The ongoing evolution of Integrated Vegetation Management strategies used by Oklahoma Gas & Electric has helped the investor-owned utility gradually improve landowner relations as well as budget and habitat management.
When it comes to Integrated Vegetation Management (IVM), the name of the game is continuous improvement. From brush control and biodiversity to cost efficiency and public perception, numerous factors can impact the success of utility vegetation management programs. Fortunately, utility companies can apply IVM strategies to continuously improve each of these components without sacrificing results or jeopardizing electrical service reliability.
Oklahoma Gas & Electric (OG&E) has used IVM practices since 2019 to enhance mechanical mowing results and mitigate prevalent threats to transmission and distribution infrastructure throughout the utility’s 30,000 square-mile service territory. Strategies associated with this progressive approach have included:
Over the past four years, IVM strategies used by OG&E have safeguarded the integrity of transmission and distribution infrastructure as well as the utility’s pocketbook. While foliar season work has played a significant role in the program’s success, dormant-season applications also have delivered a phenomenal return on investment for OG&E. Following each foliar season, applicators work from late fall to early spring using low-volume basal bark, cut-stump and cut-stubble treatments to enhance the future control of brush-sized tree species. Huff has been thrilled with the results to date.
“We’re able to cover thousands of miles during the dormant season,” Huff said. “We’re talking tens of thousands of stems that are now controlled and no longer a problem for us. We’ve had zero complaints with our dormant-season work, and we’re able to treat at a very low cost per mile. We just can’t get that with the tree crews.”
Low-volume spray trim applications in the wire zone allow OG&E to control only portions of trees that pose a threat to impact overhead powerlines.
Using a combination of dormant- and foliar-season application methods to improve brush control helps OG&E not only eliminate immediate threats to utility infrastructure, but also support the development of beneficial grasses and forbs.
“IVM is a system of land management processes for establishing compatible plant communities,” said Darrell Russell, Vegetation Management Specialist, Corteva Agriscience. “As control methods continue to evolve from mechanical dominance to chemical broadcast and selective applications, the latest step is selective herbicide usage combined with application selectivity. It is commonly referred to as a ‘grass-friendly’ application.”
Grass-friendly brush mixes have helped OG&E improve the efficiency and efficacy of the utility’s vegetation management program. By preventing woody plant seed germination, the utility has provided habitat for small mammals that consume the seeds of incompatible brush species. These results also are supported by findings generated through decades of environmental ROW research on State Game Lands 33 (SGL 33) in central Pennsylvania, which have indicated that using selective brush mixes as part of an IVM-based approach can successfully lower viable woody plant seed germination by as much as 88%.
As a long-time funding partner of SGL 33 research, Corteva Agriscience helps utility companies and their vegetation management partners apply IVM strategies to support the development of sustainable landscapes throughout utility rights-of-way. Grass-friendly applications and other IVM-based practices can help native plant communities thrive, which is why vegetation management specialists with Corteva have helped OG&E identify chemistries and selective tank mixes that support environmental sustainability. Most recently, the following recommendations have helped contract applicators improve results in the field:
“The foundational mix for grass-friendly selective brush mixes was previously a mixture of Vastlan and Milestone herbicides from Corteva,” Russell said. “However, the registration of TerraVue has added enhanced control of certain woody species, which has resulted in TerraVue and Vastlan being the preeminent mix for selective brush management.”
Knowing which chemistries to use is half the challenge for utilities like OG&E. In fact, applicator errors caused off-target control issues for the investor-owned utility back in the early 1990s, resulting in avoidable damage to desirable grasses and other native plants. These issues created an opportunity for the utility to improve applicator proficiency, which is part of the reason why OG&E now pays for contractors to go through training and learn more about the chemistries and application strategies they’re asked to use. These educational opportunities have improved not only the selective control of incompatible trees, such as hackberries, elms, mulberries and oak species, but also landowner relations.
“We’re able to get ahead of public concerns by simply educating our partners on the products and strategies we want them to use,” Huff said. “Our applicators also are well-educated on tank mixes, which allows them to talk through landowner concerns. People just want more information. Once we provide it to them, they’re usually more comfortable with what we’re doing.”
These conversations are further supported by the visual results of a grass-friendly approach. While landowners may not always agree with controlling undesirable trees on their property, Huff notes that minimizing off-target control issues has enhanced public understanding of the benefits selective herbicide applications provide.
“When they understand our thought process and see that the grass is still there the following year, it makes a huge difference,” Huff said. “It’s hard to stand there when everything’s browned-out and we can’t say that we didn’t hurt the grass. Thanks to the herbicide treatments we’re using now, we’ve gotten a lot better at handling those types of complaints.”
Shawn Huff (middle) has led the vegetation management program for OG&E since 2019.
IVM strategies also support long-standing biodiversity initiatives developed by OG&E, which aim to enhance biodiverse habitat development for native wildlife species. For example, representatives with the state of Oklahoma recently found the frosted elfin butterfly (Callophrys irus) among wild indigo on one of the utility’s solar farms. Shortly thereafter, OG&E used selective herbicide applications to help control incompatible vegetation before planting more wild indigo in support of habitat development for the endangered pollinator species.
“After finding a new colony that nobody knew existed, we disturbed the environment the least amount possible,” Huff said. “The frosted elfin butterfly benefited from that greatly, and it solidified with our environmental group that we’re approaching vegetation management the right way.”
For more information on IVM strategies and successful herbicide programs that help utility companies and their vegetation management partners improve cost efficiency and environmental sustainability, visit HabitatWithHerbicides.com.
Under normal field conditions, TerraVue® is nonvolatile. Milestone® and TerraVue have no grazing or haying restrictions for any class of livestock, including lactating dairy cows, horses (including lactating mares) and meat animals prior to slaughter. Label precautions apply to forage treated with Milestone or TerraVue and to manure and urine from animals that have consumed treated forage. Milestone, TerraVue and Vastlan® are not registered for sale or use in all states. Contact your state pesticide regulatory agency to determine if a product is registered for sale or use in your state. Consult the label for full details. State restrictions on the sale and use of Garlon® 4 Ultra apply. Consult the label before purchase or use for full details. Always read and follow label directions.
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