EVN Macedonia, in partnership with the Macedonian Ecological Society (MES), Elektrorazpredelenie Yug (part of the EVN Group in Bulgaria), the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB), and the Turkish Society for Nature (DOGA), has developed the international project “Safe Wires for Endangered Birds” (Project 101216021 — LIFE24-NAT-BG-EP for Birds LIFE) under the EU LIFE Programme. The aim of the project is to support the conservation of the globally endangered Eastern Imperial Eagle (Aquila heliaca, classified as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature) and the Egyptian Vulture (Neophron percnopterus, classified as Endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature) through the upgrading and securing of hazardous overhead power lines in the participating countries. The partners will also cooperate with four electricity distribution companies from Turkey.
The project was approved by the European Commission among a record number of submitted proposals (137) in the “Nature and Biodiversity” category. It will be implemented over a five-year period (2025–2030) in 48 Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBA/KBA/other nationally protected areas) in North Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Turkey, as well as in 14 protected areas from the Natura 2000 network in Bulgaria. In North Macedonia, the project will be implemented in the Ovche Pole, Gradsko, Tikvesh region, and Demir Kapija areas, which are key sites for breeding, migration, and wintering of the Eastern Imperial Eagle and the Egyptian Vulture in the country.
Across all participating countries, insulation of a total of 17,000 dangerous electricity poles and the installation of 2,500 diverters on overhead lines are planned, covering 100% of the national breeding populations of the Eastern Imperial Eagle and 80% of the Egyptian Vulture in the three partner countries. In North Macedonia, insulators will be installed on 3,000 distribution network poles and 1,000 reflective devices (diverters) on overhead power lines.
Within the project, new technologies for installing insulators on distribution network poles and the application of state-of-the-art scientific approaches for monitoring the impact of these protective measures are envisaged. The methods will be shared with the international community and replicated at other locations along the migration routes of these two globally endangered species.
All activities related to the installation of insulators on distribution networks for birds in North Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Turkey are primarily intended to protect Eastern Imperial Eagles and Egyptian Vultures, but will also have an impact on many other species—namely, all birds that breed, migrate, or winter within the project areas.
EVN Macedonia and the Macedonian Ecological Society integrate the technical and ecological aspects of bird protection in the country. Through such joint projects and initiatives, a total of 220 individual poles (15 km of insulated network) have so far been upgraded to protect birds from electrocution, and nesting platforms for the white stork, as well as nesting boxes for the European roller, have been installed.
This activity is implemented within the EP for Birds LIFE project (Project 101216021 — LIFE24-NAT-BG-EP for Birds LIFE), co-financed by the European Union’s LIFE Programme.
Project information:
ЕВН Македонија - EP_Project_Birds