CO - OP LIVI NG Continued from Page 6 SILENT SENTINELS


To lengthen a pole’s life, wood is pressure-treat- ed with preservatives. But no matter how strong a pole may be, both nature and people threaten a pole’s ability to serve.


Wood poles battle a wide array of adversaries: acidic soil in the Midwest, heavy moisture in the South, and woodpeckers in the Mid-Atlantic. Utili- ties generally inspect poles on a 10- to 12-year cycle to identify potential problems.


Poles age differently depending on region, so RUS divided the nation into fi ve decay zones. Poles in Zone 1—Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Ne- vada, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, and por- tions of Alaska, Nebraska, South Dakota, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texasface the lowest risk of decay, while Zone 5 poles in Louisiana, Florida, Hawaii, and the coastal regions of Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, South Carolina, and Virginia sustain the highest risk. Utilities generally replace 2 to 3 per- cent of aging and decaying poles every year. Natural decay, storm damage, and bird and bug attacks aren’t the only concerns. People shorten a pole’s lifespan, too.


The National American Wood Council estimates 5 percent of poles replaced annually were broken


Poles on the rural roads near Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge in Comanche County. These poles are part of Cotton Electric Cooperative’s 5,134 miles of line in southwest Oklahoma. Photo courtesy of Karen Kaley/Cotton Electric Co-op


by car accidents. Attaching signs, basketball hoops, clothes lines, birdhouses, satellite dishes, or other items to wood poles with staples or nails can also shorten a pole’s lifespan. Not only do these items create safety hazards when lineworkers need to climb a pole; the small incursions speed a pole’s decay.


Strong poles deliver reliable power. Oklahoma’s electric cooperatives are looking out for you by providing safe, reliable, and affordable energy. OL


Sources: NRECA, Wood Quality Control, Inc., Ameri- can Wood Protection Association, Western Wood Preserv- ers Institute


Megan McKoy-Noe writes on consumer and coopera- tive affairs for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, the Arlington, Va.-based service arm of the nation’s 900-plus consumer-owned, not-for-profi t electric cooperatives. Will Linder contributed to this article.


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