Wildfire season is approaching. While the overwhelming majority of wildfires are human-caused—nearly 90% between 2018 and 2022, according to Congressional Research Service—electric cooperatives recognize they have an important role to play in preventing wildfires.
All of Oregon’s electric cooperatives have board-approved wildfire mitigation plans in place, and Douglas Electric Cooperative works diligently to implement those plans. Safety— especially when it concerns how we mitigate wildfire—has always been our priority. But it is undeniable that, for a variety of reasons, the threat of wildfire has exponentially increased.
Recently, Oregon co-ops showcased their wildfire mitigation strategy at the invitation of the Oregon State Legislature, Oregon Public Utilities Commission, and the Oregon Rural Electric Cooperative Association Engineering and Operations conference. It’s a multi-pronged strategy, including burying power lines where possible, system hardening through more fire-resistant poles, aggressive vegetation management, and the use of cutting-edge technology, such as drones, to manage systems.
Just as we’re ready to respond to an emergency, we want our members to be prepared as well. That is why Oregon electric co-ops work with their members to remove trees to obtain a more defensible space and support local fire and first-responder organizations. While these are proactive measures, there are still many factors we cannot control. We cannot control where people throw cigarette butts and build campfires, or how public and private land near our systems are managed. We cannot control the weather or how long our fire season lasts.
More than ever before, we are committed to mitigating wildfire and preparing for an event we hope to never see.