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Can a Balance Be Found Between Safety And Preserving
 the Integrity of Our Grand Old Neighborhoods

By Robert E. Martin

Back in 1999 I purchased a lovely home in one of Saginaw's 'Grand
Old Neighborhoods' that immediately drew me towards it because of the
canopy of tall century old trees that lining the street.

I also noticed that unlike many neighborhoods, this street was lacking the
eyesore of power lines and poles dangling and planted in the front yard, as
all electrical service was provided through the backyard, which was also
lined with wonderful old trees providing an effect not unlike living up
north, yet being a quick five minute drive from work.

At the time I moved in, I noticed several tree branches had grown close to
the power lines, so hired a tree service to trim potentially hazardous or
disruptive branches away.

Yet little did I expect the onslaught that was to occur not only within the
City of Saginaw, but also Saginaw Township, when shortly before the
Christmas holidays Consumers Energy sent notices to homeowners throughout
the west side of the city stating that areas had been scheduled for tree
trimming and/or removal by the Davey Tree Company, a firm that Consumers'
had contracted with to tackle this sensitive work.

In my own particular instance, the work was conducted in a fairly prudent
manner, apart from the fact that an old planter box on the side of my
garage was knocked down when a branch trimmed over the garage fell.

Additionally, I had requested to be present when the work was conducted,
and fortunately my wife was home when the trucks arrived and phoned me so I
could supervise the trimming.

However, my neighbor did not fair quite so well, having one tree completely
removed from his yard and several others cut back drastically, allowing
visible access to what was previously blocked from view by the planted line
of trees that had been present for decades.

A few weeks later I started noting more drastic examples of Consumer's tree
trimming.  Areas up Gratiot and Malzahn going up to the Saginaw Country
Club has several trees, many 150 years old, that appeared to be completely
butchered - entire sides of the tree stripped clear.

Driving up Brockway, one couldn't help but notice similar methods of
'trimming' whereby branches growing towards the street had been completely
stripped and shaved, and in some instances, cut so that all that remained
was a 20-foot stump and branchless limbs forking into the air.

Consequently, it didn't take long before many people experiencing similar
situations started asking what could be done.

Was there any reason for Consumers to be destroying whatever charm remains
left in the 'grand old neighborhoods' of the city; and more important, was
there anything that could be done about it?

After all, no problems have occurred from many of these century old trees
knocking down power lines in the past.  And in many instances, the secluded
nature of the neighborhoods and surrounding growth has managed to block
high wind damage.

Standards & Practices

	A private 'logger' from Wisconsin hiring tree trimming services out
locally told me that if properly trained, one can tell from experience
which limbs on a tree form susceptible stress points, and in many
instances, only one or two branches need to be removed, not the entire side
of a tree.

Two attorneys that I spoke with indicated that while Consumers Energy is
granted the right of easement through the Public Service Commission
empowered to regulate the utility, a definite 'gray area' exists  in terms
of specific area that the easement grants.

Essentially, while Consumers is granted a legal easement to areas around
power lines, the easement allows them only to access a reasonable area
around the line.  So what is the standard for 'reasonable' and who
determines it?

Moreover, what is the role of government in this picture and can the City
and Township assume more control over the issue by adopting their own
standards and policies?

Saginaw City Council members Andy Coulouris and Carol Cottrell are both
equally concerned about the situation and recently addressed the issue at a
City Council meeting.

"This is definitely an important issue for everyone, and not just the
person who has their trees butchered," states Coulouris.

"Less mature trees means lower property values and that's bad for the
homeowner, the neighborhood, and the city," he continues. "After all, isn't
that the biggest complaint about silly cornfield subdivisions: that they
completely lack any meaningful treescapes?"

"I have spoken with Tom Fancher from the City Attorney's office," Andy
continues, "and he's going to put together a memo on what we can legally do
and have been dong.  To his knowledge, there are no existing policies, but
he thinks there probably could and should be."

Consumers' Response - Safety Comes First

	All of these questions were submitted by The Review and addressed
in a lengthy phone interview with Consumers' Energy media relation's
representative, Jon Hall.

"First and foremost, we trim and remove trees for the safety and
reliability of the electrical system," notes Hall. "The system is only as
strong as it's weakest link and knowing that trees account for 30% of all
electrical interruptions on our system, this is important work to us.
Plus, there are other safety concerns such as whether the trees are
climbable."

" In terms or standards & practices, I need to preface these remarks by
stating there is an inherent conflict as soon as a tree is planted under or
near a power line. These decisions are made by property owners, but if you
put a tree near a power line I can tell you that it will never live to see
it's full mature beauty. And this is a reasonable demand."

But in many instances and especially in older neighborhoods, weren't the
trees in place before the power lines?

