A right-of-way after being cleared by aerial saw in Boone County, W.Va.
The mountains and forests that make our region one of the most beautiful in the country also create unique challenges for delivering reliable electric service. Trees are responsible for more than half of all power outages, making vegetation management one of the most important ways Appalachian Power Company (APCo) helps keep the lights on for our customers.
While vegetation growing within our rights-of-way is routinely inspected and maintained, the greatest threat to electric reliability comes from trees located outside those areas; in fact, trees outside our rights-of-way are the leading cause of power outages. To help address this challenge, we have expanded our vegetation management efforts by identifying and removing high-risk trees outside rights-of-way that could cause future outages affecting large numbers of customers. This proactive approach helps strengthen system reliability and reduce the likelihood of widespread service interruptions.
“Our customers expect reliable electric service, and effective vegetation management plays a critical role in meeting that expectation,” said Jason Baker, APCo’s Vice President of Distribution Operations. “Keeping our rights-of-way as clear as possible helps reduce outages, improve service reliability and better serve our customers across the communities we power.”
Although our vegetation management practices vary across the states we serve to align with local conditions and operational needs, our goal remains the same: reduce tree-related outages and provide customers with safe, reliable electric service.
- Tennessee: In Tennessee, we use a system called cycle-based vegetation management. This program began in 2018 with the goal of clearing all overhead lines over a four-year period. This method allows for vegetation management on entire circuits to improve reliability for all customers.
- Virginia: We maintain more than 26,000 miles of overhead power lines in Virginia. Our maintenance program is developed on a yearly basis using current vegetation conditions and outage history data to focus our resources where the need is greatest. For example, we’re implementing targeted vegetation management efforts in areas that have experienced the most reliability challenges in recent years.
- West Virginia: In West Virginia, we use a cycle-based vegetation management program to help maintain safe and reliable electric service. The program launched in 2014 with the objective of clearing vegetation along all overhead power lines over a six-year period. The initial effort has since been completed, and crews now maintain our circuits end-to-end on a four-year cycle, resulting in more than 5,100 cleared miles annually. Since its implementation in 2014, our vegetation management program in the state has reduced the minutes of service interruptions experienced by customers by 88%.
Managing vegetation across our service territory is no small task. Dense forests, steep terrain and the sheer number of trees throughout the region can make access challenging. To safely and efficiently maintain our rights-of-way, Forestry crews use a variety of specialized equipment, including aerial saws, bucket trucks, manual-climbing tree crews and mechanical trimmers.
While vegetation management cannot prevent all outages during major storms and severe weather events, it helps reduce the frequency of everyday outages and minimizes their impact. Keeping trees and vegetation away from power lines and other electrical equipment also improves accessibility for crews, allowing them to safely inspect, maintain and restore equipment more quickly when outages occur.
Learn more about how we maintain your rights-of-way at AppalachianPower.com/TreeTrimming, and view the videos below for information from Aaron H., Josh F. and Stan W., three of our Foresters working to provide you with more reliable power.