HIGH-TENSION POWER LINES AND BIRD CONSERVATION: POSSIBILITIES TO MITIGATE THE COLLISION RISK

CONVENORS
Mr. Hein Prinsen
Bureau Waardenburg bv,
P.O. Box 365,
NL-4100 AJ Culemborg, The Netherlands
Tel: +31 345 512710, Fax: +31 345 519849, E-mail: h.prinsen@buwa.nl

DESCRIPTION
High tension power lines are one of the major causes of unnatural deaths for birds in western-Europe with, for example, a calculated one million and many millions of collision victims each year in the Netherlands and Germany respectively. In several European countries a relative high proportion of collision victims concern endangered species of Appendix I of the Birds Directive, e.g. Spoonbill and Purple Heron in the Netherlands and bustards and eagles in Spain and Portugal . Significant numbers of these critically endangered species are killed in collisions with power lines every year, despite the fact that various line marking devices, which are intended to make the lines more conspicuous, have been in use for several decades. The main aim of this symposium is to present an overview of the nature, scale and impact of the collision problem and focus on the evidence for and against various mitigation measures. It aims to present state of the art mitigation measures and their effectiveness as well as an overview of current knowledge on collision risks. 

KEYNOTE 1: Kreuziger, J. & F. Bernshausen
Birds and high tension power lines: problems and solutions from a Central European perspective.

KEYNOTE 2: Jenkins, A.R., Smallie, J.J. and Diamond, M.   
Successes, failures and a way forward in the development of an effective means to mitigate avian collisions with power lines: a global review with African perspectives.

Prinsen, H.A.M. & R.R. Smits
Assessing collision risk for Bewick’s Swan (Cygnus columbianus) and Eurasian Wigeon (Anas penelope) with a 150 kV power line in the Netherlands

Martin, G R      
Bird collisions: a visual or a perceptual problem?

Teixeira do Rosário, Inês, Ricardo Tomé, Paul Cardoso & Luís Palma
Response of Bonelli’s eagle Hieraaetus fasciatus to electric power line presence