Fellow in 1971 and worked with the PSC at a very
a transportation path for early settlers, flowing water critical time in the development of environmental reg-
to for waterwheels and power turbines, and the gene- ulations and legislation. At that time, Article 7 of the
sis of commerce to fund the corridor of upstate New Public Service Law (still in existence today) was cre-
York cities. With the construction of the Erie Canal, ated. It's a one-stop siting process for transmission in
this same corridor later became a fully-connected wa- New York State. Gene happened to be there, right at
terway. As technology developed, the New York State that time.
Thruway was formed. Of course, anybody who drives Next, he went on to General Electric (GE) for a
along the thruway can follow right along the cross- number of years and rose in the ranks of a real blue-
state transmission l ines~the backbone of the New chip company that was reinventing itself. Under Jack
6 Plenary session opening remarks and presentations
Welch's tutelage, as you all know, GE became a stal- Record" noted that the group's recommendations had
wart company of the 1990s. focused on four "Ts": Tools, Training, Transmission as-
Gene came back to state service for the New York sets, and Trees. It occurred to me that in many ways
State Public Service Commission in 1995. He became these elements form the backbone of the Power Au-
the deputy commissioner the following year, just as thority's strategy for our 16,000 acres of rights-of-way
New York State was moving into the competitive mar- that require vegetation management.
ket. Tools. One of the most important tools is the Geo-
He came to the New York Power Authority in 1997, graphic Information System (GIS) that we began im-
at a time when the Power Authority was having its plementing in 1999 and that is now virtually com-
own bumps and problems with deregulation. One plete. GIS provides the ultimate in panoramic snap-
of his major accomplishments was the selling of nu- shots and digital mapping. It shows the location of all
clear power plants at a market price. You may know of our transmission facilities, the status of vegetation
that many of these old power plants were viewed as treatments, vegetative growth, identifies some types of
stranded assets, but not in New York State. The Power vegetation, sensitive environmental areas, and much,
Authority sold those power plants at a good price, much more. I'm extremely pleased with the innova-
which changed how the market responded to that type tive use of this system that has earned a 2004 Special
of transaction. Achievements in GIS award, better known as SAG,
Without further ado, I will introduce Gene, who from the GIS software developer Environmental Sys-
stands head and shoulders above the rank and file, tems Research Institute.
both literally and figuratively! Later this morning you will be seeing a DVD pre-
sentation using GIS. On Thursday morning, you will
Eugene Zeltmann hear John Wingfield of the Power Authority staff dis-
Thank you very much, Kevin. It's great to see all of cuss our GIS program in greater detail.
you here today. You heard a terrific introduction about At the Power Authority, we've also centralized our
Saratoga, and if you get an opportunity, try to see the vegetation management efforts, which had previously
battlefield. It is a jewel. It is one of the smallest national been carried out by staff members in individual power
parks in the United States, yet, it's an extraordinary ex- projects. In 1998 we appointed our first system forester,
perience. Kevin McLoughlin, and two years later we created a
On behalf of Governor George Pataki, I am happy to Transmission Maintenance Group, giving the system
welcome you all here to Saratoga. I noticed as I looked forester responsibilities for all rights-of-way environ-
at it this morning, the agenda for this meeting is full. mental activities, including vegetation management.
You'll have a chance to do a lot of exploring, and you'll Then in 2001, we began a new program calling for
have an opportunity to hear a lot of terrific talks and all lines to be treated on regular four-year cycles. Pre-
analyses. The Power Authority is delighted to be one viously, work had been done on an as-needed basis as
of the major sponsors of this event, and given my ties determined by visual observations during routine field
to EPRI, I'm extremely pleased that EPRI is also a major inspections.
sponsor. Training. The Power Authority provides funding
The Power Authority owns and operates about and manpower for statewide training of certified pesti-
1,400 circuit miles of transmission lines. Our system in- cide applicators. We also provide additional training to
cludes about one-third of all high voltage transmission our contractor work force so that new applicators can
in New York State; therefore, effective rights-of-way become eligible for certification as apprentices.
management is key. Further, it is critical to our overall Our commitment to training is complemented by
survival. our sponsorship of national and state research on
The blackout of 2003 has focused attention on this rights-of-way management. The Power Authority has
matter in many, many ways, certainly for the Power been a member of EPRI's ROW Environmental Man-
Authority, as well as throughout the electric industry. agement Research since 1998. We also worked with the
The US-Canadian Power System Task Force identified State University of New York College at Oneonta to do
inadequate tree trimming as a major initiating cause of ongoing detailed environmental monitoring at specific
the blackout and of several widespread power failures right-of-way sites. Two years ago, we joined a consor-
in previous years. tium of New York State utilities that is co-funding a
These findings are being taken seriously in the elec- $1.4 million dollar right-of-way field research program
tric utility industry and by public and regulatory offi- by the State University of New York College of Envi-
cials at both the state and federal levels. It's clear that ronmental Sciences and Forestry.
