Energy and Wildfire

Policy Decisions

What should we be doing at SSU, in Sonoma County, and in California to deal with wildfire risk?

• We have incomplete information
• Each decision has costs and benefits

How much time, money, and effort should we put toward

• Shutting down power during wind events?
• Trimming vegetation around lines?
• Burying transmission lines?
• Increasing the barrier between wild areas and housing?
• Adding housing in urban areas?

Energy and Fire

Most fire events are caused by the uncontrolled conversion of electrical energy into thermal energy.

If vegetation completes an electrical circuit or a broken wire sends sparks into a flammable area, we’ll have a fire.

Social Expectations

• How do we communicate risk?
• What unsustainable habits and agreements does fire risk expose?
• What collective decisions would improve safety?
• What transformations should we work toward?