August 6, 2020 Webinar...•Hazard tree removal (beyond traditional trim zone) •More than 20 in-house certified arborists •More than 650 vegetation management crews, totaling nearly

1

August 6, 2020

Travis English

Training & Outreach

Specialist

Wildfire Webinar Series

Wildfires in the West

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Agenda

▪WECC, Steve Ashbaker

▪ Southern California Edison, Tom Botello & Tom Brady

▪ San Diego Gas & Electric, Johnathan Woldemariam

▪ Pacific Gas & Electric, Matt Pender

▪ Los Angeles Department of Water & Power, Robert Kerrigan

▪Bonneville Power Administration, Mike Miller

▪California ISO, Larry Bellnap

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August 6, 2020

Steve Ashbaker

Reliability Initiative Director



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August 6, 2020

Tom Brady & Tom Botello

Southern California Edison



Our Commitment to California

Keeping our communities safe from wildfires

August 2020

Tom Botello and Tom Brady

11

WILDFIRE PREPAREDNESS TIPS

OUR RESPONSE TO THE COVID-19 OUTBREAK

• Continuing to deliver safe and reliable service to our communities

• Safety of our workforce, our customers and the public remain our top priority

• Prioritizing critical work necessary to protect our communities and public safety

• Enhancing programs to ensure customers continue receiving benefits (Medical

Baseline and CARE), suspending service disconnections for nonpayment, and waiving

late fees

• Supporting the communities we serve by donating more than $1 million to local

nonprofits responding to the pandemic. (Edison International’s charitable causes are

funded entirely by shareholders and not customers.)

• For more information, visit sce.com/covid19

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California’s wildfire problem is serious and worsening.

• Ten of the 20 state’s most

destructive wildfires have

happened since 2015

• About a quarter of our

service area is located in

high fire risk areas

Source: www.cpuc.ca.gov/FireThreatMaps

WHAT WE LEARNED / WHAT’S NEW FOR 2020

Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS)• Recognize the impact of PSPS events on customers but they are necessary to protect public safety

• Found multiple instances of equipment damage and tree branches contacting power lines that could

have ignited a fire after a PSPS event

Wildfire Mitigation Tools• Implementing grid hardening activities and hi-tech tools and technologies

• Improving our ability to sectionalize to reduce the number of people impacted

Customer Care Programs and Communications • Actively pursuing new programs to help customers

• Improving website and communications capabilities to provide additional, timely information and

notifications

Stakeholder Engagement• Enhancing communication and collaboration with stakeholders and partners

• Partnering with community-based organizations to better assist vulnerable customers

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MITIGATION STRATEGY BASED ON FIRE SCIENCE

Weather

Conditions

(Wind, Humidity)

Vegetation &

Structures

Energy from

Electrical

Infrastructure

Eliminating any side of the fire triangle can prevent ignitions

15

16

Enhancing

Operational Practices

Bolstering Situation

Awareness Capabilities

A COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGY to prevent, combat and respond

Hardening the

Electric Grid

17

OUR WILDFIRE MITIGATION PLAN

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• Evaluation of targeted

undergrounding in high fire

risk areas

UNDERGROUNDING

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ADVANCED WEATHER MODELING

• New state-of-the-art

software with a high-

resolution weather model

forecasts weather

conditions down to less

than two miles

• 24/7 monitoring

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• Hazard tree removal (beyond traditional trim zone)

• More than 20 in-house certified arborists

• More than 650 vegetation management crews,

totaling nearly 1,500 workers

• 1.1 million trees inspected annually; 500,000+

trees in high fire risk areas

• 750,000 pruned per year

• Vegetation removal at poles

• LiDAR surveying

VEGETATION MANAGEMENT

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PUBLIC SAFETY POWER SHUTOFF

• De-energizing power lines to prevent ignitions

• Used during elevated fire conditions

• Primarily affects circuits in high fire risk areas

• Use of multiple methods to notify people in affected

areas before, during, and after a de-energization

event

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PSPS DECISION POINTSDecision points include, but are not limited to:

• NWS Red Flag Warnings

• SCE meteorologists forecast

strong wind conditions in

service area

• SCE fire scientist assessment

of fire potential to include

consideration of weather

and fuels

• Impact of

de-energizing circuits on

first responders and

essential services

• Real-time

observations from

qualified electrical

workers monitoring

for hazardous

conditions in the field

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PSPS IDEAL TIMELINE

PLANNING AND MONITORING OUTAGE

SCE will target the schedule above to notify customers. Sudden onset of hazardous conditions that jeopardize public safety may impact SCE’s ability to provide

advanced notice to customers. Notifications can be provided via email, text, voice call, and TTY formats; zip code-level alerts; and NextDoor.

