Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

• Hard hats must be ANSI Z89 Class E rated, containing legible labels
• The chinstrap of a hard hat needs proper adjustment
• The manufacturing date is inside the helmet; replace if older than 5 years
• Inspect the helmet for cracks, warpage, fractures, or damage to padding and straps
• Eye protection must not be cracked or damaged and should provide side shielding
• Eye protection must fit correctly without impairing vision and have a Z87+ label
• Hearing protection must reduce harmful decibels to below 85 dB for a Time Weighted Average of 8 hours
• Hearing protection should fit without gaps, preventing high decibels from entering
• Hi-Vis clothing must be ANSI 107 Class 2 or 3, and can be clothing or a vest
• Hi-Vis clothing must not be torn or loosely fitted
• Vests should break away with velcro during snagging incidents
• Hi-Vis clothing must maintain high visibility and reflective ability
• Closed-toe footwear made of leather or equivalent material meeting ASTM 2413 is adequate
• Footwear must have sufficient ankle support and is not compromised

Chainsaw Inspection

• Identify the right rear hand guard, throttle interlock, chain brake, spark arrester, and chain catch
• Fuel and oil caps should be checked during chainsaw inspection
• Bar bolts need checking
• Check chain tension is needed without touching the chain
• Anti-vibration springs require inspection
• Test the chain brake by disengaging and rolling the chain on a log, then engage the chain brake to show that the chain cannot move
• The four reactive forces of the bar: push, pull, kickback, and attack
• Demonstrate Leg Lock Start at a 45-degree angle, pulling starting from across the body
• Chainsaw chaps should drape to the top of boot laces
• Check the straps for good condition and ensure they clip. (Tuck away loose webbing)
• The UL Rating must be legible and not torn
• Inspect for cuts, holes, tears, and separation of fabric
• Chaps should be clean and free of oils or debris
• Damaged chaps, clips, or webbing must be replaced

Electrical Hazard Identification

• Overbuild sub-transmission lines carry voltages reduced from the main transmission line system; supplies to regional distribution substations
• Common voltages: 34.5, 69, 115, and 138 kV1; carry lower voltages (26 kV - 69 kV) to distribution stations
• At the top of the pole are the primary or main wires connect to nearby substations and carry up to 12,000 volts
• There is one wire if electricity serves a residence and three wires to serve businesses/offices
• Cross-arms support primary wires with insulators, preventing the cross-arm and pole from becoming energized
• A cut-out, similar to a home fuse, protects the pole and its equipment from too much electricity
• Contact with a wire from tree limbs, birds, or squirrels, causes the cut-out to drop open, indicating a problem
• If a cut-out is open, contact the power company
• Transformers "below the cutout" step down electricity from wires at the top of the pole to lower levels for homes/businesses
• Service drop wires carry 120 or 240 volts from pole-mounted transformers to residential and small commercial buildings
• The switch at the base of a power pole can disconnect electrical flow downstream for repairs
• Guy wires support poles; covered with an insulator to protect people and animals
• The lower end of guy wires is often encased in a yellow plastic reflector
• An energized object has electricity flowing through it
• A conductive object allows the flow of electricity
• A non-conductive object resists the flow of electricity
• Look for abnormal field conditions, such as damaged utility equipment

Identifying Hazards

• Utility equipment identification happens through a picture, identifying components on the pole
• Look for hazards involving lines, equipment, or nearby proximity

Direct and Indirect Contact

• Direct contact happens when someone touches an energized piece of equipment, like a bare wire
• Indirect contact occurs when someone touches an object/area that has become energized due to a power source contact

Step and Touch Potential

• Step potential is a voltage between feet near an energized grounded object
• The difference in surface potential is experienced by a person bridging a 1m distance with their feet without contacting a grounded object
• Mitigate step potential by keeping legs/feet together and shuffle away
• Touch potential is a voltage between an energized object and a person's hands/feet in contact with the object
• It means the potential difference between ground potential rise (GPR) and surface potential at the point of contact with a grounded structure

Minimum Approach Distance (MAD)

• Employees use an M.A.D. chart with voltage and altitude to find minimum approach distances

Knot Tying Assessment

• Demonstrate how to tie a friction knot
• Demonstrate how to tie a porta wrap with a rigging block to a tree
• Demonstrate how to perform lifting and lowering procedures
• Use two back-up knots and tend to all loose material
• Clove Hitch and Cow Hitch
• Knots to Know: Clove Hitch, Bowline, Cow Hitch, Alpine Butterfly Knot, Knut, Blake's Hitch, Sheet Bend, Square Knot, Prusik, Distel, Schwabisch

