Trees have their own life cycle, they grow, mature, and decline. When pruning trees near power lines you must ensure all risks are eliminated. In the forest setting where there is an abundance of space, this is not a problem. In the urban environment things can be a different. Often there are obstacles or targets in the way of falling trees or branches and damage can be done. A large target for broken trees or branches in the urban environment can be power lines. Many outages are caused by trees contacting power lines so it is important to ensure that your trees are a safe distance away. This blog post about pruning trees near power lines will discuss your responsibilities as a tree owner. In regards to power lines and what to do if you think your trees are too close.
The tree Regulations only cover overhead lines and do not include the service line that runs to your property.
As a property owner, you have a duty of care to ensure that your trees or vegetation do not come into contact with power lines. If your trees or vegetation do contact the power lines you could be liable for any damage caused. Details of this can be found in the Tree Regulations, a link for which are at the bottom of the page. Guidelines have been set out for safe distances that tree can be in relation to power lines. The distance varies depending on the voltage of the power line.
Its important you contact a skilled and qualified Arborist for pruning trees near power lines
If your trees are growing within these limits it is important that you get skilled and qualified Arborists to carry out any tree pruning work. They need to be certified for working around the power network. Do not try to clear broken branches or fallen trees away from power lines yourself.
You may receive a cut or trim notice if you do not have your trees pruned clear of the lines. If your trees have not been pruned away from the lines before the first cut is free. Any subsequent pruning is at the property owners expense. If you fail to maintain your trees near power lines you could be fined up to $10000 and be liable for any damage caused to the network.
Under certain circumstances you can declare no interest in a tree on your property and power network take responsibility of it. The result of this is that they may remove it, or prune it severely to reduce the need for it being pruned in the future.
Pruning trees near power lines New Zealand regulations
For more information about trees near power lines and to read the full copy of the regulations click on the below links.
- Electricity (Hazards from Trees) Regulations
- Trees are a major cause of power outages
- Trees and Powerlines PDF
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