Oregon s fire season is starting earlier than it has in recorded history. How are agencies preparing?
With the entire state in some form of drought, Oregon s fire season is starting earlier than it has in recorded history. The season could be as devastating as last year s wildfires that swept over 1 million acres and destroyed thousands of homes, officials say.
The potential for disaster has spurred public officials across the state to start outreach early, promoting fire safety to Oregonians. Jack Harvel Senator Ron Wyden joins federal and state firefighting officials to discuss the wildfire season in Central Oregon. Everywhere you go the message is that the days ahead look like scorching temperatures bumping up against a cold reality, Sen. Ron Wyden said during a briefing with firefighters in Bend on June 3. These are not your grandfa
Dive Brief:
The Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC) last week issued a series of temporary rules to govern utility deployments of public safety power shutoffs (PSPS) as well as reporting requirements for the 2021 wildfire season.
The rules, which will apply to investor-owned utilities like Portland General Electric and Pacific Power, will remain in effect until mid-November. Regulators are simultaneously crafting permanent rules in collaboration with the utilities and communities.
Deploying safety shut-offs is an extreme decision, Commissioner Letha Tawney acknowledged during a meeting last week. At the same time, extreme weather conditions especially high wind tests even the best built and maintained electrical systems, she added.
Chance Johnson hugs Sarah Hunter the two loaded a horse into a trailer to be evacuated north on Sept. 9 2020 in Canby, Oregon. Four wildfires continued gaining ground in Clackamas County aided by high winds.
Oregonians may have to get used to the idea of losing power during wildfire seasons, something that became a greater possibility with the Public Utility Commission approval of temporary rules for cutting off electricity when power lines threaten to spark a fire
The temporary rules govern how investor-owned utilities should de-energize power lines during the 2021 wildfire season. Those utilities include Portland General Electric, Pacific Power, and Idaho Power. A “public safety power shut off” (PSPS) would be considered a last-resort tool to prevent wildfires and keep those already ignited from further spreading into communities when extreme and dangerous weather conditions are present.
May 21, 2021
wildfire oregon
The Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC) approved temporary rules for use during the 2021 wildfire season on public safety power shutoffs (PSPSs) and fire-related reporting requirements for investor-owned electric utilities, including Portland General Electric, Pacific Power, and Idaho Power. These rules provide near-term guidance for utilities to enhance the safety of Oregonians as more expansive permanent rules are further developed.
During Oregon’s historic 2020 wildfire season, nearly one million acres burned across the state and Portland General Electric implemented their first PSPS. A PSPS is a measure of last resort, designed to help keep people and communities in high fire-risk areas safe by proactively shutting off electricity during extreme and dangerous weather conditions when energized electrical lines could be damaged and ignite a fast-moving wildfire. In these rules, the PUC has set out expectations utilities must meet when utilizing