Apparently quite the tech task to put high voltage distribution underground, but vegetation clearing has been very technologically available for quite some decades.
Some deforestation is warranted for peeps living in some climates.
Putting transmission lines is extremely expensive, ex: here in AZ it costs a out $2 million per mile to put a single 69 kV circuit underground. Rate payers would have to pay to put the lines underground, that’s how regulated utility tariffs work.