Trees & Power Lines

Worker trimming tree Tree Trimming is an important part of being a reliable public power provider.

Why Does PUD 3 Do Tree Trimming?

Tree trimming and vegetation management are tasks that minimize the loss of power and speed up restoration of electricity during outages.

Infographic showing how PUD 3 maintains 1,800 miles of line enough to run from Shelton to Texas.

PUD 3 has over 700 miles of overhead power lines in its service area that need to be protected from tree limbs and overgrown vegetation. Working on a 6-year cycle, the PUD has a goal of clearing approximately 100 miles of right of way each year.

PUD 3 has 2 in-house tree trimming crews that work throughout the year to keep trees away from power lines. During the summer, the PUD uses a contract tree trimming crew and deploys a slashing crew as a part of its vegetation control program.