TY - JOUR
T1 - Impact of Fraxinus snag fall on electric distribution and infrastructure stability
T2 - An empirical analysis
AU - Lyttek, Erik
AU - Lal, Pankaj
AU - Forgoston, Eric
AU - Oberle, Brad
AU - Dubey, Ram S.
AU - Forgoston, Eric
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2024/11
Y1 - 2024/11
N2 - With increasing climate variability and the movement of exotic pests and diseases, the rate of forest mortality has become an issue of global concern. Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), as one such pest, is causing the mass mortality of ash trees, Fraxinus spp., thus leading to an ongoing surge in the number of snags across North America. Snags are dead-standing trees that pose an extant threat to nearby infrastructure and buildings. In this article, we evaluate the impacts which snags pose to electrical distribution infrastructure. New Jersey, a state with a high degree of urbanization, has an extensive electric grid located in forested areas. New Jersey is currently in the process of upgrading the electric distribution network, which will increase the height of electric distribution lines to increase resiliency and potential capacity. This article demonstrates a yearly risk assessment methodology for Fraxinus snags using an integrated GIS, differential equation, and applied regression model framework under two distribution network parameterizations. The framework is applied to three northern New Jersey counties (Warren, Sussex, and Morris), which are managed by one utility, New Jersey Central Power and Light, and which are home to most of New Jersey's Fraxinus trees.
AB - With increasing climate variability and the movement of exotic pests and diseases, the rate of forest mortality has become an issue of global concern. Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), as one such pest, is causing the mass mortality of ash trees, Fraxinus spp., thus leading to an ongoing surge in the number of snags across North America. Snags are dead-standing trees that pose an extant threat to nearby infrastructure and buildings. In this article, we evaluate the impacts which snags pose to electrical distribution infrastructure. New Jersey, a state with a high degree of urbanization, has an extensive electric grid located in forested areas. New Jersey is currently in the process of upgrading the electric distribution network, which will increase the height of electric distribution lines to increase resiliency and potential capacity. This article demonstrates a yearly risk assessment methodology for Fraxinus snags using an integrated GIS, differential equation, and applied regression model framework under two distribution network parameterizations. The framework is applied to three northern New Jersey counties (Warren, Sussex, and Morris), which are managed by one utility, New Jersey Central Power and Light, and which are home to most of New Jersey's Fraxinus trees.
KW - Electric distribution
KW - Emerald Ash Borer (EAB)
KW - Forest Inventory
KW - Fraxinus
KW - Spatial modeling
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85200403416&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2024.108323
DO - 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2024.108323
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85200403416
SN - 0921-8009
VL - 225
JO - Ecological Economics
JF - Ecological Economics
M1 - 108323
ER -