Spring poles and trees under tension: what the sources say

This page reports what the named codes, regulators and makers say. It is not training and does not teach the work. This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It sets out how six sources describe trees and limbs held under load, from a bent sapling to a windthrown stem. All pages were read on October 9, 2026. The courses that teach the work are in the guides on chainsaw tickets and certifications by country, and the UK award for this kind of job is on the page for windblown trees. The wider storm picture is in the guide on storm work, and each place's felling rules are on the page about felling rules by country.

Credits. Wording from the SafeWork NSW Tree works code of practice is adapted under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence, with sentences shortened and reworded. Wording from the WorkSafe New Zealand code and news release is adapted with the source and copyright status acknowledged. OSHA, Scottish Forestry and the Health and Safety Authority are described in our own words with links.

United States: the definition and the distance

OSHA's logging standard, 29 CFR 1910.266, defines a spring pole as a tree, segment of a tree, limb or sapling under stress or tension from the pressure or weight of another object. Paragraph (h)(2)(iv) says that when a spring pole or other tree under stress is cut, no employee other than the feller is closer than two tree lengths when the stress is released.

Scotland: tension and compression after a storm

The Scottish Forestry page Managing storm damaged trees, published on February 22, 2025, says windthrown trees under tension and compression behave very differently from standing trees when cut, and that the forces released can be violent and rapid. It says chainsaw work among windblown trees needs a very high level of technical competency, that chainsaw operations are kept to a minimum, and that mechanised harvesting is much safer though it still needs competent operators. It adds that landowners and farmers engage experienced professionals to assess and clear windthrow, whatever its size.

Ireland: leaflet 306 on windblow

The Health and Safety Authority's leaflet Chainsaw clearance of windblow, number 306, published in October 2018 and adapted from the Forest Industry Safety Accord, warns that the operation is very hazardous. It says mechanised systems should be considered as a safer alternative. Among its numbered points, it says that when felling or taking down standing, leaning or broken stems no other person is closer than twice the length of the tree, and that small trees pinned by windblown trees are checked for and their tension relieved before the larger ones are dealt with. It also says that on bent stems and branches the places where tension and compression wood occur are identified, and that enormous power may be released by cutting into the tension wood of even relatively small material.

New Zealand: the code and a July 2026 release

Section 3.4.7 of the WorkSafe New Zealand arboriculture code says windthrown trees are those blown down, made unstable or significantly damaged by wind, that they bring added hazards needing more than one person on site at all times, and that when a tree rests on its upturned roots the cut is made so neither the feller nor others are in danger from movement of the root mat or the log.

WorkSafe's news release Storm-damaged trees? Don't risk it, dated July 21, 2026, says storm-damaged trees can be unpredictable, with hidden pressure that can release suddenly. It reports that WorkSafe received more reports of unsafe chainsaw and machinery use by farmers clearing shelterbelts, including a fall of four metres while using a chainsaw on a partly fallen tree, a deep chainsaw injury to a foot, tractors used to pull out damaged trees and unsafe attempts to free stuck chainsaw bars. It says farmers should fence off dangerous areas, keep people away and wait for someone with the right skills, and that anyone hiring help checks for training and experience with trees under tension.

New South Wales: a reminder in the limbing list

The SafeWork NSW Tree works code of practice lists precautions for cutting up branches on the ground. One of them is being aware of tension and compression factors. The same list names a cleared escape route, awareness of other people in the work area, bar tip position to avoid kickback, and chocking any log that might roll. The code gives no distance for a tree under tension.

Where each source puts a number

Source	Term used	Distance for others
OSHA 1910.266	Spring pole, tree under stress	Two tree lengths
HSA leaflet 306	Tension wood, compression wood, side tension	Twice the length of the tree (felling or taking down standing, leaning or broken stems)
Scottish Forestry	Tension and compression	Not published
WorkSafe NZ code 3.4.7 and release	Windthrown trees, hidden pressure	Not published in the section read
SafeWork NSW code	Tension and compression factors	Not published

The WorkSafe New Zealand release describes injuries without naming anyone. To correct or remove an entry, write to the address at the foot of this page.