POWER

SHUTOFF

(Statement)

3rd Notification Power

Shutoff

4-7 DAYS

AHEAD

3 DAYS

AHEAD

(Alert)

2 DAYS

AHEAD

(Alert)

1 DAY

AHEAD (Alert)

1-4 HOURS

BEFORE

SHUTDOWN

(Warning)

SCE begins planning for potential PSPS

SCE Incident Management Team activated

Initial notifications to Local and Tribal Governments, Emergency Officials and

First Responders. Critical Infrastructure and Service Providers

Updates to notifications

Initial notifications to customers not notified at 3 days ahead

Update notification sent

Imminent Shutdown notification

POWER

RESTORATION

PREPARING FOR

RE-ENERGIZATION

(Statement)

Notification Power Restored

After Inspection

Notification Before

Re-Energization Occurs

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ENHANCEMENTS TO COMMUNICATIONS

Website Improvements• Dedicated PSPS page

• Fire Weather and PSPS information

• Increased capacity to handle website visits

• Improved maps

• Look up PSPS events and status by address

• Maps showing locations of Community Resource

Centers and Community Crew Vehicles

• Providing estimated restoration times

Notifications • Zip code PSPS notifications

• Expanded use of social media (e.g., Nextdoor)

• Area-based public alerts on mobile phones (July 2020)

• Imminent notifications when possible

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CUSTOMER CARE PROGRAMS

Local Community Resources

• Community Crew Vehicles and Community Resource Centers

• May include water, ice, blankets, solar powered USB chargers, onsite phone

charging, outage information, other resources

Rebates & Programs

• Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP)

• Rebates for whole home energy storage

• $50 rebate for small appliance & device battery backup

• $300–$500 generator rebate for well water dependent customers

• Fully subsidized Critical Care customer battery back-up (income qualified)

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• Ongoing community meetings held in high fire risk areas

• Meetings with cities, counties and tribal governments

• Outreach to essential service providers

• Advertising campaign in market educating customers

about preparing for power shutoffs

• Letters communicating potential power shutoffs planned

for all customers in service territory

TALKING WITH OUR COMMUNITIES

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• Engaging with our most vulnerable customers

• Partnering with community-based organizations and

community stakeholders such as independent living

centers and 211 organizations

• Supporting resiliency, working with existing

philanthropic partners and deploying customer

programs for PSPS preparedness, all-hazard

awareness, and emergency planning

• Encouraging customers to sign up for medical baseline

and critical care programs

REACHING VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES

28

INVESTING IN OUR COMMUNITIES

• Keeping our communities safer through

wildfire mitigation and preparedness

o First responder safety

o Community readiness

o Resiliency and disaster recovery

Thank You

August 6, 2020

Jonathan Woldemariam

San Diego Gas & Electric



2020 Public Safety Power

Shutoff Readiness

August 6, 2020

Build a Better Business

Agenda

1. 2019 Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) Overview

2. 2020 Fire Season Outlook

3. PSPS Mitigations – Potential Impact Reductions

4. Situational Awareness, Inspection, and Patrol Enhancements

5. Communications and Outreach

6. Coordination

7. Pandemic PSPS Preparations


Wildfire Risk in SDG&E’s Service Area

Service territory area in HFTD*64%

Customers in HFTD206K

Weather stations and 30

additional ones planned in 2020191

Overhead miles in HFTD3,500

61% Service territory underground

* HFTD – High Fire Threat District

53% Inventory trees in HFTD


2019 Public Safety Power Shutoff Overview

EVENT DETAILS OCT 10-11 OCT 24-25 OCT 30-31

METERS IMPACTED 395 19,000 27,700

CIRCUIT SEGMENTS 4 62 84

AVGERAGE METERS PER SEGMENT 99 333 304

AVERAGE OUTAGE DURATION 20 HRS 24 HRS 24 HRS

LONGEST OUTAGE DURATION 23 HRS 57 HRS 33 HRS

PEAK WINDS MPH 47 78 68

COMMUNITY RESOURCE CENTERS (CRCs) &

COMMUNITY INFORMATION CENTERS (CICs)

