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Infographic: How tree-trimming methods help reliability

June 17, 2019 | Laura King-Homan | infographic, trees
Troubleshooter Aaron Prohaska trims trees that had grown into the power lines at a workshop in LaPlatte. OPPD advises customers not to plant trees underneath power lines. For tree planting tips, visit oppd.com/trees.

Tree trimming is an important part of how OPPD ensures reliable electricity to its customers. Branches falling into lines and electrical equipment are frequently the cause of outages, especially during a storm.

But the process involves more than snipping a branch or two.

OPPD’s foresters and contractors evaluate the location of a tree as it relates to power lines and other electrical equipment. Then they decide how to trim the tree so branches don’t interfere and cause potential outages.

Homeowners are responsible for not planting trees too close to power lines and other equipment. And utilities such as OPPD follow a specific tree-trimming process when working with customers.

The following infographic explains how and why OPPD trims trees the way they do.

TREE-TRIMMING INFOGRAPHIC

 

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About Laura King-Homan

Laura King-Homan is the supervisor, Brand and Communication Operations, at Omaha Public Power District. She has nearly 20 years of print journalism and design experience, including the Omaha World-Herald.

View all posts by Laura King-Homan >

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