PG&E withdraws application to remove palm trees

For now, PG&E has officially withdrawn their request to remove three Canary Island Date Palms along Reina Del Mar Ave. What this means is that for the next 6 months, the power company may perform extra trimming to keep the high voltage lines clear of the palm fronds. The hope is that this extra time will allow all the parties involved to agree on a reasonable solution in the short term as well as finding a plan to underground the wires for the long term.

The letter specifically details the time should be used "to raise the funds necessary for pole relocation or rearrangement pursuant to Electric Rule 15..." Hopefully PG&E will help us understand what exactly that means.

In other news, Vallemar Conservators will meet tomorrow at 9 am for a creek clean up and tree planting. We'll at starting at Bier's Grove (near Amopola, Berendos & Calaveras)

Kids 4 Change haul in almost $1700

It was a lot of work, but between the combination of the Palm Sunday rally and bake sale, and the book drive yesterday, Kids 4 Change was able to raise a total of $1691. That's not too bad for a few weeks of effort, but given that it's children aged 5 to 8, this is really great.

It's still only a small fraction of the price that PG&E quoted for any of the interim solutions to save the most at-risk palm trees. The Vallemar Conservators have raised a little over $7000. (Jeff or our sponsor PEF would know the exact amount).

I'm really hoping that PG&E will come through, and pay to raise lines or relocate them, to mitigate the immediate hazard. Then we could apply the funds we've raised on trees and on a long term solution of getting these lines underground.

The next step will be to focus on negotiations with a committee consisting of PG&E representatives, City officials, and designated residents of Vallemar.

Book Drive on Saturday

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/04/15/DDBS1CTGFR.DTL

Leah Garchik wrote in the

Residents of Vallemar, a district of Pacifica, are fighting with PG&E about the fate of four 100-year-old palm trees. The utility company wants to cut them down because they are reaching power lines. The residents think the trees are treasures and that cutting them down would ruin their neighborhood (and destroy the homes of owls who live in the trees).

Meanwhile neighborhood children in Kids 4 Change have joined in the campaign. Some of those kids spoke at a rally March 28, and this week they've been organizing books to sell to benefit their cause. (The installation of taller utility poles, which would put greater distance between the trees and the electricity, would be costly; PG&E estimates more than $40,000; the group takes issue with the figure.)

Meanwhile, the kids have collected two truckloads of books, to be sold at $1 each. The sale is Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 119 Berendos Ave. in Pacifica.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/04/15/DDBS1CTGFR.DTL#ixzz0lJVsNiDN

Tree trimming

Tuesday morning (4/13/2010), Asplundh, a PG&E sub-contractor came to trim two palms trees, 771 Reina Del Mar and 835 Reina Del Mar. Interestingly, two of the original trees identified for removal were not immediately at risk. We could have lost the two palms on Reina Del Mar, near Ramona, even though they were not even an imminent risk. I want to thank Joel Smith (PG&E) and Lori Cuesta (WECI) for double checking the trees and performing what limited trimming they needed to, in order to maintain a safe clearance.

Pictured below is a "hot stick" used to gauge the distance from the 12K volt primary lines and the crown of the tree.

My Latest Email Volley

I continue to ask PG&E to pay to relocate the wires, but I haven't heard back in a few days. It's been hard not to think about PG&E lately, particularly since the power went out yesterday because of the storm. I was in another neighborhood of Pacifica (not Vallemar) when I saw two PG&E trucks parked across from one another.

Anyway, this was the last email I sent to Nicole and her co-workers:


Hi Nicole,
Hope you had a great weekend!

Over the weekend, I saw the local CBS coverage of our situation in Pacifica, and when I heard Joe discussing the short-term options, I had a thought. Why not use shareholder monies to fix the situation? As I have stated previously, this is a problem created by PG&E when it placed utility lines directly above trees. The corporation has a lot of discretion with the use of it's funds, and this is a great opportunity to make good on the "commitment to communities".
http://www.pgecorp.com/corp_responsibility/communities/

Given the tens of millions of dollars PG&E is spending in order to provide taxpayers with a right to vote, relocating a few utility lines would be a cheap way to buy the company some good press. Let me know how we can get the corporation to buy into this idea and if there is anyone we should contact in the holding company. Thanks!