OPEN

2 CRCs 7 CRCs & 2 CICs 7 CRCs & 2 CICs

DAMAGE/ HAZARDS 0 5 10


2020 Fire Season Outlook

Southern California is not currently under drought

conditions, though Northern California is experiencing

significant drought.

Elevated fire potential will continue through remainder of

summer.

Periods of extreme fire potential are likely during Santa

Ana Wind conditions from late September through

November.

Official fire agency forecasts are predicting normal

“Significant Fire Potential” through September.


Wildfire Risk Mitigation | PSPS Enhancements

~30% reduction in customers impacted by PSPS as a result of additional enhancements

Units Solutions

PSPS Impact Reduction

(confirmed/ potential*)

22Sectionalizing devices

7,227 / 13,014*

30Weather stations

11Miles of undergrounding

774

3Reconfiguration/Ops

110 / 264*

4 Microgrids 353

300 Local generation 300

8,764 / 14,592*

Customer Impact Reductions

29 Communities

10 Schools

8 Fire Stations

1 Police Station

1 Urgent Care Facility

62 Communication Sites

8 Water Facilities

% PSPS Reduction

27.7k customers

*Have PSPS reductions that are weather dependent

30%


Community Resilience: Generator Programs

Generator Grant Program

(GGP)

Mobile Home Park Project

(MHP)

Generator Assistance

Program (GAP)

Whole House Generator

Project (WHP)

Medical Baseline Customers

1,250 (Grants)

MHPs located in HFTD(Lake Morena RV Park, Heavenly Oaks,

Stoneridge at Warner, & Pine Valley

Trailer Park)

HFTD 3, low income

Rebate program:

1,000 Rebates

Risk Spend Efficiency Model

300 Grants

Delivered 566 Portable Battery

units as of 7/24

Finalizing contract with third party

administrator

238 (27 CARE) rebates

downloaded out of 9000 customers

contacted

Finalizing contract with third party

administrator

Completion by Sept 30 Complete before end of 2020. Rebate Coupons Expire

12/31/2020

Initiate construction by September

Goal Zero Yeti 3000 + multiple re-

charging sources

Generac PWRcell Duromax 5500 + handful of other

widely available units

Generac 7173


Customer Resiliency Enhancement – Microgrids

Microgrid

NameLocation Generation Source Customers Installation Date

Cameron CornersLow income community in Tier 3

HFTD

Solar (825kWac) +

energy storage

(500kW/2,000kWh)

resource

Medical care facility, CAL FIRE station, telecom

switching center, gas (and propane) stations, a

school, libraries, convenience stores and local

food establishments

• Temporary Generation in-

service date

(ISD) 9/2020

• Final Complete System

ISD 7/2021

Ramona Air

Attack Base

Tier 2 HFTD and directly adjacent to a

low-income community

500kW/2,000 kWh

energy storage resource

CAL FIRE Air Support, United States Forest

Service Air Support, and fire-retardant mixing

stations

• Temporary Generation

installed


ISD 9/2020

Agua Caliente

Distribution line feeding this

community runs through Tier 3 HFTD

Solar (650kWac) +

energy storage

(600kW/2,500kWh)

resource

119 residential customers


service date

(ISD) 9/2020


ISD Spring 2021

Desert Circuit 221

Distribution line feeding this

community runs through Tier 3 HFTD

Solar (850kWac) +

energy storage

(700kW/3,250kW)

resource

218 residential customers and critical

customers (San Diego Country Fire Station and

Community Center)


service date

(ISD) 9/2020


ISD Spring 2021


Broader Situational Awareness – Fire Safe 3.0

30 additional Weather Stations –

enabling 30-second data reporting

AI-Based Forecasting System –

improving alerting capability

Improved Wildfire Modeling – new fuels,

vegetation & fire growth algorithms

New Academic Partnerships –

moving fire science forward

Satellite Wildfire Detection – fire

alert notifications in 20-30 seconds.

