A county councilmember and state senator are taking up the cause of some Potomac residents who say Pepco has gone too far with a tree-cutting program in their neighborhood.
Councilmember Roger Berlinger and District 15 State Sen. Brian Feldman asked the state’s Public Service Commission to stop Pepco’s tree-cutting operations for two weeks in the Potomac Crest development.
Residents in the neighborhood, just off Tuckerman Lane and Seven Locks Road, have been fighting with Pepco for months after the power company first attempted to cut down trees on their properties.
Earlier this month, a Montgomery County Circuit Court judge denied a request from the residents to stop Pepco from cutting down the trees. Pepco has an easement on the land dating back to the 1950′s that allows it to cut down trees even on private property if it’s necessary to ensure electric service reliability.
“No one has fought harder for greater reliability in our community, and we fully accept that trees and power lines do not mix. Appropriate vegetation management is necessary to deliver power safely and reliably,” wrote Berliner and Feldman in a letter to PSC Chairman Kevin Hughes. “However, there are reasonable actions that can be taken, and then there are unreasonable, destructive approaches.”
Berliner and Feldman suggested the PSC place a two-week stay on the tree cutting until PSC staff can review and confirm that Pepco’s cutting “fully meet both the spirit and the letter of the Commission’s regulations.”
Pepco has argued that state legislation — enacted in response to Pepco reliability problems — mean it must remove, instead of prune, the trees.
“Every indication in this case suggests that Pepco has gone beyond what is necessary to achieve reliability,” Berliner and Feldman wrote. “We have heard from homeowners on Cobble Creek Circle, Bentridge Avenue, Deborah Drive, Betteker Lane, and elsewhere, that Pepco’s activities in this particular case have led, and will continue to lead, to significantly diminished quality-of-life and property values while failing to fundamentally improve service reliability.”
Pepco says the easement gives it the right to remove trees within 75 feet of its miles-long swath of land that includes towering, high-voltage power lines. The lines run from Potomac to Germantown and Potomac Crest backs up to a section of the land.
PDF: Potomac Tree Cutting Letter to PSC
Photo via Google Maps
