Program helps draw wildlife to land under power lines

GRANBY, Mo. -- On a recent morning, a plot of land under the power lines crossing Rhea Ross' property was bursting with buckwheat. Bees and butterflies are attracted to the plant, and deer eat it as well, she said.

It's one of many species she and her husband, Donald, have planted in the space over the past year, a move that has been bringing in more and healthier wildlife to the area.

"It's fun -- it sure beats having a bunch of scrubby brush in here," Rhea Ross said.

The couple has been participating for about a year in a program that partners Empire District Electric Co., the Missouri Department of Conservation and property owners to help those owners manage the vegetation underneath Empire power lines.

Through the Wires Over Wildlife program, property owners maintain the space, which ultimately means fewer maintenance needs, greater reliability of electrical service and increased wildlife, said Jason Grossman, vegetation management coordinator for transmission at Empire.

"It just goes back to being good stewards of the land and that conservation perspective," he said.

Through the program, property owners contact Empire, which decides whether the space is suitable. Then, the electric company, Conservation Department and property owner create a plan. The Conservation Department helps land owners figure out how to manage the area.

Empire checks in each year to make sure the plan's requirements are being met, Grossman said. The money Empire saves from the land's development is reinvested to property owners through a cost share.

The plans can be anything wildlife-oriented. Some property owners might be interested in deer hunting, while others might want to see more wildflowers to attract pollinators, Grossman said.

Rhea and Donald Ross' involvement in the program started when they became interested in turning the land under the electrical wires into a food plot to attract wildlife.

The couple has planted the buckwheat, native bedding grasses, wildflowers, forage turnips and other vegetation.