Undated - The Hiawatha National Forest and American Transmission Company have developed an operating plan to prevent power lines from sparking wildfires. The 30-year plan defines what construction, maintenance, and vegetation management activities ATC can perform… gives guidance for activities performed in sensitive areas… and establishes a new communication framework between ATC and Hiawatha.
Under the plan ATC will clear transmission line rights of way to a width of 120-feet. Officials will use an aerial power saw suspended from a helicopter to side-trim vegetation in dense, rough terrain.
Officials say the plan aims to protect public lands and improve the safety and reliability of the transmission system while also providing cost savings for the public, the company, and the agency.