TREETILIZATION

A SHARED BENEFITS APPROACH TO PREVENTING TREE AND POWER LINE CONFLICTS

WILLIAM PORTERDIRECTOR OF CONSULTING SERVICES

TRANSFORMING A PROBLEM INTO A BENEFITI. Historical perspectivesII. Perceptions of trees: cultural, ecological

and personal III. Power line conflict challenges: safety, fires,

cost, reliability, and public acceptanceIV. Sustainable solutions with shared benefits

I. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES: PEOPLE, THE CLIMATE AND THE FOREST

• Human survival is dependent on its relationship to natural environments

• We make mistakes and we get chances to correct them

HUMAN ACTIVITY WAS CLEARLY THE CAUSE OF THE PASSENGER PIGEON EXTINCTION• The telegraph • Habitat fragmentation• Systematic taking• Domestication

MINNESOTA ECONOMICS, PRODUCTION, PROFIT AND ECOSYSTEM COLLAPSE 1892

(ROUF, 2012 Univ. of Minnesota)

II. PERCEPTIONS OF TREES: CULTURAL, ECOLOGICAL AND PERSONAL

– universal symbol– bridge the gap – a part of the forest – invading newcomers – exist with fire – individuals– property

ProtectionPreservationRestoration

INSTINCTIVE FEARS OF EXTINCTION

“They took all the trees Put 'em in a tree museum

And they charged the people A dollar and a half just to see 'em”

Joni Mitchell “Big Yellow Taxi”

ATTITUDES TOWARD MANAGEMENT OF TREES HAVE BEEN SHAPED BY U.S. FOREST MANAGEMENT POLICIES

Remember…Only YOU can prevent forest firesUS Forest Service 1947

FOREST ECOLOGY HAS BEEN SHAPED BY PRESERVATION AND FIRE SUPPRESSION• Mesophication• Catastrophic crown fires• Unrecognizable forests

ATTITUDES TOWARD MANAGEMENT OF TREES HAVE BEEN SHAPED BY U.S. FOREST MANAGEMENT POLICIES

“Increasing the pace of restoration of the Nation’s forests is critically needed to address a variety of threats.”USDA Forest Service, 2012

CANADA GEESE TODAYIn the 1940s, Canada geese were near extinction.

III. POWER LINE CONFLICT CHALLENGES:

1. Public safety2. Electric reliability3. Compliance with laws4. Cost effectiveness5. Customer satisfaction6. Fire risk reduction7. Environmental Quality

HISTORY OF UVM

• 1882-1940: UVM a haphazard response, easement rights overlooked

• Early 1900’s – present: Public dissatisfaction • 1940-present: The science of arboriculture

and utility vegetation management

UTILITY VEGETATION MANAGEMENT (UVM): PERCEPTIONS AND MYTHS

• Trees came first• Trees last forever• The utility company is at fault• Butchers trees• Prune too much• Prunes every year• Can prevent all tree failures• When the power goes off • Damages the environment• Ruins private property

The UVM Industryof Today

UVM FACTS

• Power line miles in US– 7.5 M miles of overhead distribution (D)– 0.45 M miles of transmission (T)

• Direct ecosystem management total acres– 28.1 M Acres

• Wider impact total ecosystem acres– 56.4 M Acres (2% of total land mass)

• Utility arborist workforce– 24/7 Mobilization of 40-45,000 tree workers

UVM PERSPECTIVES

• Power line vegetation management is a multi-purpose ecosystem service

• Overhead power lines ecosystem—only trees are impacted

• Public infrastructure not limited to jurisdictions• UVM and overhead power lines are not going

away • Cutting and removing trees is a benefit• Tree care versus utility tree work

ELECTRIC UTILITIES ARE NOT CONSISTENTLY RESOURCED OR FUNDED TO MANAGE THE

PROBLEM, LET ALONE THE SOLUTION

Budget Met Needs Almost All the Time

34%

Budget Met Needs Most of the Time

8%

Budget Not Adequate58%

Vegetation Management Budgets

“THE RISKS TO AND ASSOCIATED WITH ELECTRIC SERVICE CANNOT BE ADDRESSED WITHOUT PUBLIC PARTICIPATION” (GUGGENMOOS, 2013)