Approved Lifting and Lowering Knots

• Use a running bowline or a clove hitch with two half hitches
• With a clove hitch, bends are more favorable (less strength loss) vs. a running bowline
• Butt-tying is when the rigging line attaches at the butt end so the piece drops tip down
• Tip-tying means the rigging line connects toward the tip allowing the butt end to drop away
• Tie a marline or half hitch before the clove hitch or running bowline knots

Worksite Assessment

• Important to explain your worksite with employees and safety personnel: Assess it to keep employees and the public safe
• Assessing includes electrical hazards, tree proximity to conductors, trees being worked or adjacent, and property/public hazards

Tree Risk Assessment

• Tree risk assessment is a visual evaluation of a tree's health and hazardous conditions to determine the likelihood/consequences of a failure
• Tree Species and any girdling roots
• Examine conditions by probing the soil and looking for rotten roots
• Cracks, dead wood, rot, fruiting bodies wildlife habitat, hangers, excessive lean, and potential slope hazards
• Assess tree lean with a plumbob or hand pyramid to help identify likelihood of failure
• What are the potential risks to utilities, properties, and the public, and where are they located?
• Inspect adjacent trees for defects and compromises that could affect the jobsite
• Will a tree withstand the load of the climber/rigging?

Essential Controls

• Identifying site hazards and understanding the essential safety controls to mitigate them is a must
• Five controls are mandatory: Fell a Tree, Working Aloft, Uncontrolled Drop, Controlled Drop, Working Near Lines

Limbing and Bucking

• Limbing and bucking assessments require displaying the proper use, control of the chainsaw/chain brake, and how limbs/logs are cut safely
• Engage the chain brake every 2nd step or when stopping
• Do not use the kickback are of the bar
• Be on the "downhill" side of log: "slope indicator side"
• Identify where the tension and compression are to move on to cutting
• Use a shaving cut and an accordion cut to release stored energy

Notch's on the Bolt

• Notch cuts require stopping and checking for bypass/errors that can alter the proper closure
• Clean excess wood; don't cut more than ⅓ of the tree diameter
• When back cutting, the projected cut requires a 5-15% hinge
• For conventional and Humbolt notches, back cuts can be stepped up 10%; for Open Face Notches, the back cut is level
• The employee will perform three notch cuts and three back cuts on a 5ft log
  • Conventional Notch: no less than a 10% hinge with an opening between 45-69 degrees
  • Open Face: back cut leveling is at the apex of the notch and not less than 10% with an opening between 70 degrees or greater
  • Humboldt: no less than 10% hinge with an opening between 45-69 degrees
• Treat all cuts as a felling operation using designated retreat routes (45 degrees off the back cut)

Pole Felling

• Use cones to show where the treetop will land one times the height of the tree
• Ensure that when the pole tip lands it will not hit or pass the target cone
• Cones identify the "Danger Zone" is at 1 ½ times the height of the tree
• Establish a 360 coned perimeter for immediate danger
• Verbally identify the "Observation Zone" as 2 times the height of the tree "360 degrees around the tree”
• Establish a pull point in the top ⅓ of the tree using a running bowline knot
• Maintain Mechanical Advantage

Mechanical Advantage

• Demonstrate set up, capture gain, and how a mechanical advantage is used; the Modified VT, slipping at 1,900 lbs, is recommended
• Place the mechanical advantage 1 ½ times the tree height
• Equipment: 5:1 pulley system and a dead-eye sling with or without a porta wrap
• Make sure the system does not extend into the danger zone potentially causing harm
• Redirect the pull rope using a rigging block so your assistant is in a safe felling location

Tree Climbing

• Gear inspections
• Job site and Tree Risk assessment
• Establishing a 360-degree drop zone outside the drip line of longest branch is required
• Perform a 2-person (2 man) Pull Test (at 1.5x Tree Height)
• Set up climbing operations by tying all approved knots and demonstrating proper friction setup/saver
• Working Aloft involves
  • Always work aloft using 3-way communication at all times
  • Always be 200% tied in before cutting/trimming
  • Proper Tie-in point above rigging point
  • Demonstrate a vertical brake off cut (parallel with the tree)
  • Establish rigging equipment; set-up above break off cut
  • Perform any necessary lowering cuts
  • Perform lift using a notch cut and back cut tip-tie or Marline or half hitch shall be tied before the clove hitch or running bowline knots
  • retrieval is demonstrated safely

Setting Climb Equipment

• All equipment inspected
• Set up friction saver, climb line through the friction saver, and friction knots
• Life support system should be attached to your center rope bridge/ring
• A friction knot is tied on your work positioning lanyard and is properly attached to your D-rings
• Lift feet off the ground; friction saver should be snitched (slided) around tree

