During the second year of the feasibility study, UIC and Burns & McDonnell created a web-based cost data collection form to gather cost information associated with pollinator-friendly and conventional vegetation management practices looking for similarities and averages across vegetation management practices.
Cost-Benefit Studies
Cost-Benefit Calculator Feasibility Study Year 1 Report
The first year of the feasibility study aggregated and analyzed data from partners across the Rights-of-Way as Habitat Working Group and from literature reviews that provided costs and quantifiable benefits associated with implementing integrated vegetation management (IVM) and pollinator habitat practices. The data analysis evaluated gaps and trends in costs and benefits and assessed the feasibility of an industry-wide cost-benefit calculator.
Comparison of Cost, Safety, and Environmental Benefits of Routine Mowing and Managed Succession of Roadside Vegetation
This document from the Texas A&M Transportation Institute provides guidance for roadside vegetation management to identify the cost, safety, and environmental impacts of routine mowing compared with managed succession of vegetation for areas outside the safety clear zone.
The Cost Efficiency of IVM
This report prepared by BioCompliance Consulting, Inc. presents a business case for the practice of Integrated Vegetation Management (IVM) on electric and gas transmission rights-of- way, both in terms of cost savings and the benefits that are produced.
Assessing the Costs and Benefits of Native Plant Species for Electric Transmission Line Right-of-Way Revegetation Within the Tennessee Valley Authority Power Service Area
The safe operation of electric transmission lines necessitates the suppression of tall, woody vegetation on associated rights-of-way (ROWs). Native warm season grasses (NWSG) are more expensive for ROW revegetation compared to typical exotic cool season grasses (ECSG), but they may alter the successional trajectory such that long-term maintenance costs are reduced. I conducted a cost-benefit analysis to determine if ROW revegetation with NWSG is cost effective compared to ECSG. I synthesized cost information obtained from the Tennessee Valley Authority regarding ROW planting and maintenance and data collected from a feasibility study of ROWs planted with NWSG. Revegetation with NWSG was found to be 6% more expensive than ECSG. The degree of woody suppression to make NWSG a worthwhile investment was found to be 12-21% using a break-even analysis. Despite the initial greater expense of NWSG, associated potential maintenance savings and indirect ecological, environmental, social, and economic benefits favor their use.
Assessing the Costs and Benefits of Native Plant Species for Electric Transmission Line Right-of-Way Vegetation
This thesis submitted by Joseph R. Turk to the Faculty of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga contains an assessment that compares the cost savings of native warm season grasses versus exotic cool season grasses alongside rights-of-way as vegetation alongside ROW’s has to be managed.
Economic Impact of Ecosystem Services Provided by Ecologically Sustainable Roadside Right of Way Vegetation Management Practices
This report prepared by the University of Florida on behalf of the Florida Department of Transportation estimates the economic value of Florida’s State Highway System roadside right-of-way ecosystem.
Integrated Vegetation Management (IVM) for INDOT Roadsides
This study performed by the Joint Transportation Research Program at Purdue University in conjunction with the Indiana Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration evaluated three IVM tools: herbicide, mowing, and native species. The effectiveness and costs of each are compared.