News & events

2016-09-13

LitPol Link Route to Be Monitored by Ornithological Society and Lithuanian Fund for Nature

Specialists from the Lithuanian Ornithological Society and the Lithuanian Fund for Nature are starting work on the route of LitPol Link, the Lithuanian-Polish power link. Winners of a public procurement procedure, these two organisations will monitor the impact of the power link on the environment in the course of three years.
 
"We are pleased to entrust the monitoring of the areas near the electricity transmission line to experienced nature protection specialists. The potential impact of the power link upon the environment was thoroughly investigated prior to the start of construction, followed by the supervision over the entire area during the construction. Now, as the power link is already in operation, it is important to observe the impact on the protected species of flora and fauna", says Vidmantas Grušas, Director of the Transmission Grid Department of Litgrid, the power link operator.
 
Migrating birds will be in the focus of attention of nature protection specialists in September. Before flying to wintering places, the birds flock in the water bodies near the electricity transmission line such as the Žuvintas biosphere reserve, the Rimietis Lake and the Simnas Lake. In foggy weather, geese, cranes and other large birds for which manoeuvring is more difficult may not notice the wires and hit them. Specialists from the Ornithological Society will investigate accumulations of such birds near the electricity transmission lines and will make recommendations for increasing the visibility of the wires. Special visibility-increasing markers and reflectors have already been installed in a section of LitPol Link‘s route during construction.
 
The first monitoring report will be submitted to Litgrid in December. The LitPol Link environmental monitoring programme will be continued in spring. Observations will be organised at places where valuable habitats or rare plant species have been found. The focus will be on reptiles and amphibians: 17 species part of which are rare have been found in the LitPol Link‘s safety zone.  The specialists will assess the abundance of the species and the condition of the habitats.
 
The Lithuanian Ornithological Society and the Lithuanian Fund for Nature will complete the LitPol Link environmental monitoring programme in the autumn of 2019. The text of the programme is available in the LitPol Link section of Litgrid’s website.