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GREENSBORO — As summer thunderstorms threaten large trees and power lines, Duke Energy is once again trimming branches.

And, once again, the company and its contractors are getting complaints from businesses and homeowners about the results.

The complaint: Sculpting trees around power lines makes them unattractive and damages or even kills them.

Duke Energy spokesman Jason Walls said the company tries to work with homeowners and warn them if trimming will be necessary. But in the end, he said, the company’s responsibility is to all its customers, not just those with trees in their front yards.

Easements and distribution rights of way allow Duke Energy to trim any vegetation that gets in the way of power lines. It’s not always pretty, but Walls said it’s necessary.

“A tree could be leaning close to a major power line — if there’s a storm, there could be a power outage to a lot of folks,” Walls said. “Our focus and priority is maintaining reliable electric service to all of our customers.”

He said the company monitors trees near its lines year-round and contracts with companies like Asplundh Tree Expert Co. to trim where necessary.

“The tree-trimming techniques we use are standard industry practices,” Walls said. “The people who do it have a lot of energy and expertise, and we certainly do our best on the front end to let people know what we’re going to be doing and when.”

Contact Joe Killian at 373-7023 or joe.killian@news-record.com