Alp

CBS5 covering the Vallemar palms

Video at CBS website

I got word on Thursday that two trees will need some trimming; the tree at 847 Reina Del mar and the tree at 771 Reina Del Mar. The folks at PG&E Vegetation Management have been really cooperative. The forester requested for "reasonable trimming, such that the health of the trees will not be negatively affected" (btw, I did not add the emphasis, that's from PG&E).

It will take place on Tuesday, April 13. They typically sub-contract the trimming out to Asplundh. Just FYI, this should be minimal trimming that buys about 6 more months before the trees are at risk again.

Continued talks with PG&E

Nicole Yelich currently has the distinction of being the first point of contact for PG&E with regard to our Canary Island Palm tree predicament. We had a good talk today and I'm sure we'll be talking over the next several months. There are plenty of things we can agree on, but for now, I think there are two key points on which we disagree.

1. My argument is that the trees were there first, so PG&E messed up when it placed utility lines directly above these trees (and in some cases, directly next to the trees). Nicole suggested the trees came after the utility lines. She's going to provide documentation showing that the utility lines were constructed in 1929. This is considerably earlier than I would have guessed, but still over 20 years after the first trees were planted. We've posted a number of photos showing what the trees looked like in the early part of the last century. One of my favorites is this image showing the palm trees shortly after they were planted, sometime between 1906 and 1910. From my research, it appears these trees grow about 6 inches per year. It's because they grow so slowly that they can command such a premium for landscaping projects. Anyway, given that math, our trees are about 50 feet high, so that means 100 years, which just about matches this photo.
   
   
2. The second issue requires that we establish the trees existed before the high voltage lines were constructed. If in fact PG&E was negligent in the location of these poles, it should be their responsibility to relocate the poles. I asked Nicole what would it take for PG&E to pay for the relocation of these utility lines. Her response was PG&E cannot, because CPUC regulation forbids them from using ratepayer funds for such purposes. Erin Parks, the previous forester, had also stated this, so the rationale is certainly consistent. I just find it difficult to believe, given that PG&E is able to use the very same funds for the removal of trees. The funds are meant to be used to maintain the infrastructure. I've asked to see the exact rule or regulation, and Nicole offered to research this and send me a copy. If it turns out PG&E is right about this, I won't be happy, but at least we can have a common understanding.

There's also the matter of proposition 16, which for the most part, I've been keeping out of the discussion. But I think that may be an important philosophical point. If PG&E really doesn't want the electorate to get into the electric power business, then the company should maintain the infrastructure without destroying public property. If they can't, then it only encourages the public to want to take it over. Here's an excerpt of an email I wrote to a number of people at PG&E on Wednesday; it's what basically precipitated the discussion with Nicole Yelich:

I recognize that PG&E does not want to be in the business of removing trees and that the only reason the company is considering this course of action is because it is the least expensive way to fulfill its regulatory and public safety obligations. I trust that PG&E takes these obligations seriously, since as a public utility, it exists to serve the public good. However, removing healthy heritage trees that have been an unmistakable fixture in our community for over a century, trees as old as the Pacific Gas & Electric Company, harms the public good. Fortunately, PG&E can mitigate the fire and electrocution hazard posed in this situation without damage to public or private property by simply relocating the primary high voltage wires.

I understand that PG&E must comply with a number of CPUC rules and regulations for minimum vegetation clearance. PG&E failed in its duty to properly maintain its electric infrastructure when it placed utility poles in locations that violate its own clearance requirements, creating the problem we have today. This is a serious breach of the company's obligations. In order to comply with CPUC regulation, the company attempted to remove heritage trees; 100+ year old trees that would each cost $25,000 to replace. As an alternative to removing the trees, PG&E is asking the community to pay to relocate utility lines-- in effect, that is asking the residents of Vallemar to pay to remedy PG&E's past mistakes.

The residents of Vallemar should not be paying to maintain power lines. We do not want to be in the utility business, and given how hard PG&E is working on proposition 16, I assume that PG&E does not want Pacifica getting in the electric utility business either. I do hope that PG&E will recognize its responsibilities not only to shareholders, but also to the community in Pacifica, by either relocating utility poles or raising affected primary lines. I hope I am accurate in my interpretation, and we are in the process of connecting with Public Utilities Commission for further clarification. Perhaps the CPUC can offer an alternative that we have not considered.

