PG&E to focus on power-line settings instead of tree-trimming, WSJ reports

PG&E spent about $2.5B on a yearslong effort to cut or clear more than a million trees growing alongside power lines in an effort to reduce wildfire risk, but now says the work was work was largely ineffective and is eliminating the program, The Wall Street Journal’s Katherine Blunt reports, citing an internal analysis reviewed by the publication and interviews with utility executives. The company plans to shift its focus to new power-line settings in areas at high risk of fire, saying the new approach will be both safer and less expensive.