• On average, trees cause 24% of electric outages in the US (EEI, 2012)

• About once a week a tree worker is electrocuted

• UVM does not generate revenue

• Many new laws are focused on electric reliability

• UVM is not popular with customers and the public

• Utilities and contractors are held liable for fires and accidents

• 1-2% of wildfires are ignited by tree/wire contacts

Transforming a Problem into a Sustainable Shared Benefit:

TREETILIZATIONTransforming an obstacle into an asset

IV. SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS WITH SHARED BENEFITS

• Treetilization is based on a shift in public perception

• Integrate UVM with other ecosystem services• Design and cultivate ROW quality • Transform forestry challenges to societal

benefits• Encourage (and regulate) the stewardship of

ROW • Manage urban and rural forests for maximum

benefits

URBAN FORESTRY ECOSYSTEM PROBLEMS THAT UVM SHARES

• Invasive species, bee colony collapse

• Power line and tree conflicts

• Droughts, heat islanding• Massive forest crown

fires• Tree mortality• Storm water runoff• Poor water and air

quality

• Climate change• Pesticide use• Disuse, misuse, overuse

and abuse of trees • Mental health• Physical wellbeing• Crime and city blight• Forest fragmentation• Storm damage

WE LIKE TREES AND LIVING IN FORESTS: A NATION OF PLANTERS AND PRESERVERS

• Average tree canopy cover in metropolitan areas of the US is 33.4%

• Average tree canopy cover for the conterminous US is 32.8%

• 3.8 billion trees in urban areas• 74.4 billion trees in metropolitan areas• 319 billion trees in US commercial timberland

(Dwyer 2000)

21ST CENTURY SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT

Understanding Native American Perceptions of Sustainable Forest Management (Tabor,2009)

Forest preservation stems from a desire to continue to receive the benefits the forest has to offer.

“Sustainable forest management is based on the needs of a community..”

ENABLE THE SOLUTION: REGULATIONS• Logging and urban forest safety and best

management practices• Mandatory clearances (CA)• Utility protection zone(CT)• No overhanging branches permitted on certain

voltages (MD)• ROW easement stewardship standards• Right tree right place and ROW Landscape

policies• Planting standards

ENABLE THE SOLUTION: ECONOMIC INCENTIVES

• Ecosystems landscape code• Overhead construction design principles• Definitions and limits of liability • Undergrounding policies• Incentivize the electric customer by

promoting benefits of effective removal and replanting

TREETILIZATION IS A CLIMATE CHANGE RESPONSE• The energy sector’s response to the

challenges of 21st century climate change are:– Energy efficiencies– Renewable energy– Nuclear power (?)

• Where will UVM ecosystem services fit in this equation?

ENERGY DEMAND SIDE MANAGEMENT AND TREE PLANTING

• A planned placement of trees can lead to significant efficiencies in energy consumption

• Evapotranspiration • Heat island mitigation• 8-18% reduced cooling costs• 2-8% reduced heating costs

WHAT TO DO WITH ALL THE URBAN TREES WE LOVE BUT CAN’T KEEP FOREVER

• Employment of woodworkers • 3-4 billion board feet of urban forest

timber• 88% of logs are merchantable species• Demand for LEED certified green building

(Makra 2013)

CONCLUSION 1: TREETILIZATION CAN HELP ENABLE THE FOLLOWING INFRASTRUCTURE BENEFITS

• Carbon sequestration• Improved air quality and temperature

control• Improved water resource management• Fire risk management• Safer work environment for outdoor workers• Erosion control

CONCLUSION 2: TREETILIZATION CAN HELP ENABLE THE FOLLOWING CULTURAL AND ECONOMIC BENEFITS • Improve mental and physical health, and decrease crime• Make trees and landscapes more integral instead of

peripheral to daily life• Get children outdoors and involved with the landscape• Urban Forest Products ANSI A300 Pt. 11• Medicines• Distributed food production• Improve pollinator and wildlife habitat

QUESTIONS?Annotated bibliography for presentation and more information can be found at:

cnutility.com