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Taxmantoo

Plays with chainsaws
. AS Supporting Member.
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http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20090310/COLUMNISTS09/903100321/1016/COLUMNISTS09

Danise Audette expected a trim. What she got was a massacre.

Audette, who lives in northwest Lansing, came home from work Thursday to find that a 12-foot-tall Chinese elm hedge - a privacy buffer between her backyard and that of her neighbor - had been reduced to eight or nine ground-level stumps by a crew hired by the Lansing Board of Water & Light.
In a heartsick e-mail to me, Audette wrote:

"I planted those trees in 1998, the first year I lived in this house. They were the first things I planted on my own. They were a beautiful, natural backdrop ..."

The execution left Audette with a view of a beat-up trampoline and a rusty grill.

On Friday, I forwarded Audette's complaint to BWL spokesman Mark Nixon.

Nixon acknowledged Monday that Asplundh Tree, the Pennsylvania-based company the utility hired to trim trees threatening power lines, screwed up.
'Honest mistake'

"We apologize to Ms. Audette," Nixon wrote in an e-mail. "An honest mistake was made. Apparently, the crew mistakenly believed the hedge trees, whose trunks were two inches or less in diameter, to be brush. The trees were under power lines in Ms. Audette's backyard. Because the trees are dormant this time of year, the crew likely believed them to be brush."

Nixon said the contractor will, on behalf of BWL, meet with Audette on Wednesday in an attempt to determine compensation.

That ought to be interesting. What's adequate compensation for a sudden loss of a privacy wall that took 11 years to cultivate?

"I just want to cry," Audette said.

Audette knew the trees were due for a haircut. A couple of weeks ago, she received a standard notice from BWL telling her the hedge would get a "trimming."

"Yes, they needed to be trimmed," she wrote, "but they didn't need to be destroyed."
Working it out

Although Asplundh has an office in Mount Pleasant, it's based in Willow Grove, Pa., where I reached Kristin Wild in corporate communications. She declined to comment, except to say Asplundh was working with BWL to resolve the matter.

As for the question of why BWL is contracting with an out-of-state tree trimmer, Nixon explained it this way:

"We do give preference, whenever possible, to Lansing-based and Michigan-based companies. But lower cost is definitely a factor. So is the ability to do the work.

"You need qualified, certified companies that can do the work per industry standards and best practices. From what I'm told, there are not many tree service companies in the U.S. that have the skills, the manpower and the equipment to handle the scope of work that utilities require."

Nixon added that the contractor makes "every effort to hire local, or at least Michigan, employees for this work."
 
All they care about is clearance, not the health or appearance of the trees. I little communication of what was going to be done to the tree witht the homeowner before hand would have been good.
 
If they leave them alone they'll probably sprout back from the stumps and grow twice as fast as before , the little weeds that they are.
 
If they leave them alone they'll probably sprout back from the stumps and grow twice as fast as before , the little weeds that they are.

Chinese Elm 'hedge' trees. In other words, trees that, by natural habit, are capable of growing to 50' tall but, through annual topping, are hacked into shrub form. It should never have been planted under a utility in the first place.

The offense, as I see it, is that the utility (represented by the contractor, Asplundh) should never have allowed the chinese elm hedge to develop. They should have informed the homeowner immediately after it was planted that it was not an acceptable species for the location. By allowing the hedge to develop for ten years, they were giving the homeowner their 'non-verbal consent' of her plant choice and the utility should now be liable for replacing it. Had they properly advised her ten years ago, she could now have a mature hedge of a proper species vs stumps from an improper species.
 
Now if what they mean by honest mistake is " yes that is honestly a mistake" ,I would agree but cutting down the ladies stuff is just stupidity and I hate when some loss control idiot tries to make it sound like it is just a simple mistake when its complete and utter negligence.
 
Chinese Elm 'hedge' trees. In other words, trees that, by natural habit, are capable of growing to 50' tall but, through annual topping, are hacked into shrub form. It should never have been planted under a utility in the first place.