Talking to PG&E

Joel Smith is the new forester for the peninsula at PG&E. He was kind enough to spend an hour+ on Saturday reviewing the palm trees with myself, Jeff Moroso, and Ken Miles. We took a close look at all 11 palm trees and discussed a number of issues and mitigating options. I was pleasantly surprised by the change in tone from PG&E in recent weeks. It sounds like Joel and his boss Micah Brosnan are both new, and they are both prepared to try a different approach.

For one thing, Joel was able to get a cost estimate for relocating the wires without requiring us to pay $3000 up front. This is rather unorthodox, and as a result we don't have some details on why the costs are so high for relocating the poles at 835. Still, I appreciate what he's trying to do. Most folks from the utility company haven't been nearly as cooperative.

What ultimately came out of our discussion was a series of questions:

• How high are the current utility poles? Clearly they are not all the same height; there's a utility pole at about 571 Reina Del Mar which looks considerably higher. The trees only grow 50-60 feet high.
  
  
• How far away is each tree from the primary lines? We need 10 feet of clearance from the highest wires (12k Volts). PG&E subcontracts out that risk determination to WECI (Western Environmental Consultants). So that we could have an current measure, Joel requested an inspection (and WECI showed up this morning). It seems that a couple of trees will need some minimum trimming, but don't have to be removed today. Lori Cuesta was the field supervisor inspecting the trees today, and she spoke with me for a good half hour or so. She believes that some minimum trimming can buy us at least 6 months. The trimming will cut the offending fronds at the mid point (so it looks ugly, but certainly shouldn't be fatal). The actual trimming of the trees goes to yet another sub-contractor, Asplundh, who will most likely be out here next week (April 12- 16).
  
  
• How fast do the trees grow? Well, from some limited Internet research, I found one article in the Wall Street Journal of all places, quoting Valley Crest experts that the tress grow about 6 inches a year. Given our cool climate, our trees may grow even slower than that. In any case, we can raise the poles 10 feet, which would give us almost 20 years (assuming the poles are only at 50 feet today.) Given that the trees are about 100 years old and they are reaching the height of the poles, it would stand to reason that the poles are 50 feet, and the trees grow 6 inches per year.
  
  
• So what does it take to raise the poles? As it turns out, Amy Mayo and her husband Stefan ran into an old friend who grew up with Stefan in Pacifica. This friend (I'll leave his name out for now) currently works for PG&E as a lineman and also lives in Vallemar. He explained that raising the poles is a relatively trivial matter. Aside from shutting off the power, it would take 4 men 4 hours to raise a pole. The guy offered to volunteer his time to save these trees and offered to try and find a few other volunteers. With a few trained volunteers, we may be able to raise enough poles to buy us enough time until we are able to get the wires underground.

So if we can get the wires raised on 10 or so poles, we should be able to buy us enough time to put together a real plan to get these wires underground, once and for all. But getting several dozen line certified volunteers is probably not realistic. This is where I'm hoping PG&E will step in to help. It is of course a problem that was created by PG&E decades ago, when the utility poles were located where they were. It is my hope that this community's efforts to raise awareness on this issue will encourage the management at PG&E to offer to pay for the line raising (or pole relocation).

I would even go so far as to argue that it would benefit PG&E both financially and aid in building long term good will with our community. Rather than spending millions of dollars on subverting laws through ballot measures such as proposition 16, PG&E would be better served helping communities like ours set up an electric infrastructure that is much more sustainable. The utility must spend significant amounts of money, (and at union/ overtime rates) every year during our severe winter storms to maintain this third-world power infrastructure.

Of course, the residents would benefit from the natural beauty from wires being under ground, the increase in property values, and the reduction in service interruption (no more outages during storms). And the city too would benefit, since it would be able to boast an even more beautiful neighborhood, and the added property values would translate into increased tax revenue.

Everyone wins if we could get these wires underground. We just need some help with the cost estimates and moving the wires on the first few trees.

We really need to get through to this guy -->> You could try emailing him, but I think we need something a little more face to face. Thoughts?

Saving Palm Trees on Palm Sunday

View a video of our event on YouTube

A perfect street

A PERFECT STREET in which to live is Reina Del Mar in the Vallemar section of Pacifica. The roadway is surrounded with Palm trees and the weather is ideal. Children play in the street without being in danger of cars...

