3 Years of VM Storm Resiliency Work – The Program & Results (#UAA 6)
In
2012 the New England utility Unitil implemented a companion program to its
standard vegetation management program in New Hampshire. In the Northeast, storm events were occurring
with increasing frequency and severity and customers were looking to the
utility for a response. Unitil
implemented a pilot program aimed at vegetation management storm resiliency to
test the effects of reducing tree exposure on reliability during storm
events. After three years of regulatory approval
for the program and sustaining two major storms – the results of ground to sky
pruning and intensive risk tree removal are emerging. Unitil is evaluating the program’s cost to
implement, reliability effects, and public acceptance against the costs of
storm preparation, restoration and response, as well as the storm costs for
both business and residential customers.
Actual video survey footage of tree damage during the restoration period
following a major snowstorm has aided greatly in the program’s evaluation.
- Sankowich S., IMPROVING GRID RELIABILITY- How to execute an advanced vegetation management strategy, Electricity Today, January/February 2014 http://cdn-s3.myvirtualpaper.com/e/electricity-today/et_january_february_2014_digital/2014021001/upload/et_january_february_2014_digital.pdf