2006

Since 2002, the LPO PACA has been working hard on the issue of "avifauna and power lines", producing a national summary of bird mortality data due to overhead power lines, an international summary of bibliographical references and, since 2004, representing the LPO network on the national consultation committee on the same subject. This is why, at the request of the DIREN PACA, the association has produced a regional document on the avifauna issues linked to the construction and management of overhead power lines in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region.

This document provides an overview of the impact of overhead power lines on the conservation status of birds and identifies the risk factors. Thanks to a regional and national summary of national and regional initiatives aimed at reducing the risks of electrocution and collision, the document then proposes a complete methodology for assessing these risks in a given sector. This methodology is based on the regulatory requirements for impact studies, on standard ornithological study protocols and on the approaches recommended for other development projects, such as wind farms.

By covering all aspects of the problem of "birds and power lines" at regional level, this document aims to encourage public and private players to master the same knowledge and to consider the issues constructively but systemically, with a view to preserving the natural heritage. In order to complete the quantitative aspect, a regional database of cases of electrocution and collision, managed by the LPO PACA, is associated with this work.