Wires over Wildlife: Power Lines as Biodiversity Connectors

Think of the acres, the running miles under power lines that connect us all to the electricity we want and need. Now see, under these lines, vibrant habitat: running corridors of native plants growing food and reproductive cover for beneficial insects, birds, and more. This kind of land-use transformation is real.              Wires Over Wildlife, a cost-share and expert-advisory program, works with utilities and owners of power line rights-of-ways from our Missouri Department of Conservation. Jason Jensen, Private Lands Conservation Unit Chief, leads a team of MDC experts in negotiating WOW agreements and supporting WOW partners in making these management changes work.  MDC has negotiated the first WOW agreement with a rural electric cooperative, Grundy Electric Coop. Jensen talks with Earthworms host Jean Ponzi about how this kind of agreement works, why this first coop agreement is significant, and how ecological management can save money, decrease chemical use and mowing, and restore the biodiversity bloom to power line rights-of-way across our state. Jensen is also on the statewide Feral Hog task force. Hear how MDC is working to tackle this major invasive species issue.  THANKS to Earthworms engineers: Andy Heaslet, Jon Valley and Andy Coco. Virtual podcasting takes a team! Related Earthworms Conversations:Biodiversity for Corporate Lands? (May 2020) Richard Louv: Our Wild Calling (Oct 2019)