Life SafeLines4Birds project
SafeLines4Birds is a 6-year project co-financed by European Union’s LIFE Programme which aims to reduce non-natural mortality of 13 birds species along power lines in France, Belgium and Portugal.
Why is this project important?
Major threats to some bird species include collisions with power lines, electrocution, and disturbances during their breeding season. These threats cause the deaths of millions of individuals in Europe yearly and in some cases seriously threaten the viability of species populations.
Some European species are more vulnerable given their size, morphology, behaviour, and distribution. Thus, the project targets 13 species most impacted by power lines in France, Belgium and Portugal: Little Bustard, Bearded Vulture, Bonelli’s Eagle, Cinereous Vulture, Egyptian Vulture, Lesser Kestrel, Common Crane, Osprey, White Stork, Black Stork, Eurasian Woodcock, Eurasian Curlew, Northern Lapwing.
SafeLines4Birds project relies on four main goals:
- Reducing bird collision
- Reducing bird electrocution
- Reducing bird disturbance
- Improving and sharing knowledge across Europe
To tackle collision, the project aims to install 3,880 anti-collision diverters on the most dangerous sites. However, those devices are not suitable in all situations and their success rate varies according to species or geographical factors. Therefore, new anti-collision devices will be tested, such as the American ultra-violet Avian Collision System Avoidance system (ACAS), which uses shining UV light on power lines to make them more visible to birds at night. Moreover, innovative installation methods of collision avoidance devices will be tested within the project, such as the use of drones. In some cases, lines will be placed underground to completely eliminate the risk of collision and electrocution in particularly high-risk areas.
There is a strong scientific consensus that the risk of bird electrocution depends on the technical construction and detailed design of electric facilities. In order to reduce this risk, dangerous power poles will be retrofitted and insulated, and deterrence devices installed at the higher risk sites. Platforms and perches will also be set up to protect birds that roost or nest.
Finally, to avoid disturbance, grid maintenance and surveillance methodologies will be adapted – where possible in line with the breeding periods of the target species – to improve their breeding success. As much as possible, flying over breeding sites will be avoided and use of helicopters will be limited.
All results collected will be shared in an open and standardised way, benefiting the understanding about bird-grid interactions and the effectiveness of the tested mitigation measures. A SafeLines4Birds open digital platform will be created to centralise all technical information gathered during the project. This will facilitate the dissemination of knowledge regarding technical innovations and equipment across Europe and, through this, support the replication of actions in other countries.
The success of these actions relies on the collaboration of 15 consortium partners, which include Transmission System Operators (TSO), Distribution System Operators (DSO), NGOs and scientific experts from France, Belgium, Portugal, Germany, and the United States.
Who are the partners?
