CODY, Wyo. - A power company has agreed to spend $9.1 million over the next five years to fix substandard equipment in Wyoming, after an investigation revealed more than 200 eagles had died on its power equipment in the last 21/2 years.

"For a number of years, PacifiCorp failed to take adequate steps to reduce golden eagle and other migratory bird mortalities across Wyoming," said Kelly Rankin, U.S. Attorney for Wyoming. Rankin said the agreement, would help "dramatically reduce electrocution mortalities" at Rocky Mountain Power sites.

Friday's settlement requires PacifiCorp, operating in Wyoming as Rocky Mountain Power, to pay a $510,000 fine, as well as $900,000 in restitution to be spent on conservation and research efforts in support of eagles and other birds of prey in the Rocky Mountain area.

Among the groups receiving between $50,000 and $400,000 each under the agreement are the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, HawkWatch International, the Wildlife Heritage Foundation of Wyoming, the Native American Fish and Wildlife Society and the Murie Audubon Society of Casper.

All told, the company agreed to pay $10.5 million in fines, restitution and equipment upgrade costs.

PacifiCorp agreed to a settlement with federal prosecutors after an investigation by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service revealed that at least 232 golden eagles, 46 hawks, 59 owls and nearly 200 other birds had been electrocuted in Wyoming since January 2007.

Since 1991, there have been more than 1,000 documented eagle electrocutions at sites operated by various companies across Wyoming, with more than 480 of those in the Bighorn Basin, said Tim Eicher, a Cody-based special agent for U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Eicher, who investigated the PacifiCorp case, has also worked on two other Wyoming bird electrocution cases since 2007 that led to fines.

But each of those cases involved the deaths of less than a dozen birds and resulted in a combined total of $30,000 in fines and restitution.

Eicher said that he could not comment on the specifics of the PacifiCorp case, but added that the power industry has for decades known the best practices for making poles and lines safe for birds.

"When companies refuse to be proactive, and don't undertake readily available measures to prevent the deaths of eagles and other migratory birds, we'll seek criminal charges," said Dominic Domenici, resident U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agent in charge in Wyoming and Montana.

Most electrocutions occur on power poles where poorly configured lines or complex intersections of circuits or equipment create electrocution risks for large birds, Eicher said.

Lines should be spaced 5 feet apart, and connections and equipment should be properly covered or insulated, Eicher said, adding that many older lines with improper configurations have not been upgraded.

PacifiCorp pleaded guilty to 34 misdemeanor counts of violating the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The 34 bird deaths occurred in Sweetwater, Washakie, Hot Springs, Park, Converse and Natrona counties.

The company pleaded guilty to two Park County golden eagle electrocutions. One was between Garland and the Byron oil field and the other was near the western edge of Oregon Basin, Eicher said.

Eicher estimated that at least 80 percent of all the bird electrocutions he has investigated in the last several years have occurred in oil fields, where old power lines have not been made safe for raptors.

Resident and migratory golden eagles and other birds often perch on the high poles to watch for prey in open spaces where there are few trees, with high concentrations of the birds gathering in Wyoming each winter.

Eicher said he encounters a wide range of attitudes about bird electrocutions from the public and those in industry.

Despite decades of publicity, prosecutions, fines and educational efforts, some companies still install new equipment that doesn't meet bird safety standards, he said.

"One of the big things that's important to us is that companies do risk assessment surveys" to identify and correct sites that are most deadly to birds, and then work systematically to fix all hazardous equipment, he said.

"Kill-a-bird, fix-a-pole is not going to cut it," he said.

Eicher said he was pleased with PacifiCorp's new avian protection plan, calling it "the yardstick by which the efforts of other companies will be judged."

"I don't consider PacifiCorp a defendant any more. I consider them a partner," he said.

Prosecutors said that PacifiCorp fully cooperated with the investigation.

PacifiCorp released a statement noting that, since the problem was discovered in late 2007, the company retrofitted more than 400 poles around Rock Springs and Cody. It has spent more than $2.7 million so far this year on a new bird safety plan.

"PacifiCorp is committed to meeting the terms of this settlement and improving facilities in Wyoming to make them safer for eagles and other raptors," said Paul Radakovich, vice president of operations.

Rocky Mountain Power serves Worland and much of the Bighorn Basin and has 129,000 customers in Wyoming, where it operates several power generating plants. PacifiCorp serves a total of 1.7 million customers in six western states and reported net income for 2008 of $458 million.

Contact Ruffin Prevost at rprevost@billingsgazette.com or 307-527-7250.