Policy measures to address bird interactions with power lines – a comparative case study of four countries

Abstract

Bird mortality caused by electric power lines has been an issue in several countries for more than three decades now. Despite serious efforts by conservationists, government agencies and utility companies assisted by increasing biological and technological knowledge, only a minority of countries has made significant progress in mitigation. In the present article I argue that the policy aspects, which have not been so widely researched so far, have considerable effects on the efficiency of mitigation measures. The problem management methods of four countries—Hungary, Slovakia, South Africa and the USA—are discussed in detail to reveal success criteria. The role of contextual factors, stances and relations of different actors, plus actions and tools applied in the solution process, are demonstrated together with the resulting outcomes. To help strategic planning, I review favourable solution methods (volunteer agreements, legislative steps, mixed solutions, etc.) used in different country-specific contexts, and point out probable consequences of the strategy chosen.