Tree Topping Hurts?

Recently the Knoxville Utilities Board (KUB) has been in a battle with a prominent local citizen over their tree trimming policy. KUB has been working on “preventive maintenance” to lessen the effects of storms on power outages; by trimming nearby trees away from the utilities right of way they hope to lessen the power outages caused by trees and limbs falling on power lines during thunderstorms and when it snows.

A prominent local citizen feels infringed upon because one of the trees they want to trim is in his yard. This created a review process that the utility is undergoing to justify their policy and to provide a citizen forum to implement future public policy regarding the protection of KUB’s right of way. So, what does this mean to the average citizen, or more importantly, where will we see utility rates go from here?

Obviously, power outages are inconvenient to us all. They cause accidents when traffic signals fail and they cause hardships on businesses and families. KUB attempts to prevent these outages by clearing away limbs and trees that, during a storm, would blow, sway, or fall and interfere with the power lines themselves.

Preventive clearing of these obstacles is cheaper, because crews are not on overtime and the work can be scheduled in an orderly fashion. If the door is opened for customers to contest this process, then the utility will have to “request permission” from the homeowner before they can clear a right of way they have already compensated the homeowner for in the past. This will lead to higher rates as KUB implements additional procedures and legal obstacles to reduce damage to power lines and equipment. So what is the answer?

Maybe homeowners should have to sign a waiver accepting any liability for the expense of clearing the power line during a storm and assume the liability to citizens for any damage caused by the power outage. Maybe because you were fixing dinner for an important family function or client, you can sue the owner of the tree because they didn’t let KUB prevent the power outage in the first place. Or perhaps KUB should charge the replacement of transformers and power poles to those homeowners that don't keep the right away clear themselves.

In the end, the only ones that will benefit are the lawyers that represent each side.