Trees and plants on your property

How to maintain vegetation, safely

It's your responsibility to maintain the trees and vegetation around the service wire and transformer boxes near your property. The service wire is the line that carries electricity from the pole to your home. The trees and vegetation in this area should have at least one metre of clearance around the line. Shrubs and plants near transformer boxes must have at least three meters clearance on all sides.

Working on trees near power lines

You can perform your own tree removals, trimming and pruning if you can verify the voltage of the line you’ll be working near and you keep yourself, the tools you're using and all parts of the tree outside of the appropriate safe distance limit. Learn more about different types of power lines and their voltage and safe distance limits.

We recommend for anyone who can't do their own pruning or are unsure how to do it safely to contact a certified utility arborist. A CUA is a qualified person who undertakes any work required to prune, fall, or remove trees and clear vegetation in proximity to energized conductors or electrical equipment.

If you choose to trim your own trees and you cannot verify/stay out of the safe distance limits you’ll need to contact our team to assess the situation.

If you have questions about pruning near power lines or need our team to assess your situation, please give us a call 1 800 224 9376 and ask to speak to a vegetation coordinator.

Planting near power lines

When planting near power lines you’ll need to plan ahead to help avoid potential issues, like the tree falling on the power line during a storm or growing into the line.

Before you purchase new trees or hedges for your property follow these tips:

• Familiarize yourself with the planting zones when planting near electrical equipment. 
• Research the height a tree or shrub will be when fully grown.
• Select a variety that won't interfere with the electrical equipment on or near your property.
• Regularly prune trees and shrubs to keep them outside of the recommendation zones. 

See our guide on what to plant near power lines or transformer boxes [PDF, 4.6 MB].

Planting zones for distribution lines

Before planting a tree in your yard that’s near a distribution line, there are three zones to be aware of.

• Low zone: This area extends five metres on either side of the power line. Trees planted here should have a maximum mature height of five metres or less.  
• Medium zone: This area extends from the edge of the low zone to 10 metres from the pole and power line. The maximum, mature height of trees in this zone should be 12 metres. Trees taller than 12 metres in this zone are the cause of most outages.
• Tall zone: Once you're in an area more than 10 metres from power lines and poles, virtually any strong, healthy tree is fine to be planted in this area.

A property referral is required to determine the maximum allowable height of hedges that at maturity will be taller than or maintained above 3m. Email or call 1 800 667 1517 for more information.

Planting zones for transmission lines

When planting near a transmission line there are two zones you need to be aware of. Transmission lines are also typically found within a statutory right-of-way (ROW). agreement  . The width of the ROW corridor can vary depending on the voltage of the transmission line.  For more information on planting near transmission lines and typical corridor widths see our guide [PDF, 4.6 MB].

Anything that grows over three metres requires a property referral if planted within the low zone. Learn how to prepare and submit a ROW proposal. If you have questions, you can email or call 1 800 667 1517. 

• Low zone: This is the width of the right-of-way (ROW). The corridor width of the ROW varies depending on the voltage of the transmission line, ranging from 10 to 65 metres. Mature vegetation in this zone should be no taller than three metres.
• Tall zone: Virtually any strong, healthy tree is acceptable outside of the right-of-way. 

Planting near your service wire

Your service wire has different height requirements for trees or shrubs than a distribution power line.  Trees and vegetation in this area should have at least one metre of clearance between them and the service wire.

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Planting near transformer boxes

Pad mounted transformer boxes are the metal boxes located on top of concrete pads at ground level. They're often found near sidewalks, roads and in alleyways. 

In the event of an outage or emergency, we need to access these boxes quickly and easily. This means you’ll need to keep the area clear of fences, walls, landscaping or structures that prevent access to the transformer box.

Follow these important tips before you plant near a transformer box:

• Select plants that won't interfere with the transformer, such as shrubs that grow to a maximum height of two to three metres.
• Plant with a minimum of three metres (10 feet) of clearance in front of the box's doors and at least one metre (three feet) of clearance on all other sides.
• Consider the root systems of the plants you select as these can't interfere with the cables buried beneath the transformer. The power cables leading to and from the transformer are buried 0.9 metres (3 feet) below the surface.
• Regularly prune or trim the plants you've planted around the ground-level transformer to ensure they remain outside the required clearance area.

See our brochure on landscaping and planting around transformer boxes [PDF, 235 KB].

Know before you dig

Whether you’re planting trees or shrubs or landscaping, you’ll need to call BC 1 Call at 1 800 474 6886 or submit an e-request before you begin digging or excavating. This is to locate any underground electrical or other infrastructure near your home.