To be a leader in promoting responsible vegetation management along North American rights-of-way.

Our core values are:

In 2003, electric transmission lines sagging into trees set in motion cascading failures across the power grid. The result was the largest blackout in U.S. history. Despite subsequent enforcement and compliance efforts by vegetation managers that drove vigorous improvements in power system reliability and reductions in potential liability, unintentional environmental and reliability consequences persisted.

The founders of the ROWSC recognized that the way forward meant renewing the utility industry’s commitment to integrated vegetation management (IVM). The intended outcome was the creation of a means to recognize excellence in the application and practice of IVM on the North American electric power grid.

The ROWSC was established in 2013 as a program within Dovetail Partners, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit environmental think tank, serving as program administrator. The organizational structure of the ROWSC included—and continues to include—diverse volunteer representatives from non-governmental environmental organizations, academia, the utility vegetation management industry, utilities, government, and the public at large.

The creation of the ROWSC followed the lead of the Electric Power Research Institute’s (EPRI) Standards for Assessing Performance of Integrated Vegetation Management on Rights-of-Way, informed by other well-established accreditation programs found in the forest industry. In 2014, following the work of the ROWSC Technical Committee, the first ROWSC Accreditation Standards were completed for electric transmission rights-of-way. After piloting in 2014 and 2015, the standards were revised to reflect the lessons from the early accreditations and expanded to include pipeline corridors.

Through its work, the ROWSC promotes integrated vegetation management (IVM) and best management practices (BMPs) to the utility vegetation management industry to maintain power system reliability and address ecological concerns. Our current accreditation model provides standards of excellence for environmental stewardship, based on a set of predetermined principles and criteria. We also enlist third-party auditors to ensure compliance with standards and an independent, proven process to convey credibility and bring recognition to IVM programs.

To date, the ROWSC has 7 accredited utilities spanning 16 States and Provinces throughout United States and Canada. These utilities account for over 44,000 miles of transmission lines and serve over 41 million people. Accreditation presents the opportunity for utility companies to demonstrate their commitment to such standards.

After nearly ten years, the ROWSC remains committed to advancing the practice of IVM. To this end, the Council will continue to work with our Technical Committee in reviewing and updating our Accreditation Standards to reflect the most current approaches to IVM practice and the insights from our audit teams. Additionally, the Council is undertaking broader engagement and communication strategies to promote the benefits of utility accreditation and to increase recognition of the value of IVM in meeting shared objectives in regulatory programs.