Helicopter, air saw will be used to remove branches near power line in Oconto, Marinette, Florence counties

A heavy-duty air saw hanging from a helicopter will be used to trim trees along a 345,000-volt power line in Oconto, Marinette and Florence counties beginning the week of Aug. 19.

The saw work will be conducted for ATC by Aerial Solutions between the Morgan Substation in Oconto County and the Plains Substation in Florence County.

A power saw with rotary blades is suspended from a helicopter on a 90-foot vertical boom to help manage the growth of trees and other vegetation near high-voltage transmission lines.

“It takes just a few hours for an aerial saw to complete what typically takes ground crews several days to accomplish,” said Joe Benzschawel, ATC senior vegetation management specialist, in a press release. “However, the aerial work is weather-dependent so the duration of the work could fluctuate.”

The power line stretches mostly in a north-south line from the town of Morgan in Oconto County, to the west of Oconto Falls, to near Spruce and Klondike, to west of Athelstane in Marinette County, before venturing northeast of Niagara where it ends at the Plains Substation.

ATC asks people in the area to stay a minimum 300 feet away from the helicopter, trucks and ground crews while they are working.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Helicopter, air saw will be used to remove branches near power line in Oconto, Marinette, Florence counties