VICTORIA'S Energy and Resources Minister, Peter Batchelor says trees growing in close proximity to power lines are a safety risk and can cause fires and power outages.
According to the Minister, trees should have a minimum two metre clearance around all power lines and a six metre clearance for high voltage lines. While pruning foliage near power lines is often the responsibility of local councils or electricity companies, in some cases trees will be the responsibility of the landowner.
The Minister says property owners should contact councils if local trees are encroaching upon power lines, and those carrying out tree pruning on your private property in the vicinity of power lines, should take extreme care and employ commonsense.
Batchelor says only authorised power line pruning contractors should prune trees touching or in close proximity to power lines. The local electricity distribution company should be able to provide a list of qualified power line pruning contractors in your area.
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