The Council of Ministers of Belarus has adopted a resolution on clearing bushes under power transmission lines. The measure was described as an effort to improve the reliability of electricity supplies. The document was adopted pursuant to an order by Lukashenka.
The resolution approves Regulations on the procedure for reimbursing part of the costs of measures to remove trees and shrubs, as well as Regulations on the procedure for the commission-based write-off of removed trees and shrubs.
According to the government’s press service, the removal of trees and shrubs will be financed from the proceeds of their sale. In some cases, part of the costs will not be fully covered by the value of the removed vegetation because of its low quality and the lack of an opportunity to transport it for subsequent use. These costs will be reimbursed by regional power companies to legal entities engaged in forestry. Commission-based write-off is permitted when there are no access roads for logging equipment or when other circumstances prevent the removal of the vegetation.
It is noted that on overhead power transmission lines with widened clearings, the number of emergency outages is on average nine times lower than on lines with non-widened clearings.
