It’s officially hurricane season, and while Entergy Louisiana trims trees to protect from power outages, residents in Old Metairie are raising concerns about the practice, fearing the vegetation may not survive in the coming years.
“We’re allowed to cut about eight feet from our lines, and we do that year-round. We have a vegetation management plan that we work all year long,” said Nyka Scott, vice president of customer service at Entergy Louisiana.
The company uses pruning techniques to encourage trees to grow away from power lines as part of its vegetation management plan.
“It isn’t only the cutting of the tree now, it’s what it means for us in the future,” one resident who asked not to be named said.
Jennifer Van Vrancken, Jefferson Parish Council-at-Large, said she received several emails and phone calls that the tree trimming has gone too far, prompting a meeting with Entergy, arborists, and the Council.
“There really has to be a balance between keeping the power lines clear and not killing our tree canopy or damaging it to the point where people are worried about those trees not surviving,” Van Vrancken said.
For Entergy Louisiana, the tree trimming protocol is cut in a V-shape about ten feet from power lines. Entergy New Orleans operates under different standards, cutting in a circular shape, four feet away from lines.
Van Vrancken said adopting a protocol similar to Entergy New Orleans would be a step in the right direction.
“For the limited tree canopy we have in Jefferson Parish in a dense urban environment, I think a more moderate cut in that circular, pattern would be much more appropriate,” she said.
The council has sent maps to Entergy identifying areas such as the Old Metairie Neighborhood Conservation District and the Metairie Ridge Tree Preservation, where trimming must be done more delicately.
READ MORE:Old Metairie residents worry about tree trimming near power lines