Additional Cameras – increasing

real-time situational awareness


Situational Awareness – PSPS Dashboard

PSPS Dashboard

Anemometer Device Gust

Alert

Speed 95/99 Per Forecast VRI Sub Dist/FPI Meters Community

Sill Hill 79-799R* 60 42 36/44 45 H WR ME/15 638 Descanso

Sill Hill 626 60 42 36/44 45 H WR ME/15 Descanso

Buckman Springs 441-25R 65 42 36/44 45 H GC ME/15 120 Campo

Buckman Springs 629 65 42 36/44 45 H GC ME/15 Campo

Harrison Park 227-7R* 35 42 37/44 45 M ST RA/15 471 Julian

Round Potrero 157-75R 36 40 34/42 41 M BAR ME/14 319 Portrero

Crestwood 445-23R* 33 40 34/42 41 L BUE, CW ME/15 1365 Boulevard

Crestwood 1215-12R 33 40 34/42 41 L BUE, CW ME/15 219 Boulevard

Hellhole Canyon 1030-987 13 60 50/62 41 L VC NE/13 32 Valley Center

Boulder Creek 79-799R* 10 55 44/57 41 M DE ME/14 20 Descanso

Campo 448-13R* 20 60 34/42 35 M CN ME/15 155 Potrero

Campo 50001 20 55 34/42 35 M CN ME/15 155 Potrero

White Star 445-21R* 20 42 37/44 41 M BUE ME/15 166 Boulevard

Tierra Del Sol 445-24R* 15 42 37/44 41 M BUE ME/15 165 Campo

Round Potrero 6923 30 40 34/42 41 M BAR ME/14 Potrero




Crestwood 6931 12 43 34/45 39 L BUE, CW ME/15 Boulevard

Crestwood 629 12 43 34/45 39 L BUE, CW ME/15 Boulevard

Crestwood 6958 12 43 34/45 39 L RIN, CTL ME/15 BoulevardBoulder Creek 626 10 55 44/57 41 M DE ME/14 Descanso

>= Alert Speed

Alert Wind Speed

Alert Speed -7 MPH

Enhancements

▪ Added Alert speed

▪ Alert speed warning at 7 mph

below threshold

▪ Enhanced color coding for

Alert speed warning and Alert

speed reached

▪ Single line for each device

and tie line

▪ De-energized circuit segment

moved to new dashboard

▪ Impacted meter count

▪ Community-friendly name


Public Communication and Outreach

SDG&E

Website

PSPS

Mobile App

Outbound

DialerRegional

Partners

Social

Media

Broadcast

Media

Digital

SignageNotifications

Community

Events

Med. Baseline

Outreach

Multi-channel engagement strategy to educate and inform customers and general public


Aerial Inspection, Patrol and Firefighting Enhancements

▪ Supporting PSPS

✓ H145 Airbus dual engine helicopter

✓ H135 Airbus dual engine helicopter (new in 2020)

✓ Call-When-Needed (CWN) helicopter available within 24 hours

• Additional CWN as needed through Helistream- sole patrol flight providers due to experience on SDG&E system

▪ Firefighting Helicopters

✓ Erickson Air Crane

✓ UH-60 Blackhawk

• Additional back-up UH-60 Blackhawk ensures no interruption of response capability due to maintenance requirements


Public Communication and Outreach

SDG&E

Website

PSPS

Mobile App

Outbound

DialerRegional

Partners

Social

Media

Broadcast

Media

Digital

SignageNotifications

Community

Events

Med. Baseline

Outreach

Multi-channel engagement strategy to educate and inform customers and general public


PSPS Mobile App PSPS Website

Real-time status updates - push notifications for saved locations.

Location-based status tracker -communicates PSPS status and estimated restoration times.

At-risk area map views - view available Community Resource Centers.

View address status without having to sign up for push notifications.

Accessible to all, including non-account holders.

New dashboard layout – user friendly.

Responsive design and coding for page optimization and built with low-bandwidth customers in mind.

