More Power Cuts May Be Coming to North and Central California This Week

On Sunday, Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) announced it may have to perform another round of public safety power shutoffs (PSPSs) later this week due to forecasted extreme weather and dry conditions. And in an updated announcement released yesterday, PG&E said the potential PSPS is planned for varying start times depending on location beginning Wednesday evening and is expected to affect approximately 209,000 customers. It would impact portions of 15 counties in the Sierra Foothills and the North Bay, including Amador, Butte, Calaveras, El Dorado, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, San Mateo, Sierra, Sonoma, Sutter, and Yuba. As discussed in a WaterISAC portal posting on the situation on October 10, the purpose of a PSPS is to reduce the risk of igniting a wildfire, as in the past sparking electrical equipment has been blamed for triggering these incidents. PG&E conducted a PSPS about two weeks ago, in which large areas of North and Central California had their power turned off for a few days. The PSPS affected water and wastewater utilities in the area, which withstood significant impacts to their operations through the use of generators. WaterISAC is preparing a special report on the experience of water and wastewater utilities during the last PSPS that it plans to release to members in the near future. Read the article at CNN.