The offense, as I see it, is that the utility (represented by the contractor, Asplundh) should never have allowed the chinese elm hedge to develop. They should have informed the homeowner immediately after it was planted that it was not an acceptable species for the location. By allowing the hedge to develop for ten years, they were giving the homeowner their 'non-verbal consent' of her plant choice and the utility should now be liable for replacing it. Had they properly advised her ten years ago, she could now have a mature hedge of a proper species vs stumps from an improper species.


Good point but unlikey to happen. The are tossing in oak round here. They actually just moved a whole line of 3 year old plantings ( about 20 feet high) a few more feet back from the wires. Still not far enough.
 
Chinese Elm 'hedge' trees. In other words, trees that, by natural habit, are capable of growing to 50' tall but, through annual topping, are hacked into shrub form. It should never have been planted under a utility in the first place.

The offense, as I see it, is that the utility (represented by the contractor, Asplundh) should never have allowed the chinese elm hedge to develop. They should have informed the homeowner immediately after it was planted that it was not an acceptable species for the location. By allowing the hedge to develop for ten years, they were giving the homeowner their 'non-verbal consent' of her plant choice and the utility should now be liable for replacing it. Had they properly advised her ten years ago, she could now have a mature hedge of a proper species vs stumps from an improper species.

Good Point but what if there are some real dirt bags living behind her and she doesn't care to see them? Chinese elm are almost unkillable and true grow like stink. As far as I'm concerned the hydro companies are making huge profits and should be putting their lines under ground. Along with telephone and cable! The bloody problem is ceo's and the shareholders don't want to lose any of their profits. Bunch of pencil pushing slimebags!!:censored::censored:
 
11 years in place they probably had been trimmed 2-3 times for ROW.

She will probably get a row of Arborvitae as a replacement.

Are you saying that to have them pruned 2-3 times in 11 years for ROW is not much or a lot, JPS? To me, once every 5 years isn't bad. I would have expected more often depending on how high the utilities were.

Also, are you saying that Arborvitae is a better or worse replacement for chinese elm? I see it as a toss-up as far as aesthetics go. However, the wrong species of arborvitae (or any other plant for that part) would still require the same amount of maintenance.
 
typical Asplundh mess up

Easy to say, Asplundh does what the utility tells them to, so, why do you blame them? Do you know it was thier fault? I have worked lots of utility jobs, people screaming and crying, blaming the tree guys. Pathetic, we just do what Hydro asks.
 
asplund does a lot of training but they actual practus of proper pruning methods is up to the foremen and workers. employees are not held accountable for making flush cuts, rip cuts, or not utilizing drop crotch methods. but then again i've only seen asplund in the U.P. of Michigan and now for a year in Denver, CO. Its kind of like any area where people work in trees. Some city forester/arborists will say a company does a good job... yet they will also tell you that they have a list of names from within the company that they "better not see on a city job". We all know there's guys and gals who dont give a dam about our profession. Yet some people still hire them because every person will make the company a little more money (as employers see it); when in reality they cost the company money showing up drunk, loosing their drivers license, and doing a poor job making the rest of the employees look bad.
 
asplund does a lot of training but they actual practus of proper pruning methods is up to the foremen and workers. employees are not held accountable for making flush cuts, rip cuts, or not utilizing drop crotch methods. but then again i've only seen asplund in the U.P. of Michigan and now for a year in Denver, CO. Its kind of like any area where people work in trees. Some city forester/arborists will say a company does a good job... yet they will also tell you that they have a list of names from within the company that they "better not see on a city job". We all know there's guys and gals who dont give a dam about our profession. Yet some people still hire them because every person will make the company a little more money (as employers see it); when in reality they cost the company money showing up drunk, loosing their drivers license, and doing a poor job making the rest of the employees look bad.

In this province anyone who works around power is trained to make proper cuts. Asplundh included. Improper cuts or stubs are noted and have to be fixed, stubs that is. I am qualified, I make proper cuts, I have seen some really good utility trimming form Asplundh. I am talking about trees in the city growing on either side of and above the line. Trees that look good, that should have never been allowed to live.
 