Click on the image below to see the whole scan from Coastside Chronicle

Cost estimates seem in line

I've gotten some confirmation from two outside sources that say these cost estimates are probably reasonable. Not sure why we need two utility poles at 835 Reina Del Mar, and even Joel Smith, the PG&E forester has been unable to get a clear answer from PG&E's engineering department.

New cost estimates from PG&E-- $42,409

Here are the cost estimates provided by PG&E to the City of Pacifica.

The cost of adding 6 foot extensions on two poles in order to provide clearance for the palms at 197 Ramona and 477 Reina Del Mar is $14,775. PG&E has also determined that to reroute the wire east of 835 Reina Del Mar will require setting two poles at a cost of $27,634. PG&E would also need to be able to secure an easement to place a pole anchor on private property at 835 Reina Del Mar.

So, saving these three trees will cost $42,409.

What it cost to move a utility pole...

In 2000, the residents of Pacifica helped raise money to relocate a utility pole. The money was paid to PG&E through the city.

PB&R Meeting next week

Parks, Beaches and Rec commission's meeting next week has the vote regarding the palm trees on the agenda. The meeting will be March 23, 7pm at the city council chambers located at 2212 Beach Boulevard in Pacifica.

http://www.cityofpacifica.org/civica/filebank/blobdload.asp?BlobID=3766

Posted documents to the Vallemar Conservator's website

We've posted a number of documents to the Vallemar Conservator website. Rudy's created a section for sharing documents.

Here's an official report from the public works department on the issue. This includes a summary of the issue, a report from Patti Wylie, letters from PG&E, forms submitted by PG&E to remove heritage trees, and a copy of the franchise agreement between PG&E and the City of Pacifica.

The most recent correspondence I've seen, is this letter from PG&E to Aren Clark in Public Works.

The franchise agreement is the legal contract between PG&E and the City of Pacifica. It basically says that PG&E agrees to provide power, maintain the lines, and share some portion of the revenue collected. It was signed into law in 1958. Section 3 of this agreement states:

[PG&E] shall relocate, without expense to city, any poles, wires, conduits and appurtenances theretofore installed, and then maintained or used under this franchise, if and when made necessary by any lawful change of grade, aligllignment or width of any streets by city...

As far as I can tell, PG&E is only required to relocate the poles if some sort of construction by the city requires the poles to be relocated. PG&E doesn't consider "vegetation" something that requires pole relocation.

Gone?

Nancy Hall and Jeff Moroso stopped by this afternoon. Nancy had created a bunch of signs on red and pink fabric. Jeff brought ladders and tools, and they hung them up across of row of trees that are all going to be in conflict with the high voltage wires. A few of them are the ones immediately at issue, but the others will also be in trouble. It's only a matter of time. We wanted to give people an opportunity to consider what Reina Del Mar would look like without the row of palms directly below the utility lines.

Also, Jeff rehung our sign (compliments of Eve), at the "Y". The storm had blown it into the creek earlier this week.

Palm Tree decision postponed until March PB&R Commission Meeting

As far as I can tell, the PB&R commission will be meeting in March to discuss the palm trees. Although they voted in the January meeting to make a decision in February, palm trees are not on the agenda for the February 23rd meeting. I also got an email from Nancy Hall suggesting that the city and PG&E are hoping the added time would help all involved.

Created online Petition

I've just created an online petition. Let's get some signature and some responses that we can share with PG&E. I'll forward to Doug McPherson, Vegetation Program Manager at PG&E and also share with the public to show City officials that residents care:

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/vallemar-palms

update from Nancy Hall

I have not spoken with any officials from PG&E or the City of Pacifica, but I got this email from nancy hall yesterday. Excerpts below pertaining to the palms

P.G.&E. is moving to postpone the commission meeting on the 23rd to the regular march meeting ( I don't have the date yet )
In order to do two things:

Give us more time to come up with the money and work with them and The City toward the best alternative to cutting.

Allow P.G.&E. to come up with what we are now pressuring them for - a more reasonable pricing for some of the options that have been discussed.
....

That is all good news as far as I can see.

In addition, we discussed what could/should be moved first.
...since the pole repositioning at Ramona would make for a side-loaded pole in need of a guy wire, it may be a hard sell with those neighbors, and besides a pole extension is a lot cheaper especially if we are doing it

as a temporary fix while we fast track our exploration of under grounding. The pole that could be moved without as much political fall out (?) would be the one
where we end up with a pole in the park on city land even if it means removing some eucs or scrubby pines.

