PG&E Using Helicopter Saw in Mendocino County to Help Prune Hard-to-Reach Trees

This is a press release from Pacific Gas and Electric Company:

This week, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) will fly a helicopter saw along an electric distribution line in the Brooktrails community, northwest of Willits, as part of safety and reliability work.

A helicopter saw, or heli-saw, is a series of circular saws suspended from a high-performance helicopter used to trim the tops and sides of trees near high voltage transmission and distribution lines. PG&E uses the heli-saw in remote areas to maintain safe and reliable service to its customers.

PG&E will prune the limbs to prevent future power outages and to increase public safety. A helicopter saw is a safe, efficient way to prune trees in remote areas where snow and muddy roads make safe vehicular access to the power lines a challenge.

The work will take place along lines that run in the following areas of Brooktrails:

  *   Sunday, Dec. 8: Goose Road

  *   Monday, Dec. 9: Buckeye Road

  *   Tuesday, Dec 10: Ridge Road

The heli-saw will fly from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

This targeted project is one part of PG&E’s enhanced vegetation management program in which the company prunes or removes approximately 1.4 million trees annually. PG&E’s 70,000 square-mile service area includes more than 120 million trees with potential to grow or fall into overhead power lines.

PG&E inspects and monitors every overhead electric transmission and distribution line each year, with some lines patrolled multiple times (18,000 transmission miles plus 81,000 distribution miles is about 100,000 miles of transmission and distribution lines).

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17 Comments
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NoBody
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NoBody
4 years ago

Thank you and be safe with that thing.
How is that able to trim the tops of trees unless the top is growing sideways?

Paul A Begley
Guest
4 years ago
Reply to  NoBody

They aren’t trimming tops of trees with this. They are trimming the width of trees that are growing too close to the energized power lines. If they trim the tops of trees they have to send actual crews out to do that.

NoBody
Guest
NoBody
4 years ago
Reply to  Paul A Begley

From the article:

“A helicopter saw, or heli-saw, is a series of circular saws suspended from a high-performance helicopter used to trim the tops and sides of trees … “.

Hence my question.

Paul A Begley
Guest
4 years ago
Reply to  NoBody

You are right!!! That was a mistake, or ignorance, by the author of the article. Good catch and my mistake for not reading it how it was written.
The heli saw is NOT used to trim the tops of trees.

Fndrbndr
Guest
Fndrbndr
4 years ago
Reply to  Paul A Begley

Wrong again. The tops are also often sawed off, although this isn’t the objective. The limbs are usually the target, sometimes the tops are taken. This creates a double top tree that is weaker in a windstorm and furthers the problem of breakage and contact with the lines.

Martin
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Martin
4 years ago

The last sentence is completely false. If they had checked all those lines, perhaps there would not have been fires caused by their aging equipment, and lack of caring on their part. They do as little as possible, and just sit and watch the money roll in. I truly hope their dollar settlements flor each customer who lost their home or life will help to ease the pain, and they can begin to rebuild their lives as much as possible. May the ones that died in the fires forever RIP.

Paul A Begley
Guest
4 years ago
Reply to  Martin

One thing to remember is that environmental groups make it nearly impossible to clear out trees and vegetation in the mountains and hills. Environmental groups want everything in those areas to be untouched by humans. PG&E isn’t perfect by any means. But if California continues to give so much power to groups like the Sierra Club and others like them then the forests, mountains, hills, etc will continue to harbor kindling that is suitable for helping start and continue wild fires.
We have to look at everything. Not just PG&E if we are going to enact real change and safety for our mountain communities

Glow In The Dark Humdum
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Glow In The Dark Humdum
4 years ago

How many hours of flight time does that chopper have?

I can’t believe it will be airborne the entire 8 hours, but can it?

Nate Kovacev
Guest
Nate Kovacev
4 years ago

This is ridiculous how much money is it going to be spent on this project I know a great tree climber that has done this job for 25 years and will charge fraction of how much this project is going to cost with his company! Please contact Xtreme Tree Services Removal (707) 755-0946 ask for Keith.

Paul A Begley
Guest
4 years ago
Reply to  Nate Kovacev

That tree climber I’m sure does excellent work, as do all of the tree trimmers I know. The helicopter will be able to trim a whole lot more trees near power lines in a massively shorter amount of time. Plus, some areas are extremely hard to reach by vehicle, let alone walking with all the equipment.
I think there should be a mixture of helicopter trimming and an actual person doing the trimming.

Paul A Begley
Guest
4 years ago

A bureaucracy like PG&E and a bureaucracy like the CA state government makes it nearly impossible to enact common sense solutions to this threatening problem that our mountain communities face nowadays.
If we could only use more common sense to solve problems like this we would save so many lives and so many homes

Fndrbndr
Guest
Fndrbndr
4 years ago
Reply to  Paul A Begley

Paul you are wrong on all accounts. Pge recently used the helisaw on my property. It took them three years to clean up the mess. Only after I filed a complaint with the CPUC. If it would have been a small amount, I would have cleaned it up myself. Knee deep slash 10′ wide on both sides of the line, four acres in distance.
As to your claim of compliance to environmental laws. They spent the whole summer at my property cut probably 200, 30″ and smaller trees and 1,000 saplings. No timber harvest plan. No endangered specie reports. Left many erosion problems. I had to fight all summer to make sure that the job was done correctly. They wanted to leave all the trunks where they fell. I also had to make them clean up all the old poles, wire, insulators, and trash they had left over the years.
If you want to see for yourself, take a walk on the transmission line path. You will be appalled at the disregard for our forests.

Willie Caos-mayham
Guest
4 years ago

🕯🌳Sounds like someone needs to help PG&E with a slightly better plan,and maybe a few more public voices need to be heard. 🎅☃️

mj
Guest
mj
4 years ago

My question is what happens with all the branches they cut? Just left for nice dyr fuel. If they cant get there to cut I doubt they can get there to clean up the mess they make. Sounds like it will increase the overall fire danger.

Fndrbndr
Guest
Fndrbndr
4 years ago
Reply to  mj

The practice is to leave it. Yes, basically taking care of one problem and creating another. They cut the limbs to keep them from contacting the wires. Now the limbs will be beneath the wires where they can dry out and create more danger.
In the article they state hard to access. They can access every pole one way or another. Proof is they were able to drill the holes, set the pole, and stretch the wire.
Dear PGE I am available anytime to argue your reluctance of responsibility.

Country Grown
Guest
Country Grown
4 years ago
Reply to  Fndrbndr

They are not hard to reach areas. I just drove by them using it. About 20 pge guys taking videos and pics of it.

Also wanna mention there’s about 20 tree work crews in brooktrails alone last couple months. So I’m hoping this will get cleaned up too.
Check out the pic below. Cutting trees right off the road.

Country Grown
Guest
Country Grown
4 years ago
Reply to  Country Grown

.