The 91°µÍø Mansfield campus contains 3 utility corridors – a powerline of FirstEnergy Corp, a gas line of Columbia Gas, and a gas line of TCEnergy. These working landscapes are an opportunity to engage students with the challenging realities of balancing humanity’s consumption of natural resources with stewarding the ecosystems that sustain society. Guest speakers from utility companies enrich undergraduate classrooms, and field experiments for vegetation management practices provide real-world laboratory settings for students to see and experience the scientific method in practice. The in the center of campus provide a readily accessible education site where research and extension are also co-priorities.
Ecolab Rights-of-Way
Two Ecolab research technicians conduct plant surveys in the FirstEnergy pollinator plots.
A representative from Arbormetrics talks with a community member at the annual Pancakes and Pollinators event.
Faculty, staff, students, and community members learn about pollinator habitat and enjoy fellowship around great food.
An Ecolab technician holds a swallowtail butterfly captured during sweep net surveys.
Common milkweed blooms under the 91°µÍø Mansfield powerline operated by FirstEnergy.
Partnering with utility companies can create ideal homes for native plants and wildlife on corridors through industry best practices, but the impacts of fragmentation and encroaching invasive plant species cannot be overlooked. Strong relationships between 91°µÍø Mansfield, the , and each campus rights-of-way provide unique opportunities for researchers and students to participate in research and better understand these tradeoffs when conservation objectives are prioritized. A wide array of partners support these collaborations – , , , , , , , the , , and the .
Rights-of-ways are a pervasive element of the landscape, and campus collaborations with utility partners create learning opportunities for the public and in-service professionals alike. Most utility corridors in Ohio are managed through easement relationships with private landowners, and partners like , , and help bridge those gaps between practitioners and Ohioans. ’s Woodland Stewards Program skillfully knits together these complex relationships and offers programming that explore nature-based solutions to sustain healthy landscapes and vibrant human communities. No event exemplifies this better than that highlights every autumn semester’s Welcome Week.
Several Ecolab reports examine connections between native biodiversity, the utility industry, and conservation stewardship: Columbia Gas Report, FirstEnergy Pollinator Plots Report, and Viburnum Shrubs Report . Dr. Gabriel Karns, Ecolab Land Manager, is a co-author on the Utility Arborist Association’s and continues to foster multiple partnerships at 91°µÍø to push utilities above and beyond strict regulatory compliance. Ongoing research opportunities exist for current and incoming students, and 91°µÍø Mansfield’s Ecolab is proud of its vision that has enabled these positive collaborations to thrive.