February 1, 1999

HAMMOND—Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) has been named a Tree Line USA Utility for the sixth consecutive year in recognition of its national leadership in the caring for trees while meeting the Tree Line USA requirements. NIPSCO will be recognized for its accomplishment at the sixth annual Trees and Utilities National Conference at Arbor Day Farm’s Lied Conference Center in Nebraska City, NE on February 3.

To be named a Tree Line USA Utility, the company must meet certain requirements including: providing quality tree care, offering annual worker training, furnishing tree planting and public education, and sponsoring Arbor Day activities. Forestry Operations supervisors, Jim Barnhart and Larry Dombkowski, will be accepting the award on behalf of NIPSCO. Peggy Landini, NIPSCO’s vice president of sales and customer service, will be speaking at the conference on February 4.

The Trees and Utilities National Conference is sponsored each year by the National Arbor Day Foundation and the Utility Arborist Association. This year the conference will be held from February 2 to 4. The conference brings together the nation’s leading experts and practitioners in utility arboriculture and urban forestry.

NIPSCO, a subsidiary of NIPSCO Industries, Inc. (NI), provides natural gas and electricity to a population of approximately 2.2 million across the northern third of Indiana. With nearly 700,000 gas customers and 404,000 electric customers, NIPSCO is the largest natural gas distribution company, and the second largest electric distribution company, in Indiana.

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