rights-of-way management issues, particularly vege- Transmission assets. Here, I will focus on the Power
tation management issues, are going to be front and Authority's convertible static compensator, or CSC,
center for some time to come. completed this year. This was a function of our work
Shortly after the Task Force report was released on the flexible AC transmission system (FACTS), which
last April, the trade publication "Engineering News is located in the Utica-Rome area. It is the world's
Plenary session opening remarks and presentations 7
largest, most advanced device for controlling voltage energy and environmental concerns--a very narrow
and power flows on existing transmission systems. The path, indeed. We realize that we have a great deal to
key words here are existing transmission systems. learn from many people and that everyone can profit
The CSC, which is featured at our booth in the from the experiences and expertise of others. This sym-
exhibit area, has increased the capacity of the New
posium offers a terrific opportunity to do just that,
York State system by nearly 200 megawatts. If it were
particularly at a time of increased public consciousness
possible to put enough of these devices in place, the
and appreciation of successful rights-of-way manage-
need for new or upgraded transmission lines could be
ment.
postponed. The beauty of this system is that we get
It's terrific to see all of you here today. I appreciate
additional flow between Albany and Utica over exist-
the opportunity and invitation to be here, and I hope
ing lines. The system senses those lines that are less
you have a great time here in Saratoga Springs. Thank
loaded, sends power across those lines, and thereby re-
you.
duces the strain on overloaded lines. As a result, the
need to add a power line is eliminated.
This could be a pretty good formula in its own
KEVIN MCLOUGHLIN DISCUSSES A GIS VIDEO
right for appropriate vegetation and efficient vegeta-
tion management, which brings us to the fourth "T".
Kevin McLoughlin
Trees. Trees, and specifically their selective removal,
will always be central to our overall strategy. Our in- Thank you very much, Gene. Gene was actually wear-
tegrated vegetation management program is intended ing two hats up here. He is the current chairman of
not only to eliminate tall-growing trees that threaten EPRI's Board of Directors, so Gene represented both
reliable power transmission, but at the same time, it the New York Power Authority and EPRI today. Again,
is also designed to promote the growth of stable, com- thank you, Gene.
patible vegetation. These plant communities, known as Next on our agenda is a GIS video.
low-growth communities, inhibit the return of unde-
Kevin McLoughlin discusses the video which pro-
sirable trees while providing numerous environmental
vides those not familiar with New York a quick in-
benefits in their own right.
troduction to the terrain and land use from a GIS
We rely on the judicious application of low-volume
perspective for each of the stops on the technical field-
herbicides and various other cultural, physical, and bi-
trip tours planned for Tuesday.
ological methods, which we think is a cost-effective
approach that will reduce the need for further main-
Eugene Zeltmann
tenance. In 2002 we became a member of US Environ-
Great job, Kevin. This unique application of GIS dem-
mental Protection Agency's Pesticide Environmental
onstrates yet again just how flexible these systems
Stewardship Program, enabling us to share our ideas
really are.
on integrated vegetation management with others in-
terested in rights-of-way issues.
Those are really the four "Ts": Tools, Training, Trans-
mission assets, and Trees, courtesy of "Engineering
News Record."
B I O G R A P H I C A L S K E T C H E S
I would suggest there's a fifth "T", and that is Talk.
Perhaps communication is a more accurate and dig-
Lawrence P. Abrahamson
nified term. I 'm referring here to the communication
Lawrence Abrahamson, Director, Salix Consortium,
with landowners on the transmission rights-of-way.
and a senior research associate at SUNY-College of En-
Communication is particularly important to us be-
vironmental Science and Forestry (SUNY-ESF), holds
cause we rely on easements for virtually all of our
a B.S. in Forest Management from Michigan Techno-
right-of-way property.
logical University, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Forest
Each year, before beginning the vegetation treat-
Entomology from University of Wisconsin-Madison.
