Expenses to maintain the right of way have increased dramatically over the past several years for Tri-State Electric Membership Corp. They were in a 4-5 year cycle for cutting, but that cycle has been reduced to just over three years due to the increase in the growing season.
The solution for them is herbicide.
The company did a beta test in Violet last year, General Manager Stacy Chastain said. The company was pleased with the results of that test, so they are in their second year of spraying herbicide to control vegetation around power lines.
They are not the only ones making the switch to herbicides. In 2012, Blue Ridge Mountain Electric Membership Corp. began using limited amounts of herbicides to control woody-stemmed vegetation on rights of way.
Managing vegetation
Both companies said vegetation needs to be controlled to reduce the number of power outages and provide quicker resolutions to power outages.
“BRMEMC repair crews have a much easier time visually locating damage
in rights of way free of woody-stemmed vegetation,” said Kelly Crawford, manager of media and
communications for Blue Ridge Mountain EMC. “Additionally, clear rights of way make it much easier and quicker for BRMEMC repair crews to access downed and/or damaged lines and poles with necessary equipment.”
Chastain said they use Milestone and Vastly herbicides applied at a low volume, and only target individual woody plants. Those two herbicides do not have glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup.
He added that these herbicides can help increase the wildlife habitat and do not affect wildflowers, which helps the bee population. The products are also approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for pasture use.
On rights of way
Tri-State EMC, which contracts the spraying out to Progressive Solutions, is only using the herbicides on right of ways where there is enough growth to identify the plants.
“We’re not in people’s yards spraying,” Chastain said. “That’s already maintained.”
Crawford said Blue
Ridge Mountain EMC’s crews are trained and licensed to only use herbicides on the electric distribution right of way, and away
from nearby garden
and yard vegetation and waterways.
“The herbicides being applied are labeled for this type of use and are not much different than those products any consumer can purchase for home use at farm or garden stores,” she said.
“The herbicides are safe around waterways and are safe to vegetation that is off the right of way, and not directly located in the spray area.”
Crawford added that the herbicides attach to the plant material and soil particles, so there’s virtually no runoff. Plus, crews use an anti-drift agent to avoid spraying areas outside the right of way.
Aerial spraying
Over the summer, Duke Energy paused its aerial herbicide spraying program in the region for the rest of the year, spokesperson Meghan Miles said. The program was paused to communicate with customers.
She said Duke’s trained maintenance crews manage plant growth in an environmentally sound manner. Aerial application was being used on areas of high brush density, hard-to-reach areas and rough terrain to control vegetation.
The company is only
continuing to use aerial spraying on property it owns in western North Carolina. It is still using ground-based crews to administer herbicide on rights of way, and applied herbicide to about 185 miles of vegetation in Cherokee County this year. The company also maintains the rights of way through mowing.
“In order to keep electricity reliable, we have a responsibility to protect the lines that deliver it to homes and businesses across our region,” Miles said.
Duke has been using herbicides for about 25 years. It utilizes three different types of application in its program – foliar application from May through December, dormant-stem application from October through April, plus cut-stump and vine application throughout the year.
Not so safe
Some local residents don’t trust what the power companies are claiming about herbicides.
“I wouldn’t trust any herbicide near waterways, animals or gardens,” Michelle Brooks said.
About two years ago, someone sprayed along the power lines on Brooks’ property in Hot House.
“Whatever chemical they used, it still looks dead two years later, over a creek,” she said.
Brooks said she witnessed, and used to have video, of spraying over the creek, near her chickens and by her neighbor’s cows.
“They literally sprayed right into the creek,” she said. “That’s either not trained or don’t care.”
The creek is used for irrigation of her crops and neighboring farms. In addition, a neighbor’s dog ended up with a bad chemical burn and was nearly blinded after going into weeds that were sprayed.
“No one can tell me anything they are spraying is safe. That doesn’t seem safe to me,” Brooks said.
She complained to Blue Ridge Mountain EMC, Cherokee County and the N.C. Department of Transportation, but none claimed responsibility. However, her property was put on a no-spray list by both the power company and the county.
A different way
Although they’ve also noticed an increase in overgrowth, Murphy Electric Power Board has not started using herbicide and does not plan to, General Manager Larry Kernea said.
“I don’t like using it,” Kernea said, admitting that he and his board have not looked much into herbicide use and he wasn’t an expert on the topic.
“We’re a little bit different,” he added.
The electric company has a more compact 600 miles of service area, and Kernea said they need to maintain their labor force for storm recovery. When his crews are not doing repairs or new construction work, they are out maintaining rights of way.
There’s been some pressure lately due to the extended growth, but he doesn’t see the need for herbicides in their situation.
“That works for us,” Kernea said.