Trees Near Powerlines: This Is Where DIY Tree Work Stops

TREAT POWERLINES AS LIVE

This is the starting point.

WorkSafe guidance says overhead and underground powerlines should be considered live unless they have been properly isolated and earthed.

Don’t assume a line is safe because:

• It looks like a small rural line
• The power appears to be off
• A branch has been touching it for some time
• The line has fallen to the ground
• You can’t hear or see anything happening

Electricity doesn’t need to give you a warning first.

THE TREE DOESN’T HAVE TO BE TOUCHING THE LINE

A common mistake is looking at a branch and thinking:

“It’s not touching the wire, so we’re all good.”

That isn’t enough.

You also need to think about where the branch could move once it is cut.

A limb can swing, spring, rotate or fall further than expected.

Wind can move both trees and overhead conductors, and the weight of a person climbing a tree can also change the position of branches.

WorkSafe advises people not to cut or trim trees that could fall onto powerlines or that are touching them. It also warns against climbing trees where lines run through or close to the canopy.

LOOK UP BEFORE YOU START

Before any tree work starts, take a proper look around the entire tree.

Don’t only look at the branch you want to remove.

Check for:

• Overhead distribution lines
• Service lines running to buildings
• Lines hidden among foliage
• Poles behind or beside the tree
• Branches growing above conductors
• Branches that could swing towards a line when cut

On rural properties particularly, overhead lines can become such a familiar part of the landscape that people almost stop seeing them.

IT’S NOT JUST THE CHAINSAW YOU NEED TO THINK ABOUT

The electrical hazard isn’t limited to the branch or the saw.

Anything being used around the tree needs to be considered.

That can include:

• Ladders
• Pole pruners
• Long-handled tools
• Ropes and rigging
• Elevated work platforms
• Tractors and loaders
• Other tall machinery

WorkSafe’s rural guidance gives a general minimum safe approach distance of four metres when working near overhead powerlines and recommends allowing additional distance for unintended movement of machinery.

Tree work itself can involve additional requirements and specialised approach distances depending on the voltage, work method and competency of the worker.

So don’t treat four metres as permission to start pruning a tree beside a line.

WHAT IF A BRANCH IS ALREADY TOUCHING THE POWERLINE?

Leave it alone.

Don’t:

• Grab the branch
• Pull it with a rope
• Try to shake it free
• Climb the tree
• Cut the branch from the ground
• Assume the electricity will automatically switch off

WorkSafe guidance says that where part of a tree is contacting or resting on live powerlines, work should stop and the network operator needs to be involved.

If a line has come down, keep people and animals clear and treat it as live.

DON’T TRY TO CATCH A TREE HEADING TOWARDS A LINE

This sounds obvious when you read it sitting safely at home.

In the middle of a job, instinct can be different.

If a branch or part of a tree starts falling towards a powerline, do not try to grab it, push it or stop it.

WorkSafe’s tree-work guidance specifically says no attempt should be made to stop a tree or branch that is falling towards a live powerline.

Move clear and deal with what has happened from a safe position.

NOT EVERY ARBORIST CAN SIMPLY WORK BESIDE LIVE LINES

This is another important distinction.

Tree work close to live electrical conductors is specialist work.

Depending on where the tree sits in relation to the lines and the type of work required, the electricity network operator may need to be contacted and specialist utility arborists or specific safety procedures may be required.

WorkSafe’s guidance recognises specific competency, equipment and work-planning requirements for tree work within powerline vegetation-management zones.

So the first job is often not to start pruning.

It’s to establish who needs to be involved.

THE BEST TIME TO DEAL WITH IT IS BEFORE IT REACHES THE LINES

Good vegetation management can prevent a difficult situation from developing in the first place.

If trees are growing towards overhead lines, don’t wait until branches are tangled through the conductors before thinking about them.

Regular assessment can help identify:

• Branches growing towards the lines
• Trees becoming too large for their location
• Deadwood that could fall towards conductors
• Storm-damaged limbs
• Trees that may eventually require specialist management

Planning early usually gives you more options than dealing with a tree once it has become an electrical hazard.

POWERLINES ARE WHERE DIY TREE WORK STOPS

If a tree is growing close to overhead lines, touching them or could fall into them, don’t experiment.

The right first step is to assess the tree, the lines and the work required, then determine whether the electricity network operator or appropriately qualified tree workers need to be involved.

Kirkwood NZ can assess the wider tree or vegetation issue and help work out the appropriate next step.

For ongoing vegetation issues, see our vegetation management services, our tree maintenance services, or contact Kirkwood NZ.