‘Not all these trees pose a threat’ Lexington mayor, city question KU tree removal
Lexington city officials and tree professionals are questioning a recent push by Kentucky Utilities to cut down trees under power lines.
Trees that were once in the median under a transmission line on Southpoint Drive in the Southpoint neighborhood off of Nicholasville Road were recently cut down. A line of stumps is all that remains.
Earlier this spring, the power company axed and trimmed trees in Pinnacle, Waterford and Belleau Woods neighborhoods under a distribution line that leads to a substation on Wilson Downing Road.
It is not known how many trees have been cut down in backyards and along streets.
Mike Mills owns a home in Pinnacle. KU cut down two evergreen trees that were approximately 20 feet tall in his backyard. Mills and his neighbors, who also had trees cut, questioned why the power company was taking down trees when in prior years, those trees were trimmed. According to KU’s website, trees under distribution lines should be no taller than 15 feet.
“They were about 15 or 20 feet from the bottom of the lowest line. From the highest line, it was probably 30 feet in difference,” said Mills. “Those trees had been there for 22 years. What has changed?”
Mills said KU told him the maximum height requirement has always been in place — KU was now enforcing it. When trees were cut on Southpoint, a well-traveled road in south Lexington, people became aware of KU’s latest stance on tree heights under power lines.
“My mother-in-law lives off of Southpoint Drive,” Mills said. “That drive now looks completely different. It’s terrible.”
Kentucky Utilities said the policy to cut trees that grow taller than 10 feet near transmission lines and 15 feet for distribution lines is not new. Keeping trees away from power lines is key to preventing power outages, the company has said.
“We routinely work to maintain areas around transmission infrastructure and rights of way to ensure trees cannot get near or fall into a high-voltage transmission line,” said Daniel Lowry, a spokesman for KU.
The company performs tree maintenance on transmission lines like those on Southpoint on a rotating basis — typically every five years with “the exception of those lines demonstrating the need for more frequent trimming. As part of this approach, some trees will be removed from areas we have not cleared in the recent past.”
But tree professionals say some of the trees that have been axed to stumps under transmission lines by KU are not species that typically grow taller than 10 feet. Some were trees that are on a KU list of acceptable species to plant under transmission lines.
Transmission lines carry electricity across great distances from generating stations to primary substations and are typically installed on larger towers.
“They are clear-cutting trees that are on the approved list,” said Dan Stever, chairman of the city’s Tree Board, which encourages more tree planting in public areas and advises the private sector on tree planting. Stever said he was speaking in his capacity as a volunteer on the board and not for the city.
Stever said the move by KU comes as the city has been trying to improve its tree canopy coverage to the stated goal of 40 percent. A 2014 report showed trees cover just under 25 percent of the city’s core. The city’s tree canopy has eroded in recent years because of a variety of factors, including diseases such as emerald ash borer. Some estimates say more than 30 percent of the city’s tree canopy has been wiped out over the past decade.
“A significant portion of our urban canopy was lost. We continue to lose trees,” Stever said.
Moreover, the city has spent both time and money planting street trees, or trees in the city’s easement.
Stever said he has heard more than $50,000 in trees paid for by the city and other grant money have been cut down by the power company.
In response, Lowry said KU strives to only remove trees that at maturity will grow taller than the maximum allowed height.
“KU reviews the species of each tree that is planned for removal to determine its expected mature height,” Lowry said. “We make every effort to preserve those trees that, at maturity, will maintain an appropriate distance from lines and are not expected to pose a threat to the lines.“
Lexington-Fayette Urban County Councilwoman Susan Lamb first heard about KU’s trimming and cutting trees in March, when homeowners in Pinnacle, Waterford and Belleau Woods neighborhoods contacted her after KU started cutting trees under distribution lines in those neighborhoods.
On its website, KU says its easement, or the land it owns, around large transmission towers can vary between 50 to 500 feet on each side of the tower. For distribution lines, which are lines that are typically found in back or front yards that deliver power to residents and businesses, that easement is between 30 and 50 feet on each side or as much as 100 feet around a pole.
“For some homeowners, that’s their entire backyard,” Lamb said.
Lamb contacted officials at the Kentucky Public Service Commission, which regulates utilities in the state to determine if there was anything the city or homeowners could do. She was told the city and homeowners had little recourse.
“They have the right to cut down any trees that could negatively impact power lines,” Lamb said she was told.
The city is still researching the issue, officials said.
“As we continue to examine KU’s authority to do this, Mayor Gorton asks them to save trees wherever possible,” said Susan Straub, a spokeswoman for the city. “Trees make an enormous contribution to air quality and to the beauty of Lexington neighborhoods. While the mayor understands the importance of keeping power lines clear to minimize repairs, it’s hard to imagine that all of these trees pose a real threat to these lines.”
Trees that are in KU’s easement will not necessarily be replaced. KU has a program that will give homeowners up to $250 per tree for trees cut in backyards.
“We do have a mitigation program for yard trees that provides monetary compensation to enable owners the opportunity to replant trees in an area outside our easement,” Lowry said. “This applies to private residents as well as the city itself. The program is specific to transmission work in urban areas, so please understand that it’s not applicable in every situation.”
Lamb said she has asked KU to clarify what is a transmission line and what is a distribution line. The tree guidelines are different depending on the type of line, she said. That’s created a lot of confusion, she said.
Lamb said home buyers should be aware when purchasing a house where utility easements are located.
“I wish it was required that real estate agents would have to disclose this,” Lamb said. People may be aware there is a utility easement in their yards, but few realize how large that easement is, she said.
Meanwhile, Lowry said the tree maintenance in Lexington will continue this fall, including on Lansdowne Drive in Lexington.
“While this tree trimming and removal work is a critical part of maintaining the system, we are committed to enhancing the environment and landscape across the communities we serve,” Lowry said. “That is why since 1981, we have donated more than 760,000 tree seedlings for planting across our service territories through our annual tree seedling giveaways.”
This story was originally published July 21, 2020 at 7:22 AM.
