City of Newcastle will make a submission to a draft Ausgrid plan calling for a "fair" funding program for aerial bundled or underground cables to protect trees from excessive pruning and "wineglassing".
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It comes after numerous instances of trees being heavily pruned around power lines across the city, with an estimated 38 per cent of public street trees being affected by overhead lines.
Aerial bundled cables are insulated overhead power lines, which allow trees to grow closer to them and be more precisely pruned than around bare wires.
Newcastle Greens councillor John Mackenzie raised a notice of motion at last week's council meeting to support an Ausgrid proposal for co-funding aerial bundled cable upgrades in collaboration with councils.
"After all this time this is the closest we've got to a solution," Cr Mackenzie said.
But Labor councillors argued council should not be burdened by the cost of upgrading Ausgrid assets, with deputy lord mayor Declan Clausen instead moving for council to submit to Ausgrid's draft plan asking for a "fair" funding program.
"I think it is incumbent on them [Ausgrid] to take action and undertake investment to prevent the destruction that we're seeing," Cr Clausen said.
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Sage Swinton
Sage Swinton is a news reporter who was born and bred in the Hunter. She has been with the Newcastle Herald since June 2020, and covers Newcastle council as well as other general news.
Sage Swinton is a news reporter who was born and bred in the Hunter. She has been with the Newcastle Herald since June 2020, and covers Newcastle council as well as other general news.
