We Like Trees, Too Trees are a big part of the natural beauty of the Oregon coast, It's pretty much impossible to stand anywhere in our District and not see trees. There are literally millions of trees in our 700-square-mile service area. And as beautiful as these trees are, they do present some potential problems. About half of the unscheduled power outages that occur in our District are the result of trees contacting power lines. Sometimes a tree will drop a limb onto a power line. Sometimes a tree will fall onto a power line. Sometimes the wind will push a tree into contact with power lines. Sometimes logging or construction projects cause trees to contact power lines.

So, how do we deal with the problems of trees and power lines? Well, we could eliminate all the trees that might ever cause a problem. But we definitely don't want to do that. The trees are part of the beauty of the coastal environment, and we appreciate them just like everyone else does.

We could get rid of all the power lines, but that would either mean doing without electricity or placing all the power lines underground.

There are a number of problems with undergrounding power lines, not the least of which is cost. It costs about four to five times as much to install lines underground.

And they do fail, quite often for the same reason as above-ground lines. Trees spread out underground the same way they do above ground, and their root systems can cause enormous damage to underground utility systems. There's also a lot of geologic instability in the coastal area that makes under-grounding impractical in many areas.

So that leaves the careful management of the trees. We have two full-time tree-trimming crews who continually trim trees that are likely to come in contact with power lines. In addition, we hire two contract tree-trimming crews who work six months a year to help us keep up with tree growth.

Our own crews, and those we hire, are professionals. They trim only what's necessary to protect the power lines. In cases where total removal of a tree is necessary for safety or reliability reasons, these crews will consult first with the property owner unless it's an emergency situation. Nobody likes to have trees removed from their property unnecessarily, and we don't do it unless it's the only viable option.

So when you see our crews out there trimming trees, please remember that we're doing it so our customers can have more reliable electric service.

When it comes to planting near power lines, you can help prevent tree problems by planting wisely. Check with your local greenhouse or arborist to find out which type of tree will grow best in your area, and how big it's likely to grow. The chart at right will give you some guidelines about how far from power lines you should plant trees of different mature heights.