Drought conditions create additional challenges for tree trimming
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – While many of us
are counting down to 2012, vegetation management crews across the state are
hustling to finish their work to remove limbs and trees at risk of falling on
power lines during winter storms.
Entergy Arkansas, Inc. maintains more
than 31,000 miles of distribution power lines, and a key component of that
maintenance is managing the vegetation under and near the lines. Access to work
areas in many cases can be difficult, and workers, mostly contractors, routinely
face obstacles ranging from poison ivy to insects and snakes to steep slopes and
swamps. The company’s vegetation management team follows a four-to-five year
cycle to ensure that all lines receive proactive tree maintenance. The work
includes mowing, trimming, applying herbicides and removing tall trees outside
of the right-of-way that are dead and in danger of falling on power lines.
During 2011 Arkansas crews completed more than 7,800 miles of distribution
vegetation management.
“Arkansas is a geographically diverse
state, and every terrain presents its own variety of challenges, both for
preventive maintenance and for restoration work.,” said Don Woods, vegetation
management manager for Entergy Arkansas, Inc. “But we’ve been doing this a long
time, and we know what it takes to minimize the threat of overgrown vegetation
while respecting the environment, whether in the Ozark Mountains or the
Mississippi River Delta.”
The persistent 2011 heat and drought
conditions in the Southern states have created new obstacles in all Entergy
service areas.Vegetation management groups typically spend the bulk of their
efforts maintaining vegetation and trees in the immediate vicinity of the power
lines. However, another threat is tall dead trees that are far enough from the
lines to be outside of the right-of-way, but near enough to fall on the power
lines if and when they fall. With the drought, these dead trees, known in the
business as “danger trees” are plentiful. Workers have removed about 9,000 dead
trees since January. This year’s drought conditions will continue to affect tree
maintenance requirements for 2012 and beyond.
“It is sad to see the devastating
effects of the drought up close,” added Woods. “We work diligently to find the
balance between preservation, reliability, and customer satisfaction.”
Entergy Arkansas also participates in
tree-planting projects and public education programs to teach people steps they
can take to help the environment. In October, Entergy Corporation teamed up with
the Arbor Day Foundation to provide 10,000 free trees to customers in Arkansas,
Mississippi, Louisiana, New Orleans and Texas. The effort was part of the Arbor
Day Foundation’s pilot Energy-Saving Trees program aimed at helping conserve
energy through strategic tree-planting. Entergy Arkansas encourages planting the
“right tree in the right place” to avoid future tree maintenance work under or
along energized power lines.
Entergy Arkansas, Inc. provides
electricity to more than 698,000 customers in 63 counties. It is a subsidiary of
Entergy Corporation. Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged
primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations.
Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of
electric generating capacity, and it is the second-largest nuclear generator in
the United States. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.7 million utility customers
in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.
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entergy-arkansas.com
Twitter: @EntergyARK