Climbing Saddle and Harness Inspection

• Measurements: 1kn = 224 Lbs., 24kn = 5,395 Lbs., 30kn = 6,744 Lbs
• Inspect the life support on the saddle
  • Center Notch Ring and Rope Bridge tied with a Fisherman's knot
  • Hot spots where two materials rub each other and show glazing or damage
  • abrasion, sharp edges, and cracks. check Side D-Rings
  • Inspect webbing, stitching, buckles, and bridge plate/rope
• Check the manufacturing date on the inspection tag to ensure the saddle was made within the past 5 years
• When inspecting your Bucket Harness
  • Inspect all webbing for torn, cut or material separation.
  • Make sure that the Lanyard keeper isn't damaged or broken.
  • All buckles/snaps must connect/disconnect properly
  • Stitching is inspected for unraveling
  • Lanyard keeper connects to back of harness
  • The Harness and lanyard fall arrest sections are not activated and are not damaged
  • Inspection tags on both the harness and lanyard are manufactured within the last 5 years and have an updated inspection date

Climb Ropes & Stopper Knot

• Eye to Eye Prusik Cord inspection
  • The eyes are not damaged, cut, or fraying.
  • The stitching is intact and is not unraveling.
  • Cord hours: glassing, milking, glazing, or cuts to the rope.
  • Labels covering the stitching are legible, and the plastic cover is in good condition.
• When using a Spliced Eye Climb Line
  • Eyes are checked for damage/excessive wear; proper and legible rating labels; check splicing, climbing line hours
  • Make sure that there is a stopper knot tied on the end of your climb line before ascending
• A stopper knot is a fixed point preventing a rope from slipping a narrow passage
• Use Figure 8 knot and the Barrel knot
• Exercise TDS (Tie, Dress, and Set) when tying knots, leaving three feet of line past your knot

Climbing Equipment

• Inspect micro rollers,
  • Becket isn't warped/cracked/separating
  • Inner Cheeks do not have any burrs/abrasions/sharp edges
  • Check the Sheave and Sheave Pin.
• Inspect double locking carabiners,
  • They have no abrasions/warpage/cracks/sharp edges
  • The gate opens/closes properly and smoothly, look for gumming, slow closing,/hang ups
• Inspect Climbing Spurs or Gaffs: functioning parts and correct fits
  • Check the straps, shank, padding, shin pad, nuts and screws

Insulated Pruners

• Check hook, pully, bolts, eye bolt, and metal sleeves
• Insure dielectric test labels are legible that the pole at 100kv per foot for 5 minutes date stamp
• The fiberglass pole is in good conditions not cracked/dirty/covered in liquids
• The pull string is good with the insulator sets 2in. below

Aerial Lift Inspection

• Demonstrate inspection of chassis, level indicators, perform a 360-degree boom test flight
• Check for replaced Labels/Fuel/Hydraulic hoses/torque seals/controls/hydraulic cylinders/turret hocks/bolts, and for loads on tired
• Inspect outriggers, hydraulic thank fluid and level, level rods, pin bolts on the boom and dielectric parts
• Check non conductive bolts on basket and level must be 5 degrees right

Chipping Operation Assessment

• Inspect equipment, safe parimeters and safety equipment with these steps.
• Start, warm up chipper, engage clutch, idle up, engage feed wheels, chip debris, disengage feed wheels, idle down, disengage clutch, and turn off chipper.

Chipper Inspection

• The following areas are inspected: Lunit Ring, Chains, Jack, Radiator, Exposed exhaust and Muffler Shroud, Fuel and Hydraulic tanks, hoses\labels
• Ensure that Safety bar and axles are working and engaged while the chipper is working with feed engaged.
• Inspect the chipper feed table/opening
• Disconnect the battery and lockout

Questions During Assessment

- Rolling downhill requires the log ends to be tied off.
- A ground saw vs the climb saw requires the Rear handle
- The chipper operates if the key is in the ignition. If not ,its nonoperational
- Distance parameters of operation is at 10 feet
- Boots must  be replaced if there the bottoms have holes.
- Safe if underground and overhead aren't an issue
- 25 feet minimum distance for  oil and fuel

• If a tree is going to be connected on wiring then Call an All-Stop, set up a safe perimeter around the hazard zone, contact your supervisor and utility company
• To operate a the safety features on chipper. You must test all parts
• That tightness and Bolts are inspected and must not be loose.
• 2x the is PG&E’s chipper zonw
• felling requires inspect for Hazard targets is required (Utilities).
• When parking the car be sure that the keys are put in the pockets and the car is chocked
  • The harness will have broken stitched tabs
• • There requires an attachment pin to perform this action
• What are site dangers and hazards? Inspect underground and overhead
• • Inspect for rope Chipping requires it to be on the non traffic.
• 2X distance requires when other s are present
• Limbs are sawed chainsaw safety and continue Polepruners and electrical components test,sleeve with 2 in and insulators
• Energized is when all components of the electricity work.
• For R3 and over require full-time watchers 30 min