Berkeley Electric Cooperative is committed to providing safe and reliable power, which depends on regular maintenance of right-of-way boundaries for all our electrical equipment.
Whether it is located overhead, underground, or attached to your home or business, the electrical equipment and our lineworkers need space to do their job.
We understand the desire to landscape around transformers and other underground equipment boxes so they're not noticeable. However, this equipment is a vital part of delivering electricity to area homes and businesses. The right-of-way clearance boundaries established and posted on the sticker on the electrical box itself need to be respected and maintained for your safety and the safety of our crews.
- Never let anything get closer than 10 feet from the front, 4 feet from the sides, or 15 ft. above an electrical equipment box, such as a padmount transformer (the handle, lock, and sticker are on the front).
- Never enclose an electrical box with fencing, shrubs, or anything else with less than a 10-foot-wide gate or opening.
- Never allow children to play on or near electrical equipment boxes.
- Never pour waste oils, chemicals, or other liquids on or near the box. These liquids can seep into the ground and damage underground cables.
- If you find a box that is damaged or unlocked, please contact Berkeley Electric Cooperative immediately at 1-800-327-9615.
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Berkeley Electric lineworkers need to be able to access underground electrical equipment at all times. This means, in addition to maintaining the clearances posted on the sticker on the equipment itself, members cannot build any structures around the boxes - including anything up to 15' above the equipment.
Lineworkers typically use long tools and other large equipment to install and maintain underground transformers and other underground equipment. The 10' clearance provides them enough space to maneuver when performing maintenance or restoring power during an outage.
Air flow and plant root growth are the two main reasons for the 4′ clearance. Good air circulation around the electrical equipment is essential to keep it at the proper temperature. If airflow is blocked, the temperature will rise, which may cause the equipment to overheat and potentially lead to early failure. The 4′ clearance also considers root growth, which can pose a similar problem.
Acceptable ways to landscape around electrical equipment boxes include:
- Potted plants/planter boxes that two employees can pick up and move when they need to work inside the box or surrounding area.
- Benches are acceptable if they can be picked up and moved.
- Rock/mulch island to surround the box.
- Statues and decorative lawn flags can be used.
- If you need advice on how to beautify the area around your electrical equipment box safely, contact Berkeley Electric Cooperative’s Vegetation Management Department.
Berkeley Electric will contact homeowners at least two weeks before the scheduled work. This should allow homeowners sufficient time to relocate plants and remove structures they want to preserve. However, all vegetation that is still in place when crews arrive will be removed at the co-op's discretion, except for lawn grass. BEC crews and/or contractors will not be responsible for preserving or relocating any plants.
Additionally, while the co-op will do its best to notify homeowners, our Service Rules and Regulations (Policy 702) do grant Berkeley Electric employees the right of access to members’ premises at all reasonable times to maintain or repair all equipment and facilities which are the property of the Cooperative.
Berkeley Electric crews/contractors will remove vegetation and debris related to the scope of the work. If you have concerns after the cleanup is finished, please contact our Vegetation Management department at vegetation@bec.coop.
Berkeley Electric Cooperative uses a glyphosate-free herbicide for vegetation management. As with most herbicides, please let it dry completely before allowing people or pets into the affected area. To view the Safety Data Sheet for the specific chemical mix, please click here.