Vegetation management of power line right-of-ways in northern Canada

2013年夏天，育空地区能源公司开始探索使用除草剂作为管理加拿大育空地区电力线路通行权（ROW）上植被的一种方式。 虽然初步试验表明，使用除草剂可以实现短期植被控制，但在北方环境中，除草剂的应用、归宿和毒性方面仍存在许多问题和关切。 除草剂的有效性和持久性已在较温和的气候条件下进行了广泛的研究;然而，很少有研究考察除草剂在寒冷地区的影响，需要进一步的研究。 在所有立地条件下，没有一种方法是最有效的方法，这可能是由于不同植被生长形式的反应以及环境和土壤条件的差异。替代性植被管理战略，包括生态操作，可以提供长期的成本效益管理。 建立以符合植被管理目标的物种（即生长缓慢和低的物种）为主的ROW栖息地需要审查有利于这些物种的环境条件的干扰制度。 选择性地去除不需要的物种和引入需要的物种（即播种/种植）可以创造条件，促进长期保持的演替停滞或稳定的植物群落组合。 因此，在了解北方生态系统中植被和土壤群落如何对物理和化学干扰作出反应的基础上，采用综合植被管理办法，可以提供一种提高管理成功率的手段，同时降低成本和环境风险。

In the summer of 2013 Yukon Energy Corporation began exploring the potential to use herbicides as a way to manage vegetation on power line right-of-ways (ROWs) in Yukon, Canada. Although, initial trials indicated that short-term vegetation control could be achieved with the use of herbicides many questions and concerns remain regarding the application, fate and toxicity of herbicides in a northern environment. Herbicide effectiveness and persistence have been extensively studied in more temperate climates; however, few studies have examined the impact of herbicides in cold regions and further studies are required. No single method is the most effective method under all site conditions likely due to the response of different vegetation growth forms and differences in environmental and soil conditions. Alternative vegetation management strategies, including ecological manipulations, may provide long-term cost-effective management. Creation of ROW habitats that are dominated by species that meet vegetation management objectives (i.e. slow and low growing species) requires an examination of disturbance regimes that foster environmental conditions favouring these species. Selective removal of non-desired species and the introduction of desired species (i.e. seeding/planting) can create conditions that promote either successional stagnant or stable plant community assemblages that will be maintained over the long-term. Therefore, the use of integrated vegetation management approaches that are based upon an understanding of how vegetation and soil communities respond to physical and chemical disturbance in northern boreal ecosystems can provide a means to improve management success, while reducing cost and environmental risk.