Tree touching power lines in Queensland, Australia: who is responsible
Energex and Ergon Energy, the two Energy Queensland distribution networks, publish tree trimming pages that set out where their responsibility ends and the property owner's begins. This page reports what those pages say.
This page is for tree owners. It reports what the named sources say and is not advice about your tree: for that, ask a qualified arborist or one of the offices under Who to call.
Checked against the sources at the bottom of this page on October 9, 2026. Rules, fees and pay change: the source has the last word.
This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It describes the network businesses' own pages. Other Australian states and territories have their own regulators and rules, and none is covered here.
Where the network's side ends
The Energex page Tree trimming says the business maintains powerlines to the first point of contact on the property, that is the house or building or the first property pole. It says all lines beyond the first property pole belong to the property owner, and that tree clearance on those lines is the owner's responsibility. The Ergon Energy page Tree trimming carries the same wording.
Both pages say the business has a responsibility to maintain clearance zones around powerlines according to the Electrical Safety Act 2002. They also say a tree owner is notified when pruning is needed on their property, and that a contractor seeks the owner's approval before removing a tree inside the property.
What the trimming pages describe
| Topic | What the pages say |
|---|---|
| Program | Trimming areas are based on postcodes. Postcodes in high tree growth areas within 30 kilometres of the sea are targeted every year, and postcodes further west less often. Contractors maintain vegetation away from over 1,000 kilometres of powerlines each month. |
| Cost | The pages give more than AU$70 million as the yearly spend on keeping a safe clearance between trees and powerlines. They say that when the business enters a property to trim a tree growing into the clearance space around street powerlines, it normally does this free of charge. |
| Requests | A particular vegetation concern can get an out of program assessment if the vegetation is growing into or touching the powerlines. Requests go through the Customer Self Service Portal named on the page. |
| Method | Contractors use nationally approved pruning techniques and remove only the foliage needed for a safe clearance. The pages say trees are not shaped. |
| Removal | The pages list reasons a tree may need removal: a palm planted under or beside powerlines that cannot be pruned, a tall growing species unsuitable under powerlines, a tree that cannot be kept out of the clearance zone and still meet Australian standards, or a species that grows too fast into the lines. |
| Council trees | The business works with the local council to remove inappropriate trees growing on council property. |
Both pages say to hire a professional arborist or tree trimmer for vegetation near powerlines and not to attempt it personally. They say to contact the business for safety advice before using machinery near powerlines.
Exclusion zones
The Ergon Energy page Exclusion zones and safety laws says an exclusion zone is a minimum safe distance from an energised overhead powerline that people, operating plant and vehicles must stay out of. It says the zones are generally 3 metres for voltages up to 132 kV and 6 metres for voltages up to 330 kV, and that these distances can be reduced if a worker is approved as an Authorised Person. It says entering a zone needs written Safety Advice from the business first. It lists the Electrical Safety Act 2002, the Electrical Safety Regulation 2013, the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 and the Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011, and names the Electrical Safety Code of Practice 2020, Working near overhead and underground electric lines, as the guide to applying them.
Phone lines the pages list
Ergon Energy lists 000 or 13 16 70 for life threatening emergencies such as fallen powerlines, 13 22 96 for power outages and 13 74 66 for general enquiries. The Energex page Incidents and emergencies lists 000 or 13 19 62 for life threatening emergencies, and says to stay at least 10 metres from fallen powerlines, to assume they are live and to report them at once.
Who to call
- 000: life threatening emergencies such as fallen powerlines, per the network business
- Energex, 13 19 62: life threatening emergencies and fallen powerlines in the Energex area
- Ergon Energy, 13 16 70: life threatening emergencies and fallen powerlines in the Ergon area
- Ergon Energy, 13 74 66: general enquiries in the Ergon area, 8:30am to 4:30pm Monday to Friday