Canberra is commonly known as the bush capital of Australia, but our beloved trees and vegetation can be a hazard if they are growing too close to powerlines.
This can result in blackouts and create safety hazards like causing grass fires and bushfires. Evoenergy’s helicopter patrols are an important part of our overall network maintenance program and bushfire mitigation strategy.
The patrols allow us to identify trees and vegetation that may restrict access or prevent essential maintenance from being carried out.
Our helicopter patrols will be conducted between 2-23 February 2020, weather permitting.
This year, the patrols will cover roughly 1,200km of overhead powerlines, saving time and resources to inspect vegetation around poles and wires. The patrols inspect for vegetation encroaching on powerlines and fly at approximately 350 - 500 feet (approx. 110 – 150 metres) in rural areas and above 1,000 feet (approx. 310 metres) in urban areas with minimal hovering and use Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) technology to determine the distance between powerlines and trees.
The helicopter will patrol rural and urban areas within or adjacent to:
Belconnen, Booth, Coree, Cotter River, Gungahlin, Hall, Hume, Jerrabomberra, Kowen, Majura, Mount Clear, Paddy’s River, Rendezvous Creek, Stromlo, Tennent, Tuggeranong, Tharwa, Weston Creek, Woden Valley and Molonglo Valley.