Why is Southern California Edison (SCE) concerned about the bark beetle problem and what is SCE’s role?
Dead or dying trees pose a danger to local residents, and dead trees near electrical lines pose a threat to electric service reliability for the affected areas. In April 2003, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) directed SCE and other utilities in the affected counties to take all reasonable and necessary actions to remove trees that could pose safety hazards and cause electric service interruptions by falling on electrical lines. For SCE, that could total more than 350,000 trees. Pursuant to this order, SCE has developed a comprehensive program to remove dead or dying trees in the affected areas within its service territory. The company is committed to performing its work as quickly and safely as possible. The company also is committed to keeping customers and major stakeholders in the affected areas informed of its activities and progress.
