vegetation management

When trees and power lines cross paths: caring for both

ahowat — Fri, 27 Feb 2026 14:52:18 +0000

When trees and power lines cross paths: caring for both

March 1, 2026

Trees do a lot of good for our communities. They clean the air, absorb carbon dioxide, and — when planted in the right places — help shield homes from harsh winds and summer sun. That natural protection can even reduce the energy needed to heat and cool our homes. But when trees grow too close to power lines, those benefits can quickly turn into serious safety risks.

In fact, trees are involved in up to half of all power outages. Sometimes the trouble comes suddenly, when high winds or ice storms snap branches into lines. Other times, it happens slowly as branches naturally grow closer and begin rubbing against power lines. Trees near lines can also pose a hidden danger to children who may try to climb them or to homeowners who attempt trimming on their own. Any limb touching a power line can become energized, creating a potentially life-threatening situation.

That’s why maintaining safe clearances around power lines is so important. To improve reliability and reduce outages, our co-op follows a proactive tree and brush management program. This work isn’t just about keeping the lights on — it’s about protecting people, property, and the long-term health of our local trees.

2026 tree-trimming locations

We partner with professional tree contractors who share that commitment. Our contractor, Fitzwater Tree Care, uses industry-approved methods that focus on both safety and tree health. Trimming is done using directional pruning, a technique designed to guide future growth away from power lines rather than straight back toward them.

Directional pruning removes entire limbs — or portions of limbs — back to a suitable branch or trunk, where they would naturally shed over time. This approach preserves the tree’s natural defense system, minimizes stress on the tree, and helps maintain a healthier crown. While the results may look different than the old practice of simply rounding off the top of a tree, directional pruning is far better for the tree in the long run.

In some cases, trimming alone isn’t enough. Trees that grow rapidly directly beneath power lines, lean toward high-voltage lines, or have structural defects may need to be removed entirely to prevent future hazards. These decisions are never taken lightly and are made with safety and reliability in mind.

Before any trimming takes place, affected members are notified by email or letter so there are no surprises. By working together — planting the right tree in the right place and allowing trained professionals to handle trimming — we can enjoy the many benefits trees provide while keeping our electrical system safe and reliable for everyone.

A cut above

ahowat — Thu, 26 Feb 2026 18:26:50 +0000

A cut above

March 1, 2026

Adam Osborn

Tree and vegetation management keeps the lights on

Tree and vegetation management is an important part of Butler Rural Electric Cooperative’s annual work plan. This task is vital for delivering safe, reliable power to members.

What is a right-of-way?

Adam Osborn,
Director of Operations

A right-of-way is the strip of land underneath and around power lines and equipment, which Butler Rural Electric Cooperative has the authority and obligation to access, maintain, and clear to prevent disruptions in electric service and harm to lineworkers or the public. Specifications vary, but a general rule of thumb for a safe right-of-way is

maintaining 10 to 15 feet of clearance on either side of primary power lines. The area above poles and wires should be kept clear of all vegetation. For underground equipment, there should be a minimum of 10 feet between shrubs and other plants and padmount, or ground, transformers.

Why is this important?

Downed trees cause a substantial number of power outages, and each year our lineworkers take steps to reduce their impact. Clearing the right-of-way is crucial for keeping our members’ power on. Branches that come into contact with power lines can cause voltage fluctuations, blinking lights, and outages.

Tree and vegetation management also keeps your family safe by ensuring tree branches and vegetation do not become energized due to close contact with power lines or other electric equipment. With the ability to carry up to 69,000 volts, a power line touching a tree branch can be incredibly dangerous — even deadly — so always be mindful around trees that are close to power lines.

Our responsibility

Butler Rural Electric Cooperative maintains more than 1,100 miles of line, which bring power to more than 12,000 homes and businesses, making tree and vegetation management a big job. Each year, we schedule contractors to work in specific areas of the cooperative’s service territory to try to stay ahead of any potential issues.

If trees invade the right-of-way, Nelson Tree Service, the cooperative’s contractor, will cut down trees and trim vegetation using chainsaws, bucket trucks, tree climbers, brush chippers, and mowers.

Nelson Tree Service uses pruning methods approved by the National Arborist Association in our distribution system. Examples of these methods are shown below. While trees may appear unbalanced after trimming, the appearance will soften over time. Contractors may also cut down trees in the right-of-way with member approval.

2026 Tree and vegetation management route

This year, Nelson Tree Service, the cooperative’s contractor, will complete tree and vegetation management work in the areas below. They will cut down trees and trim vegetation in the right-of-way using chainsaws, bucket trucks, tree climbers, brush chippers, and mowers.

Methods

Tree-trimming contractors use pruning methods approved by the National Arborist Association in our distribution system. While trees may appear unbalanced after trimming, the appearance will soften over time. Contractors may also cut down trees in the right-of-way with member approval.

Notices

The cooperative sends emails and letters to members before tree and vegetation management occurs in their area and sends surveys once the work is complete. Feedback from these surveys helps make decisions to improve the cooperative.

Report trees that pose risks to power lines

If you have trees or vegetation that may pose a risk to our power lines, complete the request form at butlerrural.coop > Electric Service > Your Service > Tree and Vegetation Management or call us at 513-867-4400.

