Do you ever stop to think about how much we rely on electricity? It’s there from the moment we wake up to the time we hit the pillow at night, working behind the scenes to keep our lives running smoothly.
Wasco Electric Cooperative does many things to keep its system safe and reliable, including maintaining system equipment, placing monitoring devices on power lines to detect disturbances, and patrolling and clearing rights-of-way.
WEC has 2 tree crews. 1 focuses on ROW clearing, and the other addresses member requests or specific projects.
Rights-of-way are the property where a utility has been granted the legal right to install and maintain its infrastructure, power lines, poles, and other equipment. Clearing includes removing vegetation, trees, and shrubs on that property to ensure they do not grow into the power lines.
Within WEC’s service territory is a vast landscape of terrain and vegetation that is continually monitored and addressed, but the main reasons we make clearing a priority are safety, reliability, and fire prevention.
- Safety. Overhanging branches, vegetation, or other obstructions can pose hazards, especially during severe weather conditions, such as storms or high winds. Falling trees or branches can cause power outages, damage infrastructure, and endanger lives. By maintaining clear rights-of-way, WEC mitigates these risks, improving the safety of crews and the public.
- Reliability. Limited access to power lines and equipment is crucial for maintaining the system’s reliability. Vegetation growing into power lines can lead to line faults, tripped circuits, and voltage fluctuations, resulting in power outages. Regular ROW clearing helps reduce outages and helps with our mission to provide reliable power to our members.
- Fire prevention. Overgrown vegetation near power lines increases the risk of wildfires during dry and windy conditions throughout our service territory. ROW clearing plays a vital role in fire prevention efforts by creating defensible space around power infrastructure, reducing the likelihood of ignition, and limiting the spread of wildfires.
Right-of-way clearing is a standard practice for the cooperative. By maintaining clear space around our infrastructure, we continue to provide our members with safe and reliable power.