Electricity Asset Management Plan 2019-2029
14 Vector Limited://
understand customer behaviour and track demand trends with greater precision. Our investment in data collection and analytics technology is central to developing this understanding. Real evidence about our customers will help inform our decision making – reducing the risk of over-investing or under-investing in different areas of Auckland.
CASE STUDY URBAN FOREST INITIATIVE The Vector Urban Forest is an initiative from Vector to plant two native trees for every one tree we remove to protect Auckland’s power lines. The new planting takes place in areas where local ecological restoration schemes are already underway. Aucklanders love their trees but unfortunately there is a real lack of awareness of the issues they can cause to network resiliency if they are not maintained or planted with consideration to power line proximity. Managing tree risk is especially important given the extensive network damage that occurs during storms and other high wind events. Our climate modelling projects a significant increase in the number of hours with sustained wind speed in excess of 70km/h – the point where damage to the power network is historically high. A further complicating factor for Vector and the other EDBs is the existing tree management regulations which limit our ability to trim or remove problem trees. As we continue to work with government to revise tree management regulations, the Urban Forest Initiative is an example of the action we are taking now to raise awareness of the issue. Each year the Urban Forest Initiative aims to plant at least 20,000 new seedlings to make up for the approximately 10,000 trees we remove from near the electricity network. The trees we remove are first identified as a risk by an expert and removed with permission from the landowner. The Urban Forest also plays a key role in educating the public about the importance of proper tree management and what their responsibilities are as a tree owner. We’ve also published a planting guide on our website that shows what trees and plants are safe to plant near power lines.
CAUSE OF ENERGY USE DECLINE IN AUCKLAND • Socio-economic factors, such as affordability and environmental concerns
• A region-wide shift towards medium and high-density living
• Technology – improved building practices and standards, greater building energy efficiencies, a higher penetration of dwelling insulation and better equipment efficiencies • The increasing prevalence of ‘energy efficient’ appliances in homes (such as heat pumps and LED (Light-Emitting Diode) lights • New and emerging technologies such as solar panels and storage batteries
VEGETATION MANAGEMENT Vegetation encroaching and falling on power lines is one of the main causes of power outages in Auckland. A recent survey of Electricity Network Association (ENA) members found that 60 to 70 percent of outages during storms were caused by trees. The challenge for network companies is that under the Electricity (Hazards from Trees) Regulations 2003, vegetation can only be trimmed in a limited zone, essentially where it is almost directly against power lines – the ‘growth limit zone’. This hinders network companies’ ability to adequately protect the electricity network during adverse weather events, where trees damage power lines from outside of the growth limit zone. Even after a tree is trimmed, the problem persists. While a newly-pruned tree might be physically separated by up to 1.5m from a line, the tree might tower many metres directly above a line, meaning branches can fall across lines, shorting them out or bringing them down.
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