I just got a note from a solar installer in Northern California. He is seeing a big increase (just this morning) in the number of orders for battery backed solar power systems.
As the climate warms, several things happen:
1) People turn on their air conditioners. Power demand goes up. More current flows through power lines. This warms them up and they expand (droop.)
2) The warmer weather warms up the power lines as well. They droop farther, coming closer to trees and other vegetation.
3) Vegetation gets drier and more prone to fire.
This has led to PG+E beginning to cut power to people in remote areas to prevent power lines from causing fires during dangerous (hot and windy) conditions. Battery systems prevent homes from losing power, and solar reduces the amount of heating that power lines see during the day (when fire risk is highest.)
From the power industry website UtilityDive:
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In a first, PG&E cuts power to 60,000 to prevent wildfires during wind storm
Oct. 15, 2018
Dive Brief:
Pacific Gas & Electric cut off electricity service to nearly 60,000 people on Sunday in a new attempt to prevent wildfires across Northern California service area during high winds and dry conditions.
The National Weather Service on Saturday issued a Red Flag Warning for the region, cautioning of extreme risk of wildfires due to low humidity and winds reaching above 50 miles per hour. High winds can cause power lines to come into contact with vegetation, igniting fires.
PG&E lines were found responsible for 16 fires last year and California lawmakers passed wildfire liability protections for utilities this summer after PG&E warned that fire costs could force it into bankruptcy or reorganization.
Dive Insight:
PG&E's voluntary shutoffs over the weekend are a reminder of the mounting pressure on California utilities to prevent wildfires against the backdrop of a warmer, drier climate.
Cutting electricity service is the "last resort" in a wildfire safety program rolled out by the utility last year to reduce the risk of fires that have burned thousands of square miles and killed dozens of people across the state in recent years. This weekend was the first time PG&E put that final step into action.
On Saturday, the utility warned customers in 12 counties they could experience service interruptions ahead of high winds forecasted for the following evening.
Just after 8 p.m. on Sunday, PG&E cut power to more than 17,000 customers in Lake, Napa and Sonoma counties based on the risk for wind gusts above 50 mph, the company announced on Twitter. Less than an hour later, it said 42,000 customers in El Dorado, Amador and Calaveras counties also had their electricity turned off.
The nearly 60,000 customers remained without power Monday morning. Most customers will see service restored today, the utility said in a release, but it will continue to monitor weather conditions.
. . . PG&E has warned that it will face more and larger fires in the future as a warmer climate creates more dangerous conditions for blazes. Already this year, California fires have burned more than 621,000 acres, according to state officials, a significant increase from the five year average burn of 215,000 acres.
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As the climate warms, several things happen:
1) People turn on their air conditioners. Power demand goes up. More current flows through power lines. This warms them up and they expand (droop.)
2) The warmer weather warms up the power lines as well. They droop farther, coming closer to trees and other vegetation.
3) Vegetation gets drier and more prone to fire.
This has led to PG+E beginning to cut power to people in remote areas to prevent power lines from causing fires during dangerous (hot and windy) conditions. Battery systems prevent homes from losing power, and solar reduces the amount of heating that power lines see during the day (when fire risk is highest.)
From the power industry website UtilityDive:
=================================================
In a first, PG&E cuts power to 60,000 to prevent wildfires during wind storm
Oct. 15, 2018
Dive Brief:
Pacific Gas & Electric cut off electricity service to nearly 60,000 people on Sunday in a new attempt to prevent wildfires across Northern California service area during high winds and dry conditions.
The National Weather Service on Saturday issued a Red Flag Warning for the region, cautioning of extreme risk of wildfires due to low humidity and winds reaching above 50 miles per hour. High winds can cause power lines to come into contact with vegetation, igniting fires.
PG&E lines were found responsible for 16 fires last year and California lawmakers passed wildfire liability protections for utilities this summer after PG&E warned that fire costs could force it into bankruptcy or reorganization.
Dive Insight:
PG&E's voluntary shutoffs over the weekend are a reminder of the mounting pressure on California utilities to prevent wildfires against the backdrop of a warmer, drier climate.
Cutting electricity service is the "last resort" in a wildfire safety program rolled out by the utility last year to reduce the risk of fires that have burned thousands of square miles and killed dozens of people across the state in recent years. This weekend was the first time PG&E put that final step into action.
On Saturday, the utility warned customers in 12 counties they could experience service interruptions ahead of high winds forecasted for the following evening.
Just after 8 p.m. on Sunday, PG&E cut power to more than 17,000 customers in Lake, Napa and Sonoma counties based on the risk for wind gusts above 50 mph, the company announced on Twitter. Less than an hour later, it said 42,000 customers in El Dorado, Amador and Calaveras counties also had their electricity turned off.
The nearly 60,000 customers remained without power Monday morning. Most customers will see service restored today, the utility said in a release, but it will continue to monitor weather conditions.
. . . PG&E has warned that it will face more and larger fires in the future as a warmer climate creates more dangerous conditions for blazes. Already this year, California fires have burned more than 621,000 acres, according to state officials, a significant increase from the five year average burn of 215,000 acres.
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