Mill Substation

Feeder 4
Members in northwest Wayne Township, west Gratis Township, east and southeast Somers Township, and Deer Run Campground

Tolbert Substation

Feeder 1
Members in northwest Wayne Township

Feeder 2
Members in central Wayne Township

Feeder 4
Members in west and northwest Wayne Township and north and northeast Milford Township

Stillwell Beckett Substation

Feeder 1

Members in north Hanover Township and south Milford Township

Feeder 2
Members in east and north central Hanover Township and northwest St. Clair Township

Feeder 3
Members in central and south central
Hanover Township

Ross Substation

Feeder 1
Members in east Ross Township and south
St. Clair Township

Feeder 3
Members in central, south, and southeast
Ross Township

Feeder 4
Members in north central and northeast Ross Township

Colerain Substation

Feeder 4
Members in Colerain Township and southwest Fairfield Township

Reily Substation

Feeder 2
Members in central and east Reily Township and west and southwest Hanover Township

Tree-liable power

sbradford — Wed, 01 May 2024 16:14:00 +0000

Tree-liable power

May 1, 2024

Jeff McCallister

Power Lines

In early March, a spring storm ravaged much of the region served by Logan County Electric Cooperative in Bellefontaine. It was the same storm that spurred the deadly tornado that destroyed a significant part of the community of Indian Lake, and even outside the tornado’s path, high winds snapped trees and brought down limbs and branches all around the area.

As might be expected, power outages were widespread. But upon examination in the following weeks, it seemed as if power had been out less for LCEC members — both fewer and shorter instances — than might have been expected.

“System reliability and safety are extremely important,” says Scott Roach, director of engineering services at LCEC. “With every new project, every work plan, it’s always with that in mind.”

Foliage foibles

One of the most significant factors affecting that reliability is the presence of trees. Of course, properly placed trees not only are beautiful to look at, but they also provide tangible benefits: increasing property values, reducing the cost to heat and cool a home, providing privacy, and even cutting stormwater runoff.

So homeowners are understandably attached to the trees that grow on their property, and Roach, who directs LCEC’s two-man full-time vegetation management crew that’s charged with keeping trees and other flora away from power lines, knows that co-op members can be quite protective of their foliage.

“We completely understand that trees hold a lot of sentimental value for our members,” Roach says. “At the same time, they need to understand the public safety issue and what impact a tree can have on their ability — and sometimes the ability of all of their neighbors — to turn their lights on.”

Trees can be a contributing factor, if not a direct cause, of as much as 50% of power outages. Problems can develop suddenly, such as when branches break and fall across power lines during wind or ice storms, or over time through natural growth patterns, where tree branches may begin to crowd and rub against those lines.

Investing in reliability

Logan County Electric has one of the best records of reliable power delivery in the country, but it wasn’t always that way. In 2005, a powerful winter storm came through Ohio, bringing with it layers of heavy ice that snapped off limbs and branches and brought down trees across the state.

Many of those branches and trees fell across electric power lines, and as many as 500,000 Ohioans were without power at one point — including a significant number of LCEC members. Some of those outages lasted 10 days or more.

“That storm taught us an important lesson, and we invested a lot of time and effort in our vegetation management right after that,” says Roach, who was hired in 2006. “We were not maintaining our right-of-way the way it should have been, but we made some changes in our procedures, and it has made a big difference in our outage numbers.”

Professional standards

Part of the co-op’s investment was to hire full-time vegetation management staff to implement a five-year trimming cycle, rather than bringing in contractors as needed.

“Tree trimming is a very difficult, labor-intensive job that’s also dangerous because obviously you’re working very close to energized lines,” Roach says, “But at the same time, there’s also an aspect of member service to it. If it’s rainy out and they have to put away the chain saws and chippers, they’re out talking to our members — informing them of what’s in the works and educating them about the public safety dangers of trees and power lines.”

In Ohio, along with LCEC, Adams Rural Electric Cooperative in West Union, The Energy Cooperative in Newark, and Frontier Power Company in Coshocton have full-time vegetation managers on staff. The other Ohio co-ops, for the most part, have long-standing relationships with professional tree contractors who perform the trimming around their lines.

All take great care to perform work that conforms to standards and practices of the National Arborist Association, the American Association of Nurserymen, and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. The last thing anyone at the co-op wants is to fight with a member about a tree.

“Most people understand the reasons we need to trim their trees and don’t object to us doing what we need to do,” says Dan Craig, a certified line-clearance arborist, who has worked at Logan County Electric since 2015. “But it doesn’t always sit well with everyone, and we give members options and work with them to try to come up with a solution that works for both their needs and our needs.”

Of course, when a powerful storm comes through like the one in March, members are bluntly reminded the effect trees can have on utility lines. Says Roach, “After a storm that causes power outages, members see first-hand both the safety concerns and the importance of clearing vegetation away from power lines. No one likes to be without power.”

Trees and electricity

The National Electrical Safety Code (NESC) requires electric utilities to maintain trees around power lines, pruning or removing vegetation that may damage supply conductors.
The Occupational Safety and Hazards Act (OSHA), Rural Utilities Service (RUS) and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) mandate utility companies must keep their power lines safe and reliable.
Trees account for more than half of all power interruptions.
Tree damage to power lines can create severe public safety hazards such as fires or electrocution.
Consider all electrical lines and electrical utility equipment dangerous. Keep away from them and keep all objects (ladders, antennas, kites, etc.) away from them.
Keeping clear access to utility equipment gives line crews the room to perform inspections and repairs — and keeps everyone safe.