Palm trees currently at risk

Patti Wylie's provided this list of palm trees:

197 Ramona Ave- Immediate
-----Under Primary, existing secondary strain

477 Reina Del Mar Ave-Immediate
----Under Primary, no secondary

571 Reina Del Mar Ave- Future Concern
----Under Primary, through secondary, no strain

577 Reina Del Mar Ave- Future Concern
----Under Primary, under secondary

753 Reina Del Mar Ave- Future Concern
----Under Primary, no secondary

771 Reina Del Mar Ave- Future Concern
----Under Primary, no secondary

823 Reina Del Mar Ave- Future Concern
----Under Primary, through secondary, no strain

835 Reina Del Mar Ave- Immediate
----Under Primary, no secondary, guy wire

853 Reina Del Mar Ave -Future Concern
----Under Primary, no secondary, guy wire, transformer on pole

877 Reina Del Mar Ave- Future Concern
----Under Primary, no secondary, service wire

107 Amapola – Immediate
---- Side Primary

Move the Utility Poles

Moving the poles:
In early 2000, the utility pole near the intersection of Reina Del Mar and Juanita was moved to the creek-side to save a couple palms. If memory serves me right, Pacifica paid PG&E about $7500 to move that utility pole. Today, PG&E is requiring that we pay a $3000 fee up front to first determine if moving the pole is even possible. If it's determined that a pole may be moved, we can then pay them $10,000 to $20,000 to move each utility pole. The thing is, we should be able to move the utility poles for much less, and perhaps we could even clear the area and dig the holes.

Here is how we could move the pole at 477 Reina Del Mar Ave:


At 835 Reina Del Mar, we may have to remove 1 or 2 pine trees. I don't like removing any trees, but these trees are near the end of their life and will in the near future pose a risk. They also don't add nearly as much value as the palms.

The Current state of affairs

I've had a number of requests for information about our palm trees and PG&E, so I tried to write a brief summary.

BACKGROUND
PG&E is required by law to maintain a 10 foot clearance around the high voltage lines. With most trees, PG&E can trim (or pay a contractor to perform the directional pruning), encouraging the trees away from power lines, allowing them to grow in interesting directions. Palm trees growing under power lines present a problem to the utility company, because they cannot be trimmed effectively; cutting into the crown of a palm will kill the tree.

Today, there are three palm trees that do not meet the regulatory clearance required by PG&E. If PG&E trims these trees any further, it will kill the trees. This would then leave the burden of removing the dead trees on our cash-strapped city. Since Pacifica has no money, PG&E has graciously offered to remove the trees, and even offered to provide up to $300 for new trees.

Our palm trees:
Our palm trees are Canary Island Date Palms. These trees are about 100 years old and are estimated to live anywhere from 150 to 300 years. I called two companies and got estimates on what it would cost to replace such a tree. To replace them with smaller, but full grown trees is in the range of $25,000. Did I mention PG&E offered $300?
PG&E has already identified 14 11 trees they plan to remove, 3 immediately. This will have a significant negative impact on our property values.

Moving the trees:
Moving a large palm tree would cost between $6500-$8500, but given that they are so close to the power lines, it may actually be more expensive in this situation. Also given the age of our trees and the abuse they've already suffered from the pruning, moving the trees will most likely kill them. Also, these factors make them poor candidates for selling, so we can't really do that either.

Moving the poles:
In early 2000, the utility pole near the intersection of Reina Del Mar and Juanita was moved to the creek-side to save a couple palms. If memory serves me right, Pacifica paid PG&E about $7500 to move that utility pole. Today, PG&E is requiring that we pay a $3000 fee up front to first determine if moving the pole is even possible. If it's determined that a pole may be moved, we can then pay them $10,000 to $20,000 to move each utility pole.

Palm trees nearing the high voltage lines presents a danger that needs to be addressed soon. here's my take:

• The palm trees were there long before the utility lines
• When the power lines were built, the trees were over 10 feet tall.
• PG&E was responsible for choosing the location and constructing utility lines directly above palm trees. They should have foreseen that the trees would eventually grow into the lines.
• PG&E is required by law to maintain the lines, and that includes responsibly placing utility lines in a location where they may be maintainable.
• Relocating utility poles is cheaper than replacing palm trees, and will not only save the three trees in question today, but can also save other palm trees in the future.