TRANSMISSION VEGETATION MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR The Highlands Region Prepared by: PSE&G, Delivery Projects and Construction 744 Broad Street, 13th Floor Newark, New Jersey 07102-4194 (973) 430-7000 September 2011 2 CONTENTS Introduction ....................................................................................................................................5 Wire-Border Zone Method……………………………………………………………………….6 Regulatory and Management Context............................................................................................7 Goals and Objectives…………………………………………………………………………..…8 Integrated Vegetation Management ...............................................................................................9 Reporting and Notice Requirements ............................................................................................10 Current PSE&G Vegetation Management Practices....................................................................11 Existing ROW Conditions............................................................................................................12 Management Strategies ................................................................................................................21 As-Needed Maintenance Approach..............................................................................................21 Slow Growing Spans....................................................................................................................22 Rotational Management Approach...............................................................................................25 Case Study: The Golden-winged Warbler................................................................................26 Special Areas................................................................................................................................26 Treatment Methods ......................................................................................................................28 Cutting and Clearing Treatments .................................................................................................28 Manual Control.........................................................................................................................28 Mechanical Control ..................................................................................................................29 Biological Controls...................................................................................................................34 Cultural Controls ......................................................................................................................35 Residuals (woody debris) Management .......................................................................................36 Prescriptive Practices ...................................................................................................................37 Timing ..........................................................................................................................................37 Environmental Oversight .............................................................................................................38 Emergency Situations...................................................................................................................38 Maintenance Flexibility................................................................................................................38 Tree cutting when not prescribed .................................................................................................38 Height Restrictions.......................................................................................................................38 Access Road Maintenance ...........................................................................................................39 Roadways, Pathways and Boardwalks .........................................................................................39 Erosion control .............................................................................................................................40 Precautionary Measures ...............................................................................................................42 Safety in the vicinity of electrical wires...................................................................................42 Fire hazards ..............................................................................................................................42 Poisonous plants .......................................................................................................................42 Poisonous Snakes .....................................................................................................................43 Toxicological information chemical brush and weed control ..................................................43 Natural Resource Specific Practices.............................................................................................44 Vegetation Management in Uplands Areas..................................................................................44 Wetlands.......................................................................................................................................45 Riparian Zones .............................................................................................................................47 Critical Habitat Areas...................................................................................................................48 Timing Restrictions ..................................................................................................................48 Opportunities for Habitat Protection and Enhancement...............................................................49 3 APPENDIX 1: ERNST SEED COMPANY SEED MIXTURES FOR ROW MAINTENANCE APPENDIX 1A: Pollinator Friendly Spans Planting list APPENDIX 2: Subchapter 9: Vegetation Management N.J.A.C. 14:5-9.6 (2008) APPENDIX 3: Shrub Species to Preserve within ROW APPENDIX 4: Summary of Vegetation Management Prescriptions APPENDIX 5: New Jersey Invasive Species Control Reference Material Figure 1 Ilustration of the Wire-Border Zone by Yahner, et at 2000 ..............................................................6 Figure 1A: Map showing the PSE&G ROW within the Highlands Region Figure 2: A mosaic of low growing grassland and shrubs……………………………………………………8 Figure 2A: Suburban Development within the ROW………………………………………………………12 Figure 3 Typical Agricultural (A) lands beneath existing Susquehanna-Roseland transmission line........... 13 Figure 4: Forest dominated span (F) beneath existing Susquehanna-Roseland transmission line................. 14 Figure 5 Shrub and tree dominated span (S-T) beneath existing Susquehanna-Roseland transmission line. 15 Figure 6 Herbaceous vegetation with shrubs (H-S) beneath existing S-Roseland transmission line ............ 16 Figure 7 Tree sprout and herbaceous vegetation dominated with few to no shrubs (T-H)............................ 17 Figure 8 Scrub-shrub or herbaceous wetland dominated span with tree sprouts or topped trees (S-H) ........ 18 Figure 9 Herbaceous wetland dominated (PEM) beneath existing S-Roseland transmission line ................ 19 Figure 10 Rock outcrop or bare soil (R) beneath existing Susquehanna-Roseland transmission line........... 20 Figure 11Vegetation Profile Board................................................................................................................ 22 Figure 12 Rotational cutting of ROW for Habitat management…………………………………………….25 Figure 12A: Examples of Rotational Cutting in early Fall and Spring Figure 13: Fecon grinder machine ……………………………………………………… ………………..27 Figure 14: Tractor mounted fecon mower ..................................................................................................... 27 Figure 15 HyroAx Mower ……………………………………………………………………………… ….27 Figure 16 Brush Hog mower ……………………………………………………………………………… 33 4 Introduction PSE&G has prepared this Transmission Vegetation Management Plan (VMP) specifically for the Highlands Region, which supplements existing company protocols and procedures for vegetation management. The Highlands diverse natural communities, including its extensive forests, wetlands, rivers, and streams, are of statewide importance and provide the water supply for over half of New Jersey’s families and therefore require special consideration and management techniques. However, it must also be recognized that according to the North American Electrical Reliability Corporation (NERC), “Conductor contact with trees has been an initiating trigger and a contributing factor in several major system disturbances since 1965, including the blackout of August 14, 2003. Tree contact caused the loss of multiple transmission circuits in several of the outages, causing multiple contingencies and further weakening of the system.” This Transmission ROW Vegetation Management Plan (VMP) provides standards and other regulatory requirements for the maintenance of the companies ROW within the Highlands Region. Throughout the United States, utility companies, like PSE&G, are required by existing state and Federal regulations to manage vegetation growing within ROW easements to ensure public safety, system reliability and emergency maintenance access and for routine inspection of the structures, switches, conductors,