Completing Environmentally Sensitive Infrastructure Projects
Liberty does its due diligence on each infrastructure project, and in doing so, is compliant with local environmental rules and regulations.
The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) plays a key role in maintaining the area’s natural splendor and has strict rules to protect the environment. For example, the TRPA prohibits disturbing soil in most parts of the Tahoe Basin from October 15 to May 1, for various reasons, including to safeguard the crystal-clear waters of Lake Tahoe.
The TRPA granted Liberty’s Camp Richardson overhead rebuild project a rare exception to this rule to conduct emergency work. This emergency work needed to be completed within a small window. It needed to be complete by March to avoid disturbing an eagle’s nest, but also during a period where there was sufficient snow on the ground to move equipment.
To maximize on this exception, Liberty’s team organized several activities and completed them in just 11 days. The activities included replacing seven aging poles. Installing three new poles and replacing 3,500+ feet of primary power line. A full vegetation treatment was also performed to maintain clearance compliance, including removing nearly 50 trees and pruning about 15 others that could pose a hazard to the infrastructure. All of this was done carefully, in compliance with environmental protection measures designed to minimize impact on the sensitive environment, and with numerous environmental inspections throughout the project’s duration.
Steve Moore, Senior Manager of Operations, said, “Given the amount of work and tight time frame for this project, it was really thanks to our crews’ hard work and commitment that we were able to complete the project so quickly.”
The Camp Richardson project will improve electric service reliability and reduce wildfire risk with minimal interruption to the community during the busy operating season.