Only certified workers can trim trees near power lines

Can anyone trim trees near power lines? The answer is no. Specialized tree trimmers, certified by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in utility clearance, are the only persons legally allowed to trim within 10 feet of power lines.

OSHA requires this certification because electricity is a serious and widespread hazard to tree workers or anyone working around them. According to the Tree Care Industry Association, electricity is the leading cause of death in the tree care industry, causing about 15 percent of all industry fatalities. You do not have to directly contact a power line to be electrocuted; about half of all electrocution fatalities of tree workers are the result of indirect contact.

Qualified line-clearance trimmers must be specially trained in how to safely work in proximity to energized lines. They must understand how an electrical grid functions, the effects of tree growth patterns and tree damage and how to implement directional pruning, as required by the American National Standard for Arboricultural Operations’ safety standards.

A professionally certified tree trimmers typically must:

• wear properly approved personal protective equipment, including fall protection equipment when needed.
• work with a second line-clearance tree trimmer within voice range.
• Determine the voltages of lines before work begins or assuming that the line is operating at the highest possible voltage if it is not possible to determine voltage.
• Use only insulated tools and equipment to remove branches and limbs that are in contact with, or are within the minimum approach distance of, energized lines or equipment.
• Determine if weather conditions are no longer safe to work in, such as the presence of high winds, ice, thunder or lightning that would make the work hazardous.
• Begin work on storm restoration efforts in the aftermath of a storm ONLY if they have been trained in the special hazards involved with this type of work.

If you do not have the qualifications above, do not trim trees anywhere near power lines. Please contact your power provider if you have any questions about tree trimming.