Portland General Electric (PGE) forestry crews have partnered with AntFarm, a local youth workforce development organization, for demonstration on safe tree-trimming near power lines in the Brightwood neighborhood near Rhododendron, Oregon.
As part of its Community Wildfire Defense Program, AntFarm youth participants receive training in forestry and wildfire prevention techniques, providing valuable workforce development while actively reducing fire risks. The program has treated over 100 at-risk properties, performed over 200 Home Ignition Zone assessments, and directly employed more than two dozen youth participants.
PGE contract vegetation management crews removed three cottonwood trees near powerlines along Barlow Trail Road, a main thoroughfare in the Brightwood area. Once the trees were trimmed back a safe distance from the power lines, AntFarm crews finished removing the trees and hauled away the debris.
Vegetation management in the Brightwood neighborhood is year-round for PGE. In addition to PGE’s routine tree maintenance, crews work year-round to trim or remove potentially hazardous trees near powerlines in the utility's right-of-way. In 2024 alone, nearly 2,000 wildfires in Oregon burned almost two million acres, a more than 300% increase above the state’s 10-year average.
Additionally, PGE invests in infrastructure hardening, replacing wood poles with fire resistant metal poles, using technologies like AI cameras and early fault detection sensors for early fire detection and rapid response. Public Safety Power Shutoffs are applied to prevent potential ignitions from power lines.
