Vegetation Management for Safe and Reliable Power
Trees are one of the primary causes of power outages, whether they cause minor "bumps" or fluctuations when limbs brush against power lines or cause major extended outages when huge branches and trees pull lines down in bad weather. With careful cutting of selected limbs and trees, our contracted, licensed line clearance experts prune and/or cut away the potential dangers that trees can represent. This process will strive to meet the needs of our customers with a proactive line clearance maintenance program committed to the highest standards of safety and environmental stewardship.We adhere to ISA, International Society of Arboriculture and ANSI, American National Standards Institute standards, pruning a fairly large area around power lines to meet the demands of modern equipment. That's because the power lines that deliver today's stronger voltages are more sensitive to trees, wind, and other external elements. As a rule, our tree care experts create ten feet of clearance alongside power lines, with fifteen feet of clearance above and all woody brush and small trees are removed from beneath the lines. By cutting and pruning to these clearances, this should keep your tree limbs away from our lines for about seven years. Our crews will likely return to re-prune trees in five to seven year cycles.
When line clearance work is complete, our crews remove branches and brush from your property and will leave behind usable wood for property owner use (done in accordance with the Maine law regarding disposal of slash).
You can help us minimize tree-related outages and ensure the beauty of your landscape through thoughtful planting of new trees. Trees planted along your property's border should either be low growing shrubs or tall and narrow trees, planted at least 30 feet from power lines. Spreading trees, such as maples and oaks, are the most common outage-causing culprits and may need to be planted at least 50 feet away from power lines.
Before planting trees on your property, the location of utility lines should be considered. Are lines overhead or underground? Not only should spreading tree branches be a concern but also spreading tree roots. Never dig near underground utility lines.
For more information visit the International Society of Arboriculture at www.isa-arbor.com or the Tree Care Industry Association at www.natlarb.com, www.mnpower.com/treebook.
Pursuant to Maine State Law Title 35-A Chapter 2522, Section 1 (Maine’s Revised Statutes Annotated), at the customer’s request, Versant Power will personally consult with property owners before completing line clearance work. If you would like to be notified prior to our scheduled maintenance work, please call 1-855-363-7211 or (207) 973-2000, or write to us at:
Versant Power
Attn: Vegetation Management
PO Box 932
Bangor, ME 04402-0932
Include your name, street address, town, telephone number, list the location(s) of the property(ies) and your Versant Power account number.
Please note: Emergency power-outage line clearance work is exempted from the required notice provisions of Title 35-A Chapter 2522, Section I.
Stay safe while working near the lines
Both the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Maine Overhead High-Voltage Line Safety Act use 10 feet as a minimum safe distance from overhead power lines in most situations when pruning, trimming, repairing, maintaining, removing, or clearing of trees or brush near power lines. However, for higher voltage lines, OSHA can require a further distance from power lines for safety. If you need to do work close to the lines, please call us at 207.973.2000 so we can help you stay safe.