TUPELO, Miss. (WTVA) -- The Tennessee Valley Authority is stepping-up efforts to remove trees that are too close to transmission lines.
Huge transmission lines are dangerous especially if they come to close to a tree.
The more power that shoots through the lines, the more they will sag.
Contact with a tree can be the result.
"Dealing with the sag and then the potential sway of the line, those trees have to be out of that area where they can't go to ground," TVA Line Applied Services, West Area Manager John P. Dooley, Jr. said.
Workers can easily identify where the work begins from above.
An aerial survey shows a number of areas where TVA will cut back trees.
Those affected, including the city of Tupelo, will be given notice-first in the mail and then in person.
Trees that are over 15 feet tall will be removed, and trees that are considered to be incompatible with the rights of way.
The TVA plan calls for destruction of the tree. It will be chipped into mulch. Landowners who want to keep what remains of their trees do have options.
"A landowner can actually request to have trees left for firewood. They will have to sign a document," Dooley added.
