Experts Say Burying Power Lines in California to Prevent Wildfires Would Be a Costly Solution | 2019-11-06 | Engineering News-Record

Experts Say Burying Power Lines in California to Prevent Wildfires Would Be a Costly Solution | 2019-11-06 | Engineering News-Record: As California wildfires flare throughout the state, critics are renewing focus on public utilities’ fire-risk management and prevention strategies. While power shutoffs and vegetation management are being used in the short term, communities are increasingly asking that power lines—the source of several recent wildfires—be buried underground. Though utility PG&E is burying distribution lines in Paradise, Calif., a town all but destroyed by the 2018 fires, utilities themselves say the cost to bury all lines is prohibitive. According to PG&E estimates, it costs approximately $3 million . . .