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Avoiding and minimizing wetland and wildlife impacts in the Van Loon Bottoms during powerline construction
- 1. Avoiding and Minimizing Wetland and Wildlife Impacts in the Van Loon Bottoms During Powerline Construction Sara Viernum, Wildlife Biologist
- 2. Project Description • Dairyland Power Cooperative (DPC) • Not-for-profit Electric Generation and Transmission Cooperative • Rural Electrification in four states – WI, MN, IA, IL • Headquarter La Crosse, WI • Regional Touchstone Energy Cooperative Partner
- 3. Project Description • Rebuilt 161 kilovolt (kV) Electric Transmission Line • Transmission line was built in 1950; 65 years old • Need of rebuild • Old structures • Power and fiber optic outages due to failing structures Original Structure
- 4. Project Description • Rebuilt 161 kV Electric Transmission Line • Fall 2015 • 13 miles total • 3 miles within Van Loon Bottoms – Black River floodplain in La Crosse County – 0.9 miles USFWS Upper Mississippi National Wildlife and Fish Refuge – 0.3 miles WDNR Van Loon Wildlife Area – 1.8 miles private lands
- 5. Van Loon Bottoms DPC ROW USFWS WDNR Stantec
- 6. Project Description • Rebuilt 161 kV Electric Transmission Line • Uplands: 69 H-frame steel structures 500-700 feet apart • Wetlands: 28 Y-frame steel structures 600-800 feet apart • 3-mile Black River Floodplain – 22 Y-frames installed with heavy-lift helicopter – Only 65 feet of existing 80-foot right-of way used New Y-frames
- 7. Impact Concerns • Wetland Impacts • Soil disturbance and compaction • Species Impacts • Eastern Massasauga (Sistrurus catenatus) • State endangered; Federally proposed • Wood Turtle (Glyptemys insculpta) • State threathened • Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus ) • State endangered • Bell’s Vireo (Vireo belli) • State threatened • Cerulean Warbler (Setophaga cerulea) • State threatened ©WDNR
- 8. Mitigation and Conservation • DPC, AECOM, Stantec, USFWS, and WDNR • Project-specific Mitigation and Conservation Plan • Incidental Take Permit • Eastern massasauga • Wood Turtle • Avoidance • Loggerhead Shrike • Bell’s Vireo • Cerulean Warbler
- 9. Mitigation and Conservation • Based on: • Desktop reviews of recent aerial photography • Discussions with USFWS and WDNR • Habitat observations from previous field visits • Alternative analyses – • Relocating to CapX Project • Three alternative routes – Hwy 35 Route – Seven Bridges Route – Galesville Route » Impacted more residences » Increased line length » Substantially more costly » Greater environmental impacts
- 10. Wetland Mitigation • Wetland Impact Minimizations • Amphibious UTVs • Foot Travel • Helicopters • Temporary Matting • Around new structures only • No transmission structures placed in waterbodies • Impact monitoring by onsite Stantec Environmental Inspector, WDNR Biologists, and USFWS Biologists
- 11. Wetland Mitigation • Foot Travel • Minimize soil disturbance and compaction • Amphibious UTVs • Argo, Hydratrek, and Marsh Master • Transport personnel and small equipment • Low ground pressure rubber tracks or tires • Minimize soil disturbance and compaction – Limited traffic in ROW to single access paths up to 12ft wide
- 13. Wetland Impact Avoidance • Helicopters • Smaller Helicopters • Personnel • Small equipment Two Linemen
- 14. Wetland Impact Avoidance • Helicopters • Heavy-lift Sikorsky S-64 Air Crane • Large equipment ― New and Old Utility Structures ― Mats ― Hammer and Power Unit ©Erik Daily, La Crosse Tribune Hammer
- 15. Wetland Mitigation • Impacts • Permanent • Approx. 0.01 acres for new structures • Temporary • Approx. up to 0.3 acres for new structure matting • Approx. up to 5 acres for access routes
- 16. Wetland Mitigation • DPC Long-term Maintenance • Conduct a ground inspection • Restore all areas of temporary disturbance to pre-existing or improved habitat conditions • Every 5 years • Prepare and implement Vegetation Management Work Plans with USFWS and WDNR
- 17. Species Conservation • Avoidance • Loggerhead Shrike • Bell’s Vireo • Cerulean Warbler • Construction activities conducted after August 15 avoided breeding season
- 18. Species Conservation • Onsite Monitoring • Eastern Massasauga • Wood Turtle • Up to two onsite Stantec Biologists ― Trained to handle and relocate species to nearby habitat ― Hold E/T permits for target species ― Equipped with snake tongs ― VES ahead of all construction activities ― Remain near crews at all times ― Monitored from construction start September 1 until the start of WDNR designated species inactive season October 31 *note eastern gartersnake hence why I’m free handling it
- 19. Species Conservation • Impacts • No massasaugas or wood turtles observed during monitoring • DPC Long-term Maintenance • Conduct an updated endangered resources review within one year
- 20. Species Conservation • Additional Wildlife Sightings • Northern Leopard Frogs • Green Frogs • Blue-spotted Salamanders • Eastern Gartersnakes • Midland Brownsnakes • Northern Watersnakes • Blanding's Turtle • Snapping Turtle • Midland Painted Turtles • Bald Eagles • Mink • Wolf prints • White-tailed Deer
- 21. Questions?