Toledo Edison Companions with Ottawa Nationwide Wildlife Refuge Advanced to Shield Nesting Birds

TOLEDO, Ohio, April 13, 2021 / PRNewswire / – Toledo Edison, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE: FE) has partnered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to donate and install a 55-foot wooden post with a nesting platform on the Cedar Point National Wildlife Refuge, which is part of the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge Complex. This proactive work will provide a safe nesting site for the growing osprey population and further efforts to protect ospreys in the area.

“Given the significant increase in the osprey population in recent years, we have been fortunate that our utility poles and equipment in the US have had minimal nesting activity Toledo Area “said Amy Ruszala, Environmental scientist and bird expert at FirstEnergy. “By partnering with the Ottawa Refuge, we can proactively complete the work to keep birds from nesting on or near our electrical equipment so that this is not a problem in our area.”

The Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge Complex is located in the northwest Ohio on the bank of Lake Erie. The refuge was established in 1961 to provide habitat for waterfowl and other migratory birds, native wildlife, and endangered and threatened species. As ospreys prefer to nest near large bodies of water, the 5-square-meter wooden nesting platform was installed on a new wooden post along the lakeshore. Toledo Edison donated the materials and manpower required for the three-hour installation.

Birds of prey, like ospreys, often look for tall structures, including electrical transmission towers and masts, to build their nests, which can be up to three feet wide. These nesting habits often bring the birds near live electrical equipment – harming their wellbeing and potentially causing power outages. The newly installed platform will help deter the birds from nesting on poles with equipment under tension.

The work builds on the company’s efforts in recent years to protect breeding birds. Toledo Edison has worked closely with FirstEnergy environmentalists and state wildlife officials to put nest repellants on utility poles and electrical equipment in the area. Large, bright line markers were also installed on power lines to visually warn birds and low-flying aircraft of live equipment.

In addition, FirstEnergy provided an app last spring with which care personnel can report bird problems in real time. This optimizes the process of protecting nesting birds and improving the reliability of the power supply. The app gives field workers the ability to submit photos and answer key questions using a drop-down menu to report the locations of bird nests or other bird-related issues along the company’s power lines from their mobile devices.

Toledo Edison serves more than 300,000 customers in the northwest Ohio. Follow Toledo Edison on Twitter @ ToledoEdison or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ToledoEdison.

FirstEnergy is dedicated to Integrity, Security, Reliability and Operational Excellence. The 10 power distribution companies form one of the largest investor-owned electrical systems in the country and serve customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and new York. The company’s transmission subsidiaries operate transmission lines with a length of around 2,400 km, which connect the Midwest and the Central Atlantic. Follow FirstEnergy online at www.firstenergycorp.com and on Twitter @FirstEnergyCorp.

Editor’s note: Photos of the FirstEnergy support staff who build and install the nesting platforms are available for download at Flickr.

SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.

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