Help Center
Vegetation Management
FAQs
It’s all about keeping the lights on! Put simply, trees are one of the most common causes of blinking lights and outages. Proper right-of-way maintenance, which includes maintaining a 20-foot clearance on both sides of the lines, is a good investment that enables us to help ensure our service is safe, reliable, and affordable for all.
No. For primary lines CEMC must first obtain the proper clearance required by OSHA in Ansi Z133.1. For secondary lines (service to home), please contact CEMC at 800-987-2362 to set up a service order to have CEMC drop the service line before you begin pruning or tree removal.
Yes. Clean-up is a part of CEMC’s vegetation maintenance program.
No. CEMC vegetation management program works to prevent electric outages on our system. Therefore, CEMC wants to remove that tree before it causes an outage, not after. The tree still belongs to the member. In this case, our immediate priority is to restore power to our members.
The following methods are options that will be used by CEMC (or a contractor) to notify members of scheduled right-of-way maintenance: personal contact, phone calls, mailings, door cards, public announcements (Tennessee Magazine, website, etc.).
Yes. CEMC has the right and the obligation to its members to maintain any and all vegetation within its right-of-way. The court and legal system strongly support utilities’ right to trim and remove trees and/or brush within and outside of the right-of-way.
Yes. If vegetation around un-energized structures such as poles, guys, span guys, etc., creates a safety or reliability risk, CEMC may remove it.
Trees planted today are an investment in the future. With a little research and a simple layout, you can produce a landscape that will cool your home in summer and tame the winter winds. This chart should help you properly plant your tree to avoid collisions with power lines.