Cottage Q&A
QUESTIONI had three stately tall pines in front of my hilltop cottage on an island in Charleston Lake near Brockville, Ont. Two had to be cut down after being hit by lightning. One survives and waits for the next lightning strike. Would it be possible to place a lightning rod at the top of this tree in an attempt to save it?
ANSWER
Lightning protection for trees has been around for some time, according to Al Thompson, network management engineer for Hydro One. It's more common in lightning-prone areas of the southeastern U.S. than in most parts of Ontario, which are not considered high-risk. But as you've found to your sorrow, a very tall tree is always vulnerable, especially on a hilltop, and especially on an island.
Arborist Steven Mann, of Bartlett Tree Experts in Bracebridge, Ont., installs between 80 and 100 tree-protection systems each year. A short metal spike is placed at the tip of the tree, and a braided copper conducting cable runs down the trunk to the base, where it's connected to a grounding system that disperses any electrical charge away from nearby buildings and harmlessly into the earth. Some trees - particularly large, deciduous trees with several main leaders or with wide-spreading crowns - might require a system of secondary cables hooked into the main one. But Mann says most pines, with their tall, thin forms, can be protected with a single cable. "Here in cottage country, most of the labour and expense goes into the grounding system," he adds. "The Lightning Rods Act calls for 10 feet of rod - and sometimes you're pounding it through solid rock." Mann estimates that a system to protect your lone pine might cost between $1,000 and $1,500, installed. The installer should have an up-to-date lightning protection certificate (these must be renewed annually by the Ontario Fire Marshal's office). Since a properly designed protection system must allow the tree to bend and sway in the wind, and to continue growing, the installer should also be a qualified professional arborist.
* Published in the June 2002 issue of Cottage Life
