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Background
and Brief History |
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primary objective of the symposium was: "to present a forum for discussion of the environmental impacts which result from siting, constructing, using and maintaining rights-of-way. A second objective was to draw together and publish practical information on ways of reducing the environmental impacts and of developing multiple uses of rights-of-way which cross rural areas." Because of their linear configurations, rights-of-way cross many landforms, habitats, property ownerships and governmental jurisdictions. Additionally, rights-of-way directly affect people with diverse points of view, for example, the landowner, the project engineer and the land use specialist. The first symposium was intended to fill a need for a common meeting ground for individuals and groups concerned about the environmental impacts of rights-of-way. Participants at that First Symposium included representatives of utilities, vendors, government agencies, consulting firms, and universities. Dr. Arner was the symposium Chairman while John Gill acted as the Program Chairman. The First Symposium not only successfully achieved its objectives, it also laid the ground work for the subsequent series of symposia. The Second Symposium was held in Ann Arbor, Michigan, October 16-18, 1979 on the campus of the University of Michigan. It was attended by over 300 people. The Hyatt Islandia Hotel in San Diego, California was the site of the Third Symposium. It was held February 15-18, 1982 and attracted close to 400 attendees. Edward W. Colson was the Symposium Chairman, R.E. (Gus) Tillman was the Co-Chairman, and Allen Crabtree acted as Program Chairman. The Fourth Symposium was held October 25-28, 1987 in Indianapolis, Indiana, where Dr. W.R. (Dick) Byrnes and Dr. Harvey A. Holt were the symposium co-chairmen. As with all of the other symposia, assistance was provided by a Steering Committee representing the industries and agencies concerned with electric, railroad, highway and pipeline right-of-way planning and management. The Fourth Symposium was the first to include a speaker from anywhere other than North America, as Nancy M. Darrall of England's Central Electricity Generating Board, spoke on environmental concerns in rights-of-way management in Europe. The symposium series became truly international when it held the Fifth Symposium in Montreal, Québec, Canada on September 19-22, 1993. Jean Doucet of Hydro-Québec took on the role of Chairman, with Andre Bouchard acting as Co-Chairman. A total of 380 participants from 15 countries attended the symposium, which included presentations from Japan, India, Spain, France, England and the Netherlands, in addition to many papers from Canada and the United States. The Sixth Symposium was held February 22-26, 1997 in New Orleans, Louisiana. James R. (Randy) Williams, of Entergy Services Inc. was the host and Symposium Chairman, while John Goodrich-Mahoney, Electric Power Research Institute, acted as Co-Chairman. In addition to the regular program, a number of tours were also offered for participants and spouses. The Seventh Symposium was held September 9-13, 2000 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, attracting 460 attendees from 22 countries. The Co-Chairmen were Dean Mutrie of TERA Environmental Consultants and Colin Guild of TransCanada PipeLines. Dr. Dale H. Arner served as Honorary Chairman. In addition to the regular program, a number of tours and social events were offered for participants and spouses. The Eighth Symposium was held September 12-16, 2004 in Saratoga Springs, NY. The Co-Chairmen were Kevin Mcloughlin New York Power Authority and Dr. Lawrence Abrahamson SUNY College of Environmental Science & Forestry. The proceedings will be available soon. |
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