Ancient Thread Alert! You 2 gentlemen just resurrected a 10+ year old thread. Some of the prior posters aren't around any longer....
For a tension wire fence, it's common to clear about 4 to 6 feet on either side of the boundary line—enough for construction access and ongoing maintenance. In dense areas like black spruce and birch, you might need slightly more. Just be sure to stay within your property lines unless you have permission from neighbors or the state. Always double-check local setback rules, especially near the lake and public easement.
Know the fence laws for your state. In some, both sides of a boundary are required to pay for installation and maintenance of a fence. Clearing can be negotiated, but there needs to be room to safely "operate" the fence. And there are laws that what a fence is.
I’d request my client either obtain a temporary or permanent easement. The easement should be prepared by an attorney for the “front end” that includes all the legal language (the who, the what, the when, etc.) and the surveyor provides “the back end” or the where (description and plat). Once recorded you should have a clear path to conduct your work if the easement is properly written.
Consideration for jurisdictional requirements for clearing and grubbing is something you should definitely familiarize yourself with. Failure to do so can result in hefty fines and possible criminal charges. One of my clients cut down a tree without a permit and cost him over $10,000 and a misdemeanor.
The experts should know: For a fence on a boundary, what amount of clearing on either side of a boundary is customary.
My concern is for enough room to build this fence through dense black spruce and birch and subsequently, maintain the fence.
This is to be a tension wire fence, about 7200 feet in total length. One side of the property to be fenced borders a public 60' road easment. The other borders are adjacent to private lots and adjacent to an Alaska State Park Lake. The lake setback is another thing, but mostly my question is regarding how wide I can 'brush' for a fence.
Typically, clearing about 4–6 feet on each side of the fence line is common practice, especially for tension wire fences, to allow room for construction and long-term maintenance. Since part of your fence borders public land and a state park lake, you’ll want to double-check with local zoning or land use regulations, as setback and clearing rules can vary. It’s usually best to clear only what’s needed for access and maintenance to avoid any issues with neighbors or agencies.
Typically, clearing about 4–6 feet on each side of the fence line is common practice,
Remember that these laws apply to commercial, agricultural, and urban residential uses equally before making broad statements.
For large commercial projects I'm sure that wide swath practice is true and desireable. More generally, there are going to be a lot of cases were clearing a 12' swath is completely impractical. Following this reasoning - if you were going to build a fence between my house and my neighbors you would first completely clear everything from wall to wall, and be wishing for more room. Mrs. Mayer isn't going to allow that to happen to her rose bushes.
We have set witness line a uniform distance from the true line such that there is room to clear what must be cleared to put a new fence on line. Typically, 50 feet. Thus, the landowner and his fence crew can ascertain to which they need to evaluate the adjoiner's attitude about giant, overgrown weeds, frequently referred to as trees. The 50 foot is also a good distance for the bulldozers to remove and pile said giant weeds.