Address look-up tool.

Dynamic list of communities impacted and potential shutoffs, including real-time customer counts.

Interactive GIS-based map.

Community Resource Center information.

PSPS Mobile App and Website

Digital channel enhancements, including a new mobile app and upgraded website


Support this vulnerable population by building strong relationships with the right community

partners, sharing situational awareness information and facilitating connections

1 Facilitate discussions and feedback solicitation

from AFN expert Advisory Councils and Working

Groups

2Establish support models to connect AFN customers

in the HFTD to one-stop-shop partner agencies

3 Expand network of 40+ Community Based

Organizations to idenitfy the needs of AFN customers

Partner Services

Assisted Transportation

Back-up Power

Resiliency Items

Food Security

Welfare

Checks

Temporary

Shelter

Readiness Support Amplified

Notifications

Approach

Access & Functional Needs (AFN) Population


Wildfire Resilience Webinars

▪ Hosted four Wildfire Resilience &

Operations Open House Webinars

▪ Representatives from Vegetation

Management, Meteorology, Emergency

Management, and Wildfire Resilience &

Operations

▪ Attended by 450+ engaged participants


Drive-Thru Wildfire Resilience Fairs

▪ Transitioned to a fully contactless delivery approach

• Modern drive-thru

• Digital signage

• Contactless customer surveys

▪ External Partners

• American Red Cross

• 211

• County Animal Services

• CALFIRE

Fair Location Cars Households

Ramona 375 500

Julian 443 480


• Direct communication with newly identified COVID-19

medical facilities (Ongoing)

• Meetings with Association of California Water Agencies

(pre-COVID-19) PSPS best practices discussion

(Quarterly)

• Outreach to critical business customers to confirm

contact information and back-up generation (Ongoing)

Enhanced Public Safety Partner Outreach

• Initial meetings with San Diego and Orange Counties’

Emergency Manager groups (January 2020)

• Briefings held with all Fire Agencies (Monthly)

• Law enforcement outreach (June 2020)

• Additional meetings to discuss a combined

PSPS/pandemic response (June 2020)

• Tribal emergency manager meeting (June 2020)

• Targeting PSPS outreach and briefings to local,

including tribal governments (Ongoing)

• Workshops with public safety partners (July/ August

2020)

• Training Exercise, including CalOES/CPUC/County

OES/CAL FIRE (September 2020)

Public Officials and Tribal Partners

Local Governments and First Responders

Planning Exercises

Critical Infrastructure


Coordination – GIS for Public Safety Partners

Cal OES GIS Essential Elements of Information

▪ Critical Care and/or Medical Baseline Customer Count

▪ Energization Status

• Monitoring

• De-energized

• Patrolling

• Re-energized

• Phase and Timing

▪ County

▪ Circuit Name

▪ Critical Infrastructure/Essential Customers

▪ Total Customers

Data transfer via secure GIS link


Pandemic PSPS Preparation

▪ Additional pandemic PSPS planning and preparedness

• Internal continuity assessment for safe execution of a PSPS response

• Processes updated to include pandemic planning

▪ COVID-19 specific exercises to stress test a remote PSPS response

• Multiple event scenarios - active wildfire with PSPS and pandemic

▪ Enhanced operational response for employee and community safety

• Refined plans to create a safer COVID-19 work environment

• Close public safety partnerships to ensure data-driven PSPS decision

making, prioritizing community safety


Pandemic PSPS Preparation

▪ Enhanced community preparedness, planning and outreach

• Contact campaign with all Medical Baseline (MBL) Customers in the High

Fire Threat District

• COVID-19 preparedness materials on PSPS website and outreach materials

▪ Committed to supporting customers and communities

• Prepared to facilitate drive-thru Community Resource Centers

• Follow social distancing and CDC guidelines

▪ Augmented coordination

• Twice weekly calls all three IOUs

• Weekly Emergency Management Directors call

• Bi-weekly CPUC/CalOES Joint IOU operational calls

August 6, 2020

Matt Pender

Pacific Gas & Electric



PG&E’s 2020 Wildfire Mitigation Plan Overview

Matt PenderCommunity Wildfire Safety Program

54Some of the measures included in this presentation are contemplated as additional precautionary measures intended to further reduce the risk of wildfires.

