Yellowknife (Apr 12/06) - Laura Dies knew her backyard trees were due for a trim, but says the power company's latest round of spring branch chopping goes beyond ridiculous.

"That wasn't a trimming," said the Yellowknife homeowner on Friday.

"They actually cut the main trunk of one tree in half. I would've preferred, honestly, if they just took the whole damn thing down."

"It's got four branches left on it. It looks like shit."

Dies estimates the tallest tree in her yard, a poplar, was cut down to 25 feet from 40 feet the day before.

Her trees, including many of her neighbours' along 56 Street, were trimmed Friday morning by a contract company working for Northland Utilities.

Beaver Powerline, from Alberta, was still cutting branches at the intersection onto 52nd Avenue when Yellowknifer appeared on the scene Friday afternoon.

Foreman Terry Derkson said he expected a lot of complaints, but he was just following orders.

Northland is enforcing a rule this year requiring tree branches be kept 2.5 metres away from power poles. A line of them - with many trees underneath them - follows an alley behind Dies' house.

Even with the new rules, Derkson said they still didn't cut the full 2.5 metres behind Dies' house.

"It's ugly now, but it would be indescribable if we cut it down to 2.5 metres," said Derkson.

"She would have a bunch of picnic stumps."

Al Mueller, a spokesperson for Northland Utilities, said previously that the company only required trees be cut back 1.5 metres, but the installation of higher-voltage lines is making it necessary to trim back trees even more - a prospect many other homeowners will have to face over the next several years.

"The entire city will be converted to the higher voltage over the next eight years," said Mueller.

He said the higher voltage lines will allow Northland to decrease the number of substations in the city from seven to three. He said the new lines are also safer.

If power lines were touching the branches - particularly the new ones carrying 25,000 volts - a person could be electrocuted if they touch that tree.

Four years ago on Matonabee Street, he said, a resident refused to allow his birch trees to be trimmed.

When Northland technicians checked, they found one of the trees had a big hole burned into it at the bottom.

"I love trees myself. I'm not against trees," said Mueller.

"However, some of those trees are very fast growing trees.

"We need to cut them back to a location where they will look nice in spring and not be a danger to the power line."

He said the trees may look ugly now, but should look nice in a couple of years with branches growing out and away from the power lines.

Nonetheless, Dies isn't convinced a better trimming job couldn't have been done. She worries it has reduced the value of her property.

Her five-year-old Brahm wasn't pleased either. "They all look ugly," he said.