SAN DIEGO, April 26, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) has been named Tree Line Utility by the National Arbor Day Foundation for environmental leadership in caring for the health of trees while providing safe and sound management of tree growth along electric power lines.
"We are proud to be named a Tree Line Utility for the fifth year in a row, and to be recognized by the National Arbor Day Foundation and the National Association of State Foresters for our tree care, tree training, tree planting and education efforts," said David Geier, vice president of electric transmission and distribution for SDG&E. "Last year, we planted and gave away nearly 1,500 trees of all sizes around our service territory."
To commemorate Arbor Day, SDG&E will host a public celebration event from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 28 at Kate O. Sessions Memorial Park, (on Soledad Rd. at Loring St.) in Pacific Beach. San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders will preside over a brief ceremony at noon. The festivities will include: planting of 18 trees, giveaways of up to 300 starter trees, and safety demonstrations by representatives of the City of San Diego, SDG&E, the Urban Corps, the California Department of Forestry, and other vegetation-management groups.
In addition to planting new trees throughout the region, SDG&E provides maintenance to nearly 400,000 trees as part of its Tree Smart Program. Through this program, the utility works with neighborhoods and qualified tree-expert companies to prune or remove trees near power lines to improve safety and prevent potential power outages. Tree trimming and pole clearing are an integral part of maintaining compliance with state and federal laws and keeping outages to a minimum. These activities also facilitate service restoration during storms by managing the growth and maintenance of a healthier, more storm-resistant tree stock near power lines.
SDG&E offers helpful tips to customers on tree planting and safety that can be found at www.sdge.com.
National Arbor Day was founded by J. Sterling Morton in Nebraska in 1872 and is celebrated the first week in April. The National Arbor Day Foundation is a national non-profit organization whose mission is to inspire people to plant, nurture and celebrate trees. To learn more, go to www.arborday.org.
SDG&E currently serves 3.4 million consumers through 1.4 million electric meters and more than 830,000 natural gas meters. The utility's service area spans 4,100 square miles and serves customers in more than 125 communities from Southern Orange County to the Mexican border. SDG&E is a regulated subsidiary of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE). Sempra Energy, based in San Diego, is a Fortune 500 energy services holding company. To learn more, go to www.sdge.com.