"This is true," responds Hall, "and we have easements in those instances
that clearly articulate what can be expected of Consumers in maintaining
that line. We have the right to trim, remove, or otherwise control or
destroy vegetation that interferes or threatens to interfere with safe
levels of electrical delivery in our judgement."

"We have the right to clear 10 feet on either side of the outermost wire,"
states Hall. "The health of the tree does become a factor. If we clear and
it leaves a four foot stub, that is unhealthy for the tree, so we cut it
back to the trunk of the tree."

But what about instances where a trunk of a tree is all that remains
standing along with four stripped branches?

"I can't answer for branches that are on the ground," continues Hall. "If a
planner marked it for trimming and contract crews come through
understanding our expectations, it is done to specifications."

"Regarding easements, the property is already devalued once an easement is
assigned. It is the easement that devalues the property, not the tree
trimming," states Hall.

"The most important thing a person can do is not plant a tree under a power
line. All our ratepayers pay because trees are not planted properly.  We
don't devalue property. What would it do to the value of a piece of
property if it didn't have electricity?"

However, if Consumers was so worried about protecting their power lines,
wouldn't they be better off burying the lines, especially in those old and
valuable areas of the City like Heritage Square?

Ultimately, isn't this an issue of comparative value and doesn't the City
of Saginaw have a legitimate interest to protect the public interest by
protecting the assets & resources of the citizenry?

"We did a cost estimate 10 years ago on the issue of burying lines and it
would cost us $10 billion dollars. The company isn't worth that much and
our rate payers wouldn't pay for it," answers Hall.

"It's difficult to say that a century old tree wouldn't pose a problem
simply because it hasn't in the past," he continues. "You have to look at
the performance in circuits in different areas. It's hard to think of one
area in Saginaw that hasn't had a tree outage."

While this may be true, I can think of more frequent outages due to a
driver running into a pole than a tree interruption, so once again, doesn't
it come down to an issue of money and keeping everybody 'on the grid'?

"No, safety and reliability of the system are the driving considerations,"
responds Hall. "Regarding qualifications, we hire and employ and require
our team leaders to be International Society of Horticulturist Certified.
We use standards set forth by the Michigan Public Service Commission and
add these all together. We have forestry professionals do this every day
that understand growth

patterns in trees."
	While Hall would not divulge specific financial details of the
contract with Davey Tree Company, he did say that Consumers spends $25
million per year on tree trimming.

According to Hall, areas to be trimmed are determined by circuit
performance and the last time an area was trimmed.
"We do as much work as we can with the money that is available.  Some areas
go 10 or 15 years and others can't go five without a trimming. It all
depends on the performance of the circuit, which is a piece of the system
that delivers power to homes and businesses."
But where does this '10-foot' figure come from in terms of actual easement
area?

"The Public Service Commission do not have clear standards in terms of a
specific number," admits Hall. "They have expectations for a safe and
reliable system and the maintenance standards are derived from the electric
safety code whereby it states that any person not certified to work around
an electric line cannot be within 15 feet of it. We factor that in along
with the growth characteristics of the trees."

"I've been immersed in this line cleaning effort for the past two years,"
continues Hall, "and can tell you that it is not a bright thing to do - to
plant a tree near a power line. Just look up in the air before you plant."

In terms of some areas that receive trimming whereas other trees are left
untouched, Hall says he cannot address the question without looking at a
specific area.

"Our planners are Consumers employees that are trained to do just that.
They mark trees with blue paint dots that are to be trimmed and a blue 'X'
means it is scheduled for removal. First we send a postcard, then the
planner goes by and if he cannot make personal contact, he leaves a door
hanger. If a tree is to be severely trimmed we send a letter asking the
customer to please contact us."
"We know people are sensitive to their property and their trees, but have
to balance safety and reliability of the system against their concerns," he
states.

"We recognize the stress that comes from having to do line trimming and
clearing on property. But rest assured, with the right of easement and
mandates from the PSC, along with customer expectations, we will go to
great lengths to get the work done."

"The tree is not trimmed to look pretty by making it round," he adds. "It's
based upon safety and our rate payers are not going to pay for making the
tree look beautiful. They pay to trim it or remove it or control it."

"Some people do opt for buried lines," concludes Hall. "People can choose
to have their services underground. In fact, some subdivisions require an
entire section underground. But my opinion based on experience and reality
is that buried electric wire can be more dangerous than one overhead.
People don't call 'MissDig' when digging in their yards. Imagine hitting an
electric line with a shovel.  Plus, if a fault exists in an overhead line
you can find it quickly and fix it. If you experience a fault in an
underground line it can require a lot of digging, which disturbs a lot of
peoples' property. For those two reasons wires should be in the air and
seen."

"People can pay to have their lines buried or they can change their current
configuration to an underground option, but they do have to pay for it.

"However, we are glad to give them estimates for that option."

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