Remember all the trees downed by the state’s big storms? New Haven Garden Club warns of possibly excessive tree-trimming program by United Illuminating

The New Haven Garden Club just sent this along:

 

“United Illuminating has adopted a vegetation management plan that potentially removes all street trees under the utility wires in New Haven and other UI served towns and cities.  The plan calls for the removal of all trees and branches within 8 feet on either side of its electric distribution wires from ground to sky (now known as the Utility Protection Zone), excluding ornamentals and other low height trees.  This type of pruning/tree removal is commonly called Enhanced Tree Trimming or ETT.  UI has previously used U or V-shaped directional pruning to run wires through the tree canopy, and reports that it has worked well for average New England weather.  The possible consequences for one New Haven street of this change in pruning and removal practices are illustrated below:    

Picture
Edwards Street before (left) and after possible removal of trees (right). The front tree on the right side of the street probably would also be removed, due to the wire.
  • The UI plan has been approved by the Public Utility Regulatory Authority (PURA), subject to revision of scheduling priorities.  Pilot projects are scheduled to begin in selected areas of Hamden, Orange, Shelton and Bridgeport in January of 2014.  Full distribution line clearance is scheduled to begin throughout UI served communities in June of 2014.
  • The plan does not commit to replace healthy trees that are removed with compatible trees, except perhaps on a case by case basis.
  • Electric utilities (CL&P and UI) must obtain a tree warden permit to prune or remove trees in the public right of way, and abutting property owners may object to pruning and removal of non-hazardous trees.  If you are concerned, contact your tree warden and other municipal officials, such as the mayor, first selectman, or conservation commission.  Be alert to notices from the electric utilities, which are likely to come by regular mail, and file your objection in writing within the time limits.  CL&P has used ETT for many years, but not on all of its distribution lines.  Depending on local conditions, its plans may also lead to removal of healthy roadside trees.
  • A tree warden’s decision not to issue a permit or to uphold (or reject) a property owner’s objection may be appealed to PURA.  In the past, UI and CL&P have worked out agreements with objecting tree wardens and property owners rather than appealing, but UI’s plan indicates that UI will appeal.  Partly to allow for the time required for appeals, the tree removal plan is to complete all removals in two “passes” over an 8 year period.
  • Although some apparently healthy trees may need to be removed, due to root growing conditions or problems specific to the tree species, wholesale removal of healthy roadside trees imposes significant costs  on communities, their residents and businesses due to the loss of the benefits provided by healthy roadside treesThese and other benefits were described in the State Vegetation Management Task Force Report, as follows: 
            reduced energy costs
increased property values
increased business income
reduced flooding, stormwater runoff
and erosion problems
            improved air quality
improved mental and physical health
noise reduction
safer communities
habitat and food for birds and animals                                protection of street pavement
traffic calming (reduction in traffic speed)
  • The costs of losing the benefits of healthy roadside trees outweigh the improvement in power reliability that such cutting might produce In recognition of these benefits and the importance of street trees to a community’s character, the Task Force Report envisioned a long term transition to “right tree/right place” roadside trees, replacing dead and declining large trees with trees that pose no risk at their mature height of growing into or falling on electric utility infrastructure.  It did not call for removal of all healthy roadside trees within the Utility Protection Zone.  It did call for immediate removal of hazardous trees.  ETT removes both hazardous trees and branches and healthy trees and branches.  The data indicating some reduction in outages from ETT does not permit analysis of the extent to which removal of healthy trees within the Utility Protection Zone is important to that reduction.   Although no formal study has been done, observers have reported that from 50 to 70% of outages from storms were caused by trees falling on wires from outside the Utility Protection Zone.”

Moe information is available at www.gardenclubofnewhaven.org