Generally speaking, healthy trees don’t fall on power lines, and clear lines don’t cause problems. Proactive trimming, pruning and spraying keep lines clear to improve power reliability. However, traditional vegetation management is costly and time consuming. It includes on-the-ground, labor-intensive efforts involving workers overseeing the quality and completion of contractor work. Clarke Electric’s Reliability Plan calls for 20% right-of-way maintenance over a five year cycle.

Planned Outages Improve Reliability
Although it may seem counterintuitive, we also maintain power reliability through planned, controlled outages. By carefully cutting power to one part of our local area for a few hours, we can perform system repairs and upgrades, which ultimately improve electric service. Planned outages can also be used to balance energy demand, but only in rare circumstances. Rest assured, we will always try to notify you in advance of a planned outage, so make sure we have your correct contact information on file to receive the latest information.

Managing vegetation is an essential tool in ensuring power reliability and minimizing the risk of outages. As advancements become more accessible, we anticipate using additional technologies to ensure a consistent energy supply while managing the environment.