2020 Wildfire Mitigation Plan (WMP) Overview

Wildfire Risk Drivers

2020 WMP Objectives▪ Reduce Wildfire Ignition Potential▪ Improve Situational Awareness▪ Reduce Impact of PSPS Events

Year-to-Date Progress

PG&E’s COVID Response

>50%of PG&E’s service area is in high fire-threat districts (HFTD)

PG&E service area

Source: California Public Utilities Commission


Ignition Causes

Vegetation Equipment Failure(Conductor, Hardware, fuse, other)

Condition• Size and material• Areas of repair or

maintenance (could be tiered or above a specific frequency)

• Inspection results• Load profile• Age• Type / manufacturer

Location• Line voltage and

significance• Fire break requirements

Environmental Condition• For overhead, change in

condition of supporting poles and pole-top cross-arms

Condition• Type and species• Growth rates (including

re-growth response)• Vegetation density• Forestry clearance history• PG&E clearance history

(including vendor quality control results)

Location• Line voltage and

significance• Protected areas and right-

of-ways

Environmental Condition• Change in environmental

conditions (disease and pest infestations)

• Climate factors (drought, high winds)

• Soil condition

Factors affecting wildfire causes2019 PG&E CPUC-reportable fire causes in high fire-threat districts (HFTD)

48%

22%

11%

10% Veg Mgmt

Other

Equipment

Ignition Causes

Third Party

Location• Population density• Urban / rural• Historical contact

information• Historical third party

contact prevention efforts• Traffic patterns

Animal

Location• Animal population density• Type and species• Migratory patterns• Historical contact

information• Historical animal contact

prevention efforts

Animal

3rd Party

7%


Reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfires from electrical equipment by mitigating the known causes of ignitions.

Enhanced Vegetation Management

▪ Conduct 1,800 line-miles of 12 foot radial clearance and remove high-risk trees and overhangs

▪ Focus on expanding Rights-of-Way on lower voltage transmission to reduce wildfire risk and footprint of future PSPS events

▪ Clearance goes above and beyond State requirements

System Automation

▪ Continue to enable Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) devices and reclosers to allow operators to remotely prevent a line from automatically reenergizing after a fault

▪ Testing Rapid Earth Fault Current Limiter (REFCL) technology that can automatically reduce the electrical current in a downed wire.

Asset Repair and Inspection

▪ Incorporating enhanced inspection process and tools from 2019 Wildfire Safety Inspection Program into routine inspection program: annual inspection of Tier-3 areas and 3-year cycles for Tier-2

System Hardening

▪ Replacing 241 line-miles of existing overhead conductor through asset elimination, installing covered conductors with stronger and more resilient poles, or targeted undergrounding

Public Safety Power Shutoffs

▪ Utilizing PSPS during extremely high-risk conditions to eliminate ignition risks; 2020 PSPS events will be smaller in scope, shorter in duration, and smarter in performance

Objective #1: Reduce Wildfire Ignition Potential


Improving understanding of upcoming and real-time weather and fire conditions, to reduce fire ignitions, respond faster, and minimize PSPS event scope

Situational Awareness

▪ Create highly localized weather and fire risk forecasts (2x better granularity than 2019) and real-time conditions to identify high-risk locations, share with first responders and activate field response

▪ 400 weather stations this year, for a total of 1,000 by end of year

▪ 200 HD cameras this year, for a total of 335 by end of year

Wildfire Safety Operations Center and Meteorology

▪ Operate 24/7 Wildfire Safety Operations Center to monitor fire threats

▪ Coordinate and mobilize response efforts with first responders, government, media and others during potential or active wildfires

▪ Using satellite fire detection system that compiles data from 5 satellites and one of the largest, high-resolution climatological datasets in the utility industry

▪ Direct operational modifications and fire safety resources

Objective #2: Improve Situational Awareness


Objective #3: Reduce Impact of PSPS

SMALLER IN SIZE

Reduce the number of customers impacted by PSPS events by one-third compared to 2019

• Installing sectionalizing devices on the transmission and distribution systems capable of re-directing power and limiting the size of outages

