Category: Policy

Why Electric Utilities Needs to Be Held Accountable for Infrastructure Upkeep

Why Electric Utilities Needs to Be Held Accountable for Infrastructure Upkeep

01/01/20

“Why do electric utilities always need to be held accountable for maintaining their infrastructure?”

By ensuring that the general public receives their power, electric utilities hold some of the greatest infrastructure responsibility in the modern world. However, in order to show that they can handle this level of responsibility, they need to be responsible to look after the condition of their own assets. Failure to do this can great havoc on the general public. To illustrate, Pacific Gas and electricity in Northern California had been negligent about looking over their own transmission infrastructure for decades. As a result of this, one autumn day heavy winds broke one transmission line that would ignite what would become the paradise fire. This cost the company and the public tens of billions of dawn rulers of damages and dozens of lives were lost. This is Why Electric Utilities Needs to Be Held Accountable for Infrastructure Upkeep.

International Wildfire Cooperation

International Wildfire Cooperation

12/31/19

“How can countries across the world unite to solve the wildfire crisis?”

Wildfires are a global problem. Whether it be Paradise burning down in California or the seemingly-apocalyptic bushfires in Australia, all an area needs is a dry climate and high wind speeds for this problem to occur. Fire agencies around the world have taken out of this, and routinely send help to other countries when a catastrophe is going on. To illustrate, in 2018 138 firefighters from Australia and New Zealand were sent to the United States to help for almost 30 days and now in return the United States and Canada are sending 21 firefighters each to help out Australia with the trouble they’re going through right now. This is what International Wildfire Cooperation looks like.

Image credit wildfiretoday.com

How Growing Transmission Needs Can Be Detrimental for Resilience

How Growing Transmission Needs Can Be Detrimental for Resilience

12/29/19

“Why is the growing demand for electricity potentially a resilience liability?”

With the growing demand for renewable energy and electricity in general, transmission lines are expected to grow in the future. however, having more transmission lines also increases liability to natural disasters, whether it be from hurricanes or wildfires. This is How Growing Transmission Needs Can Be Detrimental for Resilience.

Why Resilience Needs More Common Definitions

Why Resilience Needs More Common Definitions

12/28/19

“Why does the field of resilience need to have more common definitions?”

The field of resilience is pipe nascent as a professional form and is growing rapidly. Because of this, people from a myriad of different fields are entering and contributing their own ideas born from their backgrounds. however, a lot of these people become siloed and isolated from each other, and as a result, can’t even agree upon some basic definitions! This is Why Resilience Needs More Common Definitions, so professionals can work together to advance the field. For example, what does it mean to be resilient and how does one build resilience are questions that need to be answered.

Why Undergrounding Transmission Lines Will Not Completely Stop Wildfires

Why Undergrounding Transmission Lines Will Not Completely Stop Wildfires

12/26/19

“Why will fires start even if there are no transmission lines above ground?”

Undergrounding transmission lines is often talked about as one of the most effective actions that can be taken to stop wildfires from occurring. However, even if the entire grid goes underground wildfires can start from a variety of other causes. These can include anywhere ranging from camping mistakes to a car causing an ignition. This is Why Undergrounding Transmission Lines Will Not Completely Stop Wildfires.

Image credit http://www.transmissionhub.com

How Insurance Companies Can Go Bankrupt from Climate Change

How Insurance Companies Can Go Bankrupt from Climate Change

12/23/19

“How can insurance companies go bankrupt just from climate change?”

Climate change is wreaking havoc on finances everywhere. And insurance companies are often responsible for securing the losses that their customers face. In 2018, the Paradise Fire in Northern California destroyed properties whose combined claims were valued at 64 million USD to the Merced Property & Casualty Company. The problem is, the company only had 23 million USD in assets! This caused the 112-year-old company to file for bankruptcy, illustrating How Insurance Companies Can Go Bankrupt from Climate Change. As time goes on, these companies will have to be more careful about their insurance policies and how their organizations operate.

How the Evolution of Early Warning Systems Are Already Saving Lives

How the Evolution of Early Warning Systems Are Already Saving Lives

12/22/19

“How are early warning systems to disasters already saving the lives of many?”

Environmental disasters are becoming more and more frequent with the advent of climate change. As a result governments around the world are looking into ways to build resilience in the new climate paradigm. One very simple yet effective method to implement is early warning systems. Early warning systems use sensors to monitor external conditions and parlay them into a mathematical algorithm to see if a disaster is coming. Examples could be the sensor that monitors the dryness of the air, the local temperature, and the wind speed to assess if a wildfire will begin and a system that measures the frequency and intensity of waves to check if there is an incoming tsunami. As the signal is triggered, nearby citizens can evacuate in time. When put in place, loss of life from disasters tend to go downwards. This can be seen from Zambia to Mumbai.

How Power Shutoffs Cause Economic Damage

How Power Shutoffs Cause Economic Damage

12/19/19

“How do power shutoffs cause economic damage?”

Power shutoffs are common in the developing world and are becoming frequently more common in the industrialized one due to climate change. When these do occur, all modern society of operations ground to a halt. Food goes rotten from lack of refrigeration, shops and workplaces have to close due to a lack of power access, and even interdependent infrastructures such as transportation and water can go down. All of these combined lead to great economic damage through lost commodities and working hours. This is How Power Shutoffs Cause Economic Damage.

Why Local Responders Need to Be Prepared to Deal with The Effects of Climate Change

Why Local Responders Need to Be Prepared to Deal with The Effects of Climate Change

12/17/19

“Why do local responders need to be prepared to deal with the localized effects of climate change?”

Local responders are a vital part of emergency management engagement. However, as the climate keeps on changing, local responders will need to be aware and trained in adapting to the ways that climate change affects their local environment, whether it be wildfires, floods, or heat waves. This is Why Local Responders Need to Be Prepared to Deal with The Effects of Climate Change.