WESLACO — It may not be as risky as fishing for crabs on the frigid high seas, but working in and around trees can be dangerous, according to Paul Johnson, an urban forester with the Texas Forest Service in Weslaco.
“Working in the tree-care profession ranks up there with logging, mining and commercial fishing as being one of the most dangerous jobs around,” Johnson said. “Every year, people die while working with trees, either because the trees were structurally unsound or because they were near a power line.”
Minimizing the risk posed by trees is the main focus of the Rio Grande Valley Tree Conference 2007, which will begin at 8 a.m. on Dec. 6 at the Harlingen Community Center. It is the second such annual tree conference organized by Johnson.
“The object is to educate people so that these fatalities don’t happen again,” he said. “Every year in this country, somewhere between 50 and 150 people die in the tree-care profession.”
Johnson said most of these fatalities result from one of three causes.
“People are either hit by a limb or a tree as they walk by it or while taking a tree down, or they fall out of trees to their deaths,” he said. “The third most common factor in tree deaths involves electricity.”
Johnson said that according to the American National Standards Institute, a professional should be called to prune or remove a tree if any part of it is within 10 feet of an active power line.
“At this conference we’ll explore how to mitigate the potential danger of trees. They may be leaning too close to a home, too close to a power line or maybe they are just not structurally sound,” he said. “Trees can pose some very real and high-risk dangers, but unfortunately it’s not something we normally think about until it’s too late.” Johnson said every tree is a potential risk.
“Few of us take the time to stop and evaluate the structure of trees and what needs to be done to minimize risk,” he said. “So this conference is of interest to everybody, whether they be homeowners, city or county employees, or professional landscapers.”
Other topics to be discussed at the conference include compost and mulch for trees, advanced tree care, improper pruning techniques and the Valley’s tree needs.
Admission to the conference is $30. It is sponsored by Texas Cooperative Extension, Harlingen Proud, the City of Harlingen, AEP (American Electric Power) Texas and Texas Forest Service.
For more information, contact Johnson at 956-969-5654 or 979-450-3890. -30-