With approximately 43 million miles of Distribution and Transmission power lines in the world, a news agency reports that a study was published at a Convention on Migratory Species in Bergen, Norway supporting the following findings.
Tens of millions of birds are being killed across the world when they fly into power lines (both Transmission and Distribution), according to a new study.
It has been reported that birds hitting overhead power lines, then falling to the ground in flames, have been the cause of wildfires in dry areas of the United States and Eastern Europe.
The study found that tens of millions of birds are killed in collisions and hundreds of thousands are electrocuted in Africa and Eurasia.
A Dutch Ornithologist who took part in the study, said that “collision and electrocution are among the most important human-related causes of bird mortality,” along with hunting.
“Today, Eastern Europe is a hot spot for problems, for great bustards and birds of prey for example,”.
“But the worst situation may well be soon to be found in India and Africa where vast amounts of power lines are being built and where there are very large populations of birds,”.
“it completely makes sense” to try to solve the problem because power outages resulting from collisions have a “high cost for society.”
South Africa’s national bird, the blue crane, has been reported that approximately 12 percent die annually after flying into power lines in South Africa.
With the above in mind, aerial lines (including Transmission and Distribution) continue to threaten endangered bird species by both collision and electrocution. Bird Diverters are an effective method of mitigating this environmental problem.
