Our Vegetation Management Program

Trees enhance the quality of life in every community—converting carbon dioxide to oxygen, keeping the air clean. Diseased or damaged trees, trees with structural defects, poor-performing species, and trees growing in the wrong place frequently cause power outages when they contact our overhead electric lines.

We maintain more than 36,000 miles of electric distribution lines in New York, and estimate that our service lines are exposed to over 12 million trees. Trees are one of the leading causes of power outages. Our vegetation management program ensures safety and reliability for the 1.6 million customers we serve in New York.

To help maintain reliable electric service, we will visit your neighborhood every five to seven years to trim around high-voltage power lines. We adhere to industry guidelines and do not trim outside of our schedule unless there is a significant hazard affecting wires.

To learn more about how to manage the trees that grow around the distribution lines that power your homes and businesses, read more about our trimming policies and planting near electric lines.

Our Tree Pruning Program

To ensure safety and electric service reliability, we schedule tree trimming every five to seven years adhering to the industry's “best practices.” Our professional utility arborists regularly review where pruning or other work is needed to keep branches and trees away from power lines. We have repeatedly been designated a Tree Line USA utility by the Arbor Day Foundation for excellence in tree care, worker training, public education, and community tree planting.

We use a technique called directional pruning in order to naturally train and direct growth away from the wires. This method is a true benefit to the health of the tree as it reduces disease and decay entry points. We only hire certified contractors to do this work and schedule trimming by geographic location. Unless there is a significant tree hazard affecting the electric wires in your area, we do not perform tree trimming outside of our vegetation management schedule.

Our trimming focuses on tree branches that may interfere with primary power lines (the line at the top of the pole). We do not trim trees or branches that affect individual customer service lines or phone and cable wires.

Before our vegetation management work begins, we make every effort to notify our customers in advance through postcards, door hangers, and in-person visits. We trim trees to maintain a minimum of 10-15 feet of clearance from our power lines.

As part of our tree trimming process, crews will chip most of the branches removed from the trees in your yard. Larger wood pieces that cannot be chipped will be cut into manageable lengths and left near the base of the tree. In natural areas that are not actively maintained, some brush or wood may be left to naturally decompose.
 

Responsibilities for Homeowners and Landowners

While we maintain trees near electric distribution lines as a part of our vegetation management program, homeowners and/or landowners may occasionally choose to complete additional trimming. If additional pruning work is desired beyond what we provide in our scheduled maintenance program, you may hire an electrically qualified tree contractor to complete that work at your own expense. We will work closely with you and your qualified contractor.

We appreciate your cooperation during our routine maintenance work. Property owners are sometimes hesitant to authorize tree trimming on their property. If a property owner does not permit us to properly trim or remove trees, the property owner may elect to sign a statement accepting responsibility and financial liability for any and all resulting damages and/or claims related to future electric service interruptions or damage caused by your tree(s).

If work is needed: we work closely with homeowners and their contractors to temporarily disconnect service for safe trimming or tree removal. Please call us at 1-800-642-4272 at least five days in advance of the work.