Public Safety Priority: NV Energy unveils Natural Disaster Protection Plan

On February 28, NV Energy filed its Natural Disaster Protection Plan with the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada per Senate Bill 329, that outlines how the company plans to help protect the public from the impacts of natural disasters on its electric infrastructure that have been experienced in other Western states.

“Our state was forward-thinking in passing this critical legislation to help keep NV Energy customers, the public and our natural resources safe from the increased risk to our electric system associated with the changing climate,” said Kevin Geraghty, Senior Vice President of Operations for NV Energy. “This filing is the result of an unprecedented collaboration with more than 40 stakeholder groups from throughout the state, and reflects NV Energy’s commitment to the safety of our customers, our employees and our communities.”

NV Energy worked closely with statewide fire agencies, emergency responders, government agencies, telecommunications companies and others on the development of the NDPP. Additionally, six public outreach events and a Facebook Live session were held to distribute information about and solicit input for the plan.

While NV Energy provides what is among the most reliable service in the nation, the company is committed to continuing to improve its electric system. Work has already been completed to make the electric system more resilient.

The company has inspected nearly 20,000 wooden poles in the extreme and high fire risk areas of Nevada, and critical repairs and vegetation corrections identified through these inspections have been made. NV Energy will conduct additional work to further strengthen these poles and wires against the threats of climate change.

Additionally, the company has hired a fire mitigation specialist to ensure the effectiveness of our NDPP implementation, and is partnering with the University of Nevada, Reno to install a network of wildfire alert cameras to minimize fire response time.

The NDPP includes a comprehensive assessment of potential natural disasters and identification of the risks of wildfires and grassland fires; flooding and monsoons; high wind events; winter storms and blizzards; earthquakes; and landslides and avalanches.

The plan has been formulated to reduce risks through system inspections and repairs, vegetation management, equipment replacement and infrastructure additions. Potential risk mitigation measures outlined in the NDPP include:

— Targeted vegetation management programs that include the removal of ground vegetation in easements, pole grubbing so ground areas around the poles are clear of combustible vegetation, and removal of hazardous trees to minimize the chances of them striking power lines.

— System inspections and hardening efforts that include converting to equipment with less ignition risk, using covered conductor instead of bare wires, installing metal poles that are less vulnerable to natural disasters and other protective devices and rebuilding aging electric infrastructure.

— Enhancements to situational awareness to include implementation of wildfire alert cameras and weather stations in extreme fire-risk areas.

— Public safety preparation and prevention programs, including Public Safety Outage Management (PSOM) as a last resort in extreme fire risk areas. More information on PSOM can be found at nvenergy.com/psom.

While there is a cost associated with this plan, NV Energy remains committed to protecting its customers from the risk of natural disasters while keeping prices stable. Customer bills are lower today than they were a decade ago.
The PUCN has 180 days to review the NDPP filing. Please visit nvenergy.com/ndpp for additional information.

NV Energy provides a wide range of energy services to more than 1.4 million customers throughout Nevada and more than 56 million tourists annually. NV Energy, Inc. is a holding company whose principal subsidiaries, Nevada Power Company and Sierra Pacific Power Company, do business as NV Energy. NV Energy is headquartered in Las Vegas.