I had a call from a concerned Beulah resident. She is and has been concerned about the way Gulf Power's (Now Next Energytree-trimming crews are cutting down trees and leaving stumps. She gave me some great information back from the contractor that I'm sharing now.
Obviously, branches and tree limbs must be cleared away from power lines to protect against outages--but there are some consequences of this activity.
According to this resident, the following is applicable to the tree-cutting process this current contractor is using. from her email:
"they have two different trimming
processes in Beulah.
With vegetation easement - Two years ago, Gulf Power tried to
get property owners to sign "vegetation easements" and some
did. If the property owners signed, then Gulf Power has the right to go
in 15' from their property line to "manage" vegetation. The
crew foreman will talk with the property owner before starting work, he
said. The foreman will tell them if he plans to take down a tree
entirely, and the property owner should say they want the stump ground at that
time. If the property owner does not bring it up, it is not done (though
they have gone back months later when customers complained).
Without vegetation easement - Gulf Power can cut
overhanging branches at the property line. The foreman will knock on your
door and discuss what they plan to do before they start (not sure what happens
if you are not there). Sometimes, it would be better to cut the branch
within the property line so that it will heal better, and the foreman will
sometimes ask permission to do that. Or the property owner can give
permission to cut down a tree entirely if they want to.