ment program, the Power Authority advises affected
Prior to joining the Faculty at SUNY-ESF in 1977, he
landowners of upcoming work. Typically about 90
worked for nine years as a research scientist/pesticide
percent have no comment, but those who do express
specialist for the USDA Forest Service in Stoneville,
concerns are contacted by mail, telephone, e-mail, or
MS, Atlanta, GA, and Ogden, UT. He worked for 2
in-person visits. We also solicit landowners' thoughts
on the most appropriate vegetation management mea- years with the Applied Forestry Research Institute,
sures and activities they can utilize to help us achieve SUNY-ESF, Syracuse, NY, on applied research in the
our goals. fields of forest entomology and pathology as well as
These communication efforts are a key to the Power with herbicides in silvicultural use. For four years he
Authority's integrated vegetation management pro- was the Director of the Northeast Petroleum-Forest
gram. Through this program we are meeting our ob- Resources Cooperative (NEP-FRC). Presently, he has
jectives while respecting the delicate balance between a joint appointment between the Faculty of Forestry
8 Plenary session opening remarks and presentations
and the Faculty of Environmental and Forest Biology Kevin T. McLoughlin
at SUNY-ESF and is Director of the Salix Consor- Kevin McLoughlin retired from the New York Power
tium, Syracuse, NY. Dr. Abrahamson conducts applied Authority in 2004. Prior to his retirement, he was
research in the fields of forest entomology and pathol- the system forester and a consultant to EPRI for the
ogy, and high-yield wood energy crops as they relate to ROW Environmental Management Target. Formerly,
problems in the State of New York. He has completed Mr. McLoughlin was Administrator for Land Use & In-
research projects with Scleroderris canker (fungus dis- dustrial Waste Programs for the New York Power Pool
ease) on conifers in New York; red pine scale studies and concurrently, Research Program Manager for the
in New York and Korea; evaluations of integrated pest Empire State Electric Energy Research Corporation.
management systems for gypsy moths and other for- Mr. McLoughlin earned a B.S. in Natural Resource
est insects; herbicide use on forest tree nurseries in the Management in 1971 and an M.S. in Environmental
western plains and northeast; and silvicultural man- Management in 1975 from the State University of New
agement through use of herbicides and fire. Presently, York College of Environmental Science and Forestry,
he is engaged in research projects involving pest man- Syracuse, New York.
agement (vegetation, insects, and diseases) in intensive
culture of fast-growing hardwoods (hybrid poplar and Scott Leuthauser
willow); vegetation management and plant dynamics Scott Leuthauser is Vice President of Distribution In-
on electric utility rights-of-way in New York; and the vestment Management for the National Grid Com-
development of high-yield wood energy crops (wil- pany where he is responsible for the planning and
low dedicated feedstock supply system). As director asset management of National Grid's electric distri-
of the Salix Consortium, he is responsible for leading bution and natural gas delivery facilities, including
the research team in commercializing willow energy engineering planning and capital resource allocation
crops. prioritization. He has held previous positions as Di-
rector of Energy Transactions, including rates, power
John W. Goodrich-Mahoney contacts, and supply planning. Mr. Leuthauser is a li-
John Goodrich-Mahoney is a Senior Project Manager censed engineer in New York State with a master's
in the Water and Ecosystems program area of EPRI's certificate in Power Systems Management, an M.B.A.,
Environment Sector. He manages two research pro- and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering.
grams: one addressing the risk to human health and
the environment from the release of metals from coal- Eugene Zeltmann
fired power plants to the aquatic environment, and the Gene Zeltmann is President and Chief Executive Of-
other addressing ecological and technological issues ricer of the New York Power Authority. He was orig-
associated with the development and management of inally appointed President and Chief Operating Of-
transmission and distribution systems. His research ricer of NYPA in September of 1997 and then ap-
activities focus on water quality criteria development pointed to serve as Chief Executive Officer in April of
and assessment; model development to assess metal 2002. Prior to joining NYPAmthe nation's largest state-
toxicity to fish to reduce compliance costs; transport owned electric utilitymhe was appointed by Governor
and fate of mercury in the aquatic environment and the George E. Pataki to serve as a Commissioner of the
further development of the Dynamic Mercury Cycling New York State Public Service Commission (PSC) in
Model; development of integrated vegetation man- December, 1995. Commissioner Zeltmann was named
agement to reduce vegetation management costs and Deputy Chairman of the PSC in May of 1996.
outages; development of remote sensing technology At the Power Authority, Mr. Zeltmann has been a
for more real-time assessment of transmission rights- strong advocate for expanded research, development,
of-way conditions; and development of information and implementation of energy efficiency measures. He
to reduce interruptions and outages on distribution is currently chairman of the Board of Directors of EPRI.
systems. He also developed and manages an inno- Before his tenure in state service, Mr. Zeltmann had
vative research program on the use of constructed more than 20 years of international trade and gov-
wetlands and other passive technologies for the treat- ernment relations experience as an executive with the
ment of wastewater. Before joining EPRI in 1990, Mr. General Electric Company.