• Developing microgrids that use generators to keep the lights on

• Conducting targeted undergrounding as part of system hardening

• “Islanding” Humboldt Bay Generating Station to provide power to the local community during nearby PSPS events

SHORTER IN LENGTH

Restore customers twice as fast after severe weather has passed

• Expanding helicopter fleet from 35 to 65 for aerial line inspections

• Commissioning two new airplanes for aerial line inspections

• Utilizing infrared equipment to inspect at night

SMARTER FOR CUSTOMERS

Provide more accurate/timely communications and additional resources

• Enhancing meteorology technology to pinpoint location and timing of severe weather

• Bolstering website capacity

• Improving customer alerts and notifications

• Upgrading Community Resource Centers

• Improving coordination with local agencies and critical service providers

Deliver more assistance before, during and after a PSPS event

• Working with the California Foundation for Independent Living Centers and other Community Based Organizations to support vulnerable customers

• Making it easier for eligible customers to join and stay in the Medical Baseline program

• Expanding in-language communications

GOAL INITIATIVES

Make any future PSPS events smaller in size, shorter in length and smarterfor our customers.


2020 Wildfire Mitigation Plan Progress

PROGRAM2019 COMPLETE

2020 TARGET

2020 PROGRESS

SYSTEM HARDENINGStronger poles, covered lines and/or targeted undergrounding

171LINE MILES

241LINE MILES

132LINE MILES

ENHANCED VEGETATION MANAGEMENTInspecting, pruning and removing vegetation

2,498LINE MILES

1,800LINE MILES

1,285LINE MILES

HIGH-DEFINITION CAMERASImproving real-time monitoring of high-risk areas and conditions

133CAMERAS

200CAMERAS

73CAMERAS

WEATHER STATIONSEnhancing weather forecasting and modeling

426STATIONS

400STATIONS

156STATIONS

SECTIONALIZING DEVICESSeparating the grid into smaller sections to increase flexibility and reduce customer impact of PSPS events

287DEVICES

592DEVICES (BY 9/1)

439DEVICES

TRANSMISSION LINE SWITCHESEnabling targeted transmission outages to lessen downstream customer impacts

0DEVICES

23DEVICES (BY 9/1)

36DEVICES

TEMPORARY GENERATIONGeneration to support customers during PSPS events

43MWs

300MWs

458 MWs ACQUIRED

SUBSTATIONS OPERATIONALLY READYto deploy temporary generation during PSPS events

0SUBSTATIONS

61SUBSTATIONS (BY

9/1)

42SUBSTATIONS

DATA AS OF 7/22


PG&E’s COVID Response

1. PG&E’s EOC was activated continuously from late February to July to direct company activities and response; we moved quickly to protect our customers and workers with appropriate safety protocols

2. Wildfire work has remained prioritized as essential and critical throughout our pandemic response

3. PG&E has modified our work plans and scheduling to minimize customer outages in recognition of customers sheltering at home

4. Wildfire & PSPS-related work remain on track despite logistical challenges and some disruptions with contractors and suppliers availability and capabilities

5. PG&E has pivoted customer and agency engagement strategies to virtual / webinar (from in-person)

6. PG&E has adjusted PSPS customer support programs during this time including:

• Creating multiple deployment strategies for CRCs (hardened sites, temporary sites, open-air tents and mobile, vehicle-based CRCs)

• Suspending requirement for physician signature to join or stay on the Medical Baseline program

What has not changed: Our efforts and focus on operating our system safely to reduce wildfire

risk while minimizing the impacts of PSPS on our customers.

PG&E is ready for wildfire season and ready to execute a PSPS event, if needed, at any time.

Thank YouFor questions regarding PG&E’s Community Wildfire Safety Program, please:

Call us at 1-866-743-6589

Email us at [email protected]

Visit pge.com/wildfiresafety

Visit www.pge.com/wildfiremitigationplan for a copy of the 2020 WMP and related details

mailto:[email protected]

http://pge.com/wildfiresafety

http://www.pge.com/wildfiremitigationplan

August 6, 2020

Robert Kerrigan

Los Angeles Department

of Water & Power



Transmission Line Fire Mitigation

Robert Kerrigan, Manager of Grid Operations

6th August 2020

Transmission Line Fire Mitigation

Instruction to Load Dispatchers 35

Operations of Transmission Lines During Fire and Red Flag Warnings

We look at 3 things…(this is the Reader’s Digest version)

64

1. California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) Tier 2 and Tier 3 areas

• Tier 2 fire-threat areas depict areas

where there is an elevated risk

(including likelihood and potential

impacts on people and property)

from utility associated wildfires.