"You need qualified, certified companies that can do the work per industry standards and best practices. From what I'm told, there are not many tree service companies in the U.S. that have the skills, the manpower and the equipment to handle the scope of work that utilities require"

Or what utilities (and ultimately the customer)are willing to pay for IMHO

The neighbourhood/city I lived in when I was in Ottawa probited the planting of such fast growing weeds. But some people planted them anyways. People are generally ignorant about what to plant on city lots-our TO neighbours planted a weeping willow right next to the fence on the property line-my parents had to have several words with the neighbours before the finally removed it.
 
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Its good to hear asplund has a good name in some necks of the woods. In Michigan and in Colorado I've had many jobs where I had to fix what utility clearance workers did.

Clearance I'm glad your one of utility clearance workers who takes pride in their work.

My main point is their are crews around, where someone if not all in the crew are just doing what we call our profession as a job; for the pay check.

Clearance workers have a difficult task to prune or remove trees that should have never been planted in the first place. I hate when HO's just plant trees w/out knowing span and height of the species.

Hey Taxmantoo by chance was there a language issue between the workers and the supervisor/work order?
 
Having worked utility rows two decades I would likely have contacted her and told her they were going to be eliminated. It is too easy to blame a company that had not been notified of planting hazards and cost manipulative plants in a row! The same ones bit?hing about cutting their trees down bitc? about high costs of power! It should be law to notify utilities of planting on any row and followed up by a utility arborist as to amicable species and location of said plants. As for the one speaking underground it took fifty years to establish the infrastructure not only that, underground kills more trees than any other form of utility!
 
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Good Point but what if there are some real dirt bags living behind her and she doesn't care to see them? Chinese elm are almost unkillable and true grow like stink. As far as I'm concerned the hydro companies are making huge profits and should be putting their lines under ground. Along with telephone and cable! The bloody problem is ceo's and the shareholders don't want to lose any of their profits. Bunch of pencil pushing slimebags!!:censored::censored:

Simple as that? Go underground? Umm, no. No, for alot of reasons, some of which don't apply here. Anyway, they'd just find a way to pass on the cost if it were feasible to go totally underground.

For one, the easement wouldn't allow for trees anyway. You see, trees, believe it or not, have their own underground system...they are called roots. Many people disregard this, so my cynical snicker is not really pointed at you, though, feel free to be offended.

You'd have less room to work with if everything went underground. At least with the right tree right place approach you have some options.

I've trimmed thousands of trees that enjoy a wonderful life missing a couple of branches. Although sometimes they do appear less than our idea of perfect, we professionals, I should say, are much easier on subject trees than nature can often be, with respect to both health and appearance.

Besides, if a homeowner isn't paying attention to utility right of ways when they are easily noticed in the air, how much worse will it be when they can't see them.

The real key here is education and harmony on all sides. I'm glad to walk that line everyday, talk with homeowners, and help keep the power going and the trees growing.
 
i think for tha amount of work that a company like asplundh does they have a excellent rep. and deserve much more credit than given. Furthermore half of the trees and landscape planted in the r.o.w shouldn't be there anyway homeowners just assume that it is o.k. to plant landscape, trees and throw trash there and than complain when it gets removed. guess what i guarantee that those trees weren't on her prop, and who cries over elms anyway .lol
 
i think for tha amount of work that a company like asplundh does they have a excellent rep. and deserve much more credit than given. Furthermore half of the trees and landscape planted in the r.o.w shouldn't be there anyway homeowners just assume that it is o.k. to plant landscape, trees and throw trash there and than complain when it gets removed. guess what i guarantee that those trees weren't on her prop, and who cries over elms anyway .lol

She wasn't crying over elms, she was crying over stumps. ;)

I have yet to come across anyone in this industry that has any appreciation for asplundh, utility companies included.

When you pull up to McDonalds...you get McDonalds.
 
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