Goodrich-Mahoney worked at the U.S. Environmental From 1970 to 1971, Mr. Zeltmann served under the
Protection Agency in Washington, DC, the University PSC Chairman Joseph Swidler, with emphasis on envi-
of Wisconsin-Madison Water Resources Center, and ronmental and energy regulation. Mr. Zeltmann grad-
the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. uated with honors from Beloit College, earning a B.A.
Mr. Goodrich-Mahoney received a BS in geology degree in chemistry and political science. He later re-
from St. Lawrence University and a MS in geochem- ceived a master's degree and doctorate from Johns
istry from Brown University. Hopkins University in physical chemistry.
Peter A.A. Berle, Keynote Speaker
INTRODUCTION BY MR. ZELTMANN I'm honored to be able to talk about rights-of-way.
My first experience in this area related to a time when
Eugene Zeltmann I was a first-year associate at a big Manhattan law
This morning I have the special privilege of introduc- firm. We represented a pipeline company undertaking
ing our keynote speaker, Mr. Peter Berle. I met Peter major initiatives such as mergers, acquisitions and fi-
Berle back in 1971 when he was a New York State As- nancing. The firm did not generally become involved
semblyman and an Alfred Smith Fellow at the Public in the undertaking of running a pipeline, but it turns
Service Commission. I'm happy to say that we've been out that on this occasion, we became engaged in a
friends ever since. During that period, Peter has been major construction effort to build a gas line from some-
involved in almost every major environmental issue where in the southwest to the northeast. Our firm was
that has appeared on the national agenda and on the called upon. We were the nearest lawyers to the fore-
agenda of New York State. In addition to serving as a man of the pipeline construction crew when he found
state legislator, he has been an environmental lawyer himself in jail in New Jersey.
in private practice, Commissioner of the New York We went and bailed him out from this small town
State Department of Environmental Conservation, and jail. He was fortunate to be in jail because, had he been
President and Chief Executive Officer of the National walking around, he probably would have been the
Audubon Society. Moreover, he's served on numerous target of counterinsurgency! The townspeople were
federal and state advisory boards. pretty upset. This foreman and his crew of diggers and
These days Peter seems to be busier than ever. He welders marched through the front yard of one of the
is co-vice chair of the Board of Directors of the New prominent citizens in that town and wrought incredi-
York Independent System Operators (ISO), where he ble destruction as they went. They had no permit, no
also serves as chair of the Governance Committee. The right-of-way, none of the legal stuff one would think
ISO manages the state's transmission system and holds would go with building a pipeline.
the power market. This gentleman was the best in the business. The
He and his wife run a sizable farm operation in reason he was so good was that, once he got rolling
western Massachusetts and he's the president of Sky (in this case, starting in Oklahoma), he could move
Farm Productions, which produces environmental a project faster than anybody. Utilities loved him be-
programming for public television. In addition to cause his approach cut costs.
teaching and lecturing, he does a weekly environmen- On the other hand, he was arrested for trespassing.
tal program on Albany public radio. Being somewhat skeptical about our chances in a local
Peter is a graduate of Harvard College and Har- jurisdiction, and in preparing him for trial, we asked,
vard Law School and holds distinguished honorary "by the way, have you ever been arrested before?" He
degrees from several other institutions. His career has replied, "Oh, sure, 28 times for trespass." We decided
been dedicated to protecting and enhancing the envi- not to put him on the stand. We pled guilty and paid
ronment for fellow citizens and for future generations. the fine.
We're honored to have you with us this morning, That story represented a time 40 years ago when
Peter. Please welcome Peter Berle. people moved perhaps a lot more freely than they do
today, a time when some of the mechanisms for work-
ing these things out were not as refined as they are
THE FOLLOWING IS AN EDITED TRANSCRIPT OF THE today.
KEYNOTE SPEECH We are here today because of our common interest
and concern in keeping the lights on. Of course, the
Peter A.A. Berle situation was accentuated by the trees in Ohio, an oc-
Good morning, and on behalf of the New York ISO, let currence that sparked a whole round of new thinking
me welcome you all to the State of New York. and new studies. Indeed, national attention has now
been drawn to the whole question of rights-of-way
management, an issue much more substantial than tree
Environmental Concerns in Rights-of-Way Management: trimming.
Eighth International Symposium We must realize is that there's no quick fix; there's
J.W. Goodrich-Mahoney, L.P. Abrahamson, J.L. Ballard
no single solution. This process is continuous, and it
and S.M. Tikalsky (editors)
�9 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. will go on as long as there's a need for the transmission
