PG&E’s undergrounding program is an essential tool for wildfire prevention
To the editor:
October 23, 2023 – At PG&E we are deeply committed to doing everything we can to stop wildfires in the communities of Northern and Central California.
Burying power lines is the most effective solution to reducing the risk of wildfires caused by electrical equipment as it reduces the risk of ignitions in areas with the highest risk of wildfires by almost 98 percent. Undergrounding also makes power more reliable by reducing outages caused by winter storms and in some cases eliminating the need for safety shutoffs.
That’s why we’ve proposed moving 2,000 miles of overhead power lines underground by 2026.
However, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) wants to dismantle this critical safety program by reducing the proposed underground to just 200 miles system-wide.
We have seen the devastating toll that wildfires have taken on our communities. Our customers and local officials have told us time and time again that they want us to bury our power lines. This is because burial is the safest and most effective tool we have to prevent ignitions in high fire risk areas.
We urge CPUC to review its proposals and accept PG&E’s proposal to bury 2,000 miles through 2026. If you agree, please let the commission know by visiting www.cpuc.ca.gov/publiccomment.
Aaron Johnson
Region Vice President, Bay Area
PG&E