• Tier 3 fire-threat areas depict areas

where there is an extreme risk

(including likelihood and potential

impacts on people and property)

from utility associated wildfires.

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2. National Weather Service (NWS) Red Flag Warnings

• A Red Flag Warning is issued for

weather events which may result in

extreme fire behavior that will

occur within 24 hours.

• A Fire Weather Watch is issued

when weather conditions could

exist in the next 12-72 hours.

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3. Transmission Lines

We then identify which

transmission lines run

through a Tier 2/3 area

that is under Red Flag

Warning by loading and

view overlays at the

beginning of each shift.

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Mitigation

If a transmission line that runs through Tier 2/3 area under

Red Flag Warning relays, we have the line inspected by

Transmission Patrol prior to testing the line.

If the Pacific DC runs through Tier 2/3 area under Red

Flag Warning, we coordinate with BPA to block restarts at

zero. If a block occurs, Transmission Patrol will inspect

prior to re-start.

As a vertically integrated utility, we can re-dispatch

generation as necessary to support a line outage while

monitoring our real time contingency analysis tools.

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August 6, 2020

Mike Miller

Bonneville Power

Administration



WECC Wildfire Webinar Series


BPA PresentationAugust 6, 2020

BPA system Quick Facts

BPA’s system is:

Primarily spread across 4 states (WA, OR, ID &

MT)

31 hydroelectric dams and one nuclear plant

Third-party wind and solar becoming a larger

source

Over 15,000 line miles

The Basis of the BPA Approach

Fire = Fuel + Ignition Source

= +

Conditions across the BPA system

Fuel

Vegetation Management

Annual audits and LiDAR complete and show good conditions

Right-of-ways well maintained

Soil conditions are typical (not overly dry) across the region

Ignition Source

Asset Management

Fire mitigation list

High-risk items completed (Marker balls, cross arms,…)

Medium-risk items are still being worked.

Current Wildfire Risks

Risks

Conditions are drying across the West

Farming hazards

Off right-of-way tree issues

Mitigations

More frequent inspections of farming areas

No manual reclose in red-flag areas (inspection required)

Educating the public about the dangers

COVID-19 Impacts on Wildfire

Preparations

Lost two months of wildfire mitigation work

Forced prioritization of high risk areas only

Safety considerations for high-infection rate areas

Smaller crews and less resource sharing

Summary

BPA is well prepared for the wildfire season

Fuel sources have been minimized

Ignition sources have been reduced based on risk

Operational mitigations are in place

Right-of-ways are seen as a fire break!

Thank You.

Fire = Fuel + Ignition Source

August 6, 2020

Larry Bellnap

California ISO



CAISO’s Role in PSPS

Larry Bellnap

Manager RT BA Operations

August 6, 2020

Overview of PSPS Process at CAISO

Page 81

Event forecasted up to 72 hours ahead

– Red Flag Warning declared by NWS

– Low humidity levels <20%

– Forecasted winds >25 MPH, with gusts >45 MPH

– Dry fuel

– Onsite observations

Notifications communicated to CAISO & Public

Outage Cards pushed to WebOMS

Update scope of event

De-energize – Distribution & Transmission

Restoration – Visual patrols for damage and debris

PSPS Event Information Template

Page 82

Impacts to the CAISO due to PSPS events

➢ Transmission Induced Generation Outages – TIGO

➢ Major Path derates

➢ Load Forecast modeling

➢ Overlap of PSPS events

➢ Differing communications – PTO vs OES

Page 83

Page 84

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Contact:

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Steve Ashbaker

Reliability Initiative Director

[email protected]

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Documents

August 6, 2020 Webinar...•Hazard tree removal (beyond traditional trim zone) •More than 20 in-house certified arborists •More than 650 vegetation management crews, totaling nearly