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The Utility Vegetation Management PodcastAuthor: Steve Cieslewicz and Nick Ferguson
Utility Vegetation Management (UVM) is a rapidly growing multi-billion dollar a year industry employing tens of thousands of people. UVM is the largest operational expense in most electric utilities and frequently the largest driver of system reliability and outage management. In recent years, climate change, wildfires, storms and Public Safety Power Shutoffs have brought the industry into mainstream news. Several groups including government, regulators, utilities, contractors, industry and the public are now active stakeholders and contribute to the public debate. Despite high levels of concern and interest in the subject matter, communications on the topic have been restricted to traditional media outlets. The UVM Podcast is the first of its kind. It aims to directly insert itself in the public conversation as a 21st Century medium to discuss and address the challenges that face us all. The podcast is hosted by Stephen Cieslewicz, an internationally recognized expert in UVM, and Nick Ferguson, a Tech Sector leader specializing in Utility Vegetation Management. Language: en-us Genres: Natural Sciences, Science Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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36 | Dennis Fallon, The New Strategic Direction of the UAA
Tuesday, 18 November, 2025
In this episode of The UVM podcast, hosts Steve Cieslewicz and Nick Ferguson welcome Dennis Fallon, Executive Director of The Utility Arborist Association (UAA) to discuss the organization's strategic plans and evolution. Dennis shares the UAA's ambitious vision for the next 5 years, maintaining its historic role of supporting arborists while evolving to become the voice of the Right-of-Way (ROW) industry. This will involve driving industry norms and best management practices to influence a broader collection of stakeholders. An example is provided on the lack of standardization in the investigation of tree-caused outages. Utilities with advanced programs collect good data but not to one standard, and researchers therefore have a hard time utilizing this information and drawing conclusions from it. The UAA seeks to move the industry away from data ponds towards communal data lakes that we all stand to benefit from. In addition to the strategic vision for The UAA, the episode includes a debrief of the record-breaking Trees and Utilities event that took place in September 2025, and a brief on the Environmental Concerns in Right-of-Way Management Symposium that will take place May 11-14 2026 in Vancouver, British Columbia. Past proceedings from the conference can be found here.A huge thank you to the sponsor of this season and episode, Clear Path Utility Solutions.
