Copper earth electrode use "banned"?

Copper is an excellent antimicrobial and a reasonably good fungicide (copper tape on roofs to inhibit moss growth is an example)


I would have thought however, that the amount of copper leaching from a copperclad electrode would be minute (otherwise there would be no rod left)


Where I grew up, there used to be plenty of land remediation schemes that had a lot of planting that died back due to residual copper contamination levels in the ground, but to be fair it was probably the worlds leading centre for copper refining back in the day - the contamination levels (of both copper and arsenic) were very, very high - enough to kill fish when introduced into man made ponds (designed for water run off attenuation.


I think your client has a point, but a few electrodes are unlikely to cause significant contamination levels


Regards


OMS

killing off trees with copper nails is something my grandfather used to do, to discourage suckers rising from the roots after felling. I'm not sure how well it really works, or if it is so much theatre, and the  digging them up to get to the roots is the major part.  He also used DDT, killed weeds with diesel and a number of other things we now would not do.

And a number of folk seem to thing it is so much witchcraft.


Equally we put copper sulphate (or sulfate if you must Americanize the language) on soil for some citrus plants to improve yield and reduce the risk of certain types of Fungus.

I have no idea about the sensitivity of what I presume is 'white lime' or 'linden' and not limes the fruits like green lemons.


Given that the whole point is that the copper rod is not dissolving away over many years (unlike say steel or Aluminium)  I would suggest that unless you spike through or really near to the roots, the effect from a small earth rod, even a no. of them is small as most of the copper atoms stay on the rod.

Equally for a no-copper solution then galvanised steel can be used (scaff poles whacked in by tractor bucket may not look elegant, but they make a solid connection ) or even stainless could be substituted if he is bothered. However, if the trees are failing, I'd be looking for additional factors (water table, soakaway, spilt  cleaning products, leaking foul drains  etc are very real problems for trees )

Plus, many have tried the old copper pipe "trick" (Sorry Graham) to no avail .

Someone down my street cut a big tree/bush thingy right down then hammered 15mm copper ipie (Ok tube then) into the stumps and had no discernable effect.

Many camp sites have reduced facilities due to Covid. Some have no toilet/ washing blocks open, just drinking water taps and a chemical waste hole meant for cassette type toilet waste dumpers. There is a whole new breed of camper that then applies "the Glastonbury method" to waste disposal, as they feel they are forced into "camping stay cactions" and so, frankly, cant be @rsed .The worst are the bucket with a lid type toilets as these then get chucked anywhere; usually a tree or a bush.

Yes, I tried this 10 years ago with conifer, chopped it down and hammered a length of copper pipe in the stump.

It’s now 35ft tall, with it’s own plumbing!


I can vouch for the effectiveness of farm grade Glyphosate diluted 50/50 and 50 ml injected every two weeks into a hole drilled into the trunk of a Leylandii for 6 months............................


Regards


BOD

It’s now 35ft tall, with it’s own plumbing!

As a chainsaw owner, may I point out a danger of letting metal get embedded in trees - one day the tree will have to come down, and chainsaws really don't like trying to cut metal. OK hitting copper (or aluminium) isn't quite as bad as hitting steel, but even so the cost of a new chain and the risk of serious injury from kick-back is better avoided.


  - Andy.

Are overhead cables copper clad?

Might stop the trees getting rheumatism. ?


As others have said, if there was significant contamination, the rods wouldn't last very long.


Trees are having a hard time these days with various fungi and pests. Those particular trees may just have done what comes to every living thing - reached the end of their normal lifespan.

I have about 10 meters of bare 15mm copper plumbing tube radiating from my amateur radio mast as a RF earth. It's buried about 1ft deep and runs close to Apple (malus domestica) and alder (alnus) with no discernible affect. Think I'd prefer a well buried copper rod or pipe for a